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Easter bin collections

All bin collections following a bank holiday will now take place one day late from 29 March to 6 April. See our Easter Bin Collection page for further details.

Online and telephone payments

Due to a fault, our online and telephone payment services are currently unavailable. We apologise for any inconvenience caused while our service provider works to fix the problem.

Become a councillor

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1. Thought about becoming a Councillor?

You may have wondered how people become Councillors or even thought about becoming one yourself.

Councillors play a very important role in society, giving a voice to their community and helping to shape future services for the benefit of local people.

We have 39 Councillors, representing the 13 wards of the City. Councillors, or Members of the Council as they are sometimes called, normally serve a term of 4 years. A third of the Councillors stand for election each year for three years. In the fourth year, elections for Devon County Council take place.

Councillors have a wide range of responsibilities.  The main ones are:

  • to help formulate Council policies
  • to represent the people of Exeter and particularly those in their ward
  • to be a community leader
  • to help people find their way through council services

By law, your employer must allow you to take a reasonable amount of time off during working hours, either paid or unpaid, to undertake your duties as a Councillor.

The amount of time will depend upon the nature of your Council responsibilities and the effect of your absence on your employer's business.  It is important for you to discuss this with your employer before you make the decision to stand for election.

The Council particularly welcomes candidates from under-represented groups such as younger people, women, black and minority ethnic people and people with disabilities.

Find out which Councillors represent the various wards by visiting our Councillor & Committee Information System.