What is a petition?

A petition (or joint letter) is a formal written request to Yarra City Council which has been signed by at least twelve people. Petitions express concern about an issue and request us to take action.

Any person may organise a petition, but only a Councillor can 'table' it at a meeting of Council. When petitions are sent to Council, they are provided to Councillors to give them the opportunity to table them.

What does a petition look like?

A petition has two components:

• a 'request' - usually a brief statement at the top of each page telling us about the issue of concern and what action you would like us to take.
• the 'petitioners' - a list of people supporting the petition, which each person providing their name, address and signature.

In order to satisfy the meeting rules, a petition must:

• not be written in pencil.
• contain the full text of the request on every page
• include the name, address and signature of every petitioner
• not be attached to any piece of paper other than another page of the petition

If you are the organiser of the petition, you should enclose a separate letter containing your contact details, so we can reply to you after the petition has been tabled.

How do I lodge a petition?

You can lodge your petition by sending it to:

Yarra City Council
Attn: Governance
PO Box 168
RICHMOND VIC 3121

You can also hand deliver your petition to the Richmond Town Hall, 333 Bridge Road, Richmond.

How is a petition formally received?

Once we receive your petition, we will arrange for it to be tabled at a council meeting by a Councillor.

It will then be formally received by us and referred to an officer for consideration and response or treated as an address to the Council n relation to a matter being considered at the Council meeting.

What about electronic petitions?

Electronic petitions can be submitted, but will not be formally tabled at a Council meeting. Instead, electronic petitions will be referred directly by the Chief Executive Officer to the relevant Council officer for consideration and response.

How do I lodge a petition to the Victorian or Federal Parliament?

If your want to lodge a petition to Victorian Parliament or Federal Parliament please contact them directly.