Your campaigning guide for local councils

Campaigning after the 2026 local elections

In May 2026 local elections have given us new councils in many parts of the country. Councils make decisions that shape our everyday lives. From warm, affordable homes and local transport to green spaces and jobs.

These elections are not the end of the road. In some cases, they’ve created opportunities for us to keep pushing for change, in others they’ve set new challenges for us to rise to — putting pressure on your council to hold firm on what has been achieved already.
 

Read: Council campaigning over summer 2026

What we're calling for

The Friends of the Earth policy team have developed a set of priority policy areas to focus on for climate and social justice. 

These issues are designed to be used as a starting point for your conversations around local priorities. 

Each one has a short explainer to help make them meaningful in your community and useful for engaging candidates.

Read: local elections policy demands

How to find out what matters to your community

Listening to people in our communities helps build support for community campaigns. 

Over summer 2026 we’ll continue to run listening activities and build connections in our communities. 

Get started with activities like running surveys, stalls, partner events and community meet ups. Or deepen what you’ve already done by collecting messages about key themes that have arisen.  

Through these activities you’ll find out the top local priorities that connect everyday concerns to climate justice. This will be a key tool for continuing to engage your community and councillors.

Read: listening to your community

What does your community want local decision makers to do?

Once your Charter for Hope is ready, use it to engage your councils or key councillors.  

There are lots of ways to do this depending on the political context you’re working in, including organising demonstrations and photo stunts, requesting meetings, sharing community priorities and asking your council to take action on them. 

Read: Show what matters to your community

Ask your local election candidates to work for you

With your charter of hope, you can start engaging local election candidates. This might include attending or organising hustings, sharing your charter in newsletters and social media and inviting candidates to commit to community priorities. The aim is to ensure candidates hear directly from the people they seek to represent, and that climate justice is part of the local election conversation.

Navigating political council changes

In some areas, councils can become more difficult to engage after the elections. This might be particularly true when political control has shifted or new councillors are opposed to climate action.

In these contexts, building relationships in your community, doing listening activities and having a Charter for Hope are especially important. These will help demonstrate that your asks are backed by your community and make it harder for councils to ignore local priorities.

How to campaign against attacks on climate policy

Need more help?

There’s support available at every stage of the campaign.

  1. Ask us on WhatsApp. Join the Friends of the Earth community and search for the local elections group
  2. Within the local elections group on WhatsApp search for ‘councils — change of circumstances’.
  3. Contact your local Friends of the Earth staff member for advice and support.