Skip to main content

Petitions

Link copied

Start, sign or submit a petition to bring your concerns to Council's attention.

Man with glasses in business wear sitting at a desk using a laptop.

What is a petition?

A petition is a formal written request that shares a viewpoint or raises concerns or objections about an issue affecting the community.

Requirements of a petition

To be considered valid, a petition must:

  • make a request of Council
  • relate to a matter within Council’s jurisdiction
  • be signed by 3 or more people
  • contain the names and full residential addresses of the individual signatories
  • be written in the English language, or if in another language, be accompanied by an English translation, certified by a qualified translator as a true and correct translation of the petition
  • be written in a respectful tone and not contain offensive language
  • not request a grant of public money, or request that any debts to Council be cancelled
  • not promote commercial interests, advertisements or endorsements of any non-governmental agency
  • not contain any external links.
Visit the ePetition portal

Looking for something else

Contact Council

Community engagement

Make a complaint

Submitting a new petition

You can submit a new petition online by completing an ePetition form. 

An ePetition allows you to:  

access a broad target audience

monitor the number of signatures collected

easily collate signatures.

Paper petitions can also be submitted to Council.

Before you start
1 Check if the matter is urgent and can be resolved by other channels

As petitions can take a significant amount of time to process and investigate, consider if the matter is urgent. If so, some matters can be reported to Council and be resolved in a timely manner.

Report issues and maintenance
2 Check your issue isn't already being petitioned
View current online petitions
3 Check that the issue is within Council's jurisdiction

Petitions submitted to Council must relate to a matter that is within Council’s jurisdiction (that is, something we have the power to change).

If you’re unsure whether the issue is within Council’s jurisdiction, please contact Council by phoning 07 3403 8888 or sending an email to check.

If your proposed petition relates to something that’s not within Council’s jurisdiction, please contact the relevant organisation or government.

4 Check that the petition meets the criteria to be considered valid

Ensure the petition:

  • makes a request of Council
  • relates to a matter within Council’s jurisdiction
  • is written in the English language, or if in another language, is accompanied by an English translation, certified by a qualified translator as a true and correct translation of the petition
  • is written in a respectful tone and does not contain offensive language
  • does not request a grant of public money, or request that any debts to Council be cancelled
  • does not promote commercial interests, advertisements or endorsements of any non-governmental agency
  • does not contain any external links.

Important things to consider

  • You cannot submit a petition anonymously. If you are the Head Petitioner of an ePetition, your name will be published with the petition.
  • Any petition you create is likely to become a public record.
  • Do not include your personal details such as your phone number or address within the ‘discussion’ or ‘statement of action’ sections, as this information will be visible to others.
  • Do not include any external links within the petition.
Start an ePetition
information outline

Note

If you’ve put together a paper petition, you can submit it by forwarding it to Council.

What happens after submitting an ePetition 

Your petition will be reviewed and published on our website. An email will be sent to you advising your petition is live.

Council reserves the right to amend any ePetition to ensure compliance with the conditions for submitting an ePetition.

Signing a petition

Council's ePetition page allows community members to sign a petition online. 

To sign an ePetition:

  • select the ePetition you wish to support from Council’s current ePetitions page
  • select ‘sign ePetition’ at the bottom of the page
  • complete relevant sections
  • review and accept the Terms and Conditions
  • you will receive an email to verify your participation in the petition (please note ePetition confirmation emails may automatically be treated as spam or junk mail by some email providers)
  • your initials and suburb will be published as a signatory of the ePetition, for example GB Alderley. All other personal details will not appear online.

Who can sign a petition?

Anyone can sign a petition, as long as they:

  • have a legitimate interest in the issue being raised
  • supply their full name and residential address
  • have not signed the same petition before.
Woman sitting at an outdoor table with a laptop and phone.
The petition process
1 Presentation to Council

Once closed, the Lord Mayor or relevant Councillor will present the petition at the next Council meeting (except during recess periods, where petitions are forwarded directly to the relevant division for investigation).

Details of the petition will be recorded in the Council meeting minutes and a letter or email of acknowledgement will be sent to the Head Petitioner.

2 Investigation

The request will be investigated by the relevant work area, who will prepare a submission for the relevant Committee. On average, this is usually completed within 6 weeks, however it may take longer if the matters raised are complex.

3 Committee review and report

The relevant Committee will review the submission and the work area’s recommendation/s. A report is then submitted to Council for consideration.

4 Council decision and notification

Council will review the report and reach a decision, which will be noted in the Council minutes. The relevant work area will be advised of the decision and will commence action/s, if required.

For ePetitions, the Head Petitioner and all signatories will be notified of the outcome, and a response will be published on Council’s website.

For paper petitions, the Head Petitioner will be notified of the outcome, to share with other signatories.

During recess periods, Council’s Civic Cabinet may consider petitions as a delegate of Council.

Frequently asked questions

A petition needs at least 3 signatures, with full names and address details provided, to be considered valid by Council. 

Anyone can start or organise a petition.

If you’re dissatisfied with the outcome of a petition, contact Council or send us an email to discuss. 

The Head Petitioner may also wish to contact the investigating Council officer. Contact details can be found their acknowledgment letter or email.

You can also lodge a complaint with the Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

You can only sign on behalf of another person if they are physically incapable of entering their own details and have given you express permission to do so.

As Head Petitioner (the person who started the petition), your signature is automatically submitted when you lodge a new petition. 

Council's ePetition website will not allow you to sign a petition twice. It is fraudulent to represent yourself as someone else, whether that be as any other real or imaginary person.

If you’re having trouble signing an ePetition, or if your address or other personal details are not accepted when completing the signing process, you can contact Council or send us an email for assistance. 

Each email address used to sign an ePetition must be unique. If you share an email address with someone else and they want to sign the ePetition too, they’ll need to register another email address. 

To collect signatures for your petitions, you may wish to share petition on social media or via email.

Use language that is easy to understand and be clear about the petitions purpose so people can decide whether they want to sign it. 

Sign a current petition or start a new one Visit the ePetition portal