Why are local election turnouts so low?
BBCWhichever way you look at it, the figures are not pretty - especially when you factor in what is at stake.
Even for the glass-half-full brigade, local election turnouts have never been anything to shout about.
In Redditch - the only part of Worcestershire with local elections on May 7 - the turnout was just 29% the last time people went to the polls to elect borough councillors in 2024.
That return is even worse when you factor in the context: between 2015 and 2025 the average English turnout in local elections hovered between 30% and 35%.
Yet these councils impact everyone's lives one way or another.
In Redditch the borough council sweeps the streets, empties the bins, cuts the grass, decides the licensing hours of pubs and clubs and rules on planning applications.
It oversees town centre regeneration, it's responsible for attracting investment, it decides where people are buried. It has a major say on house building. It provides the local leisure offer. The responsibilities are big.
The BBC spent a day in the town centre, asking people if they know the elections are on and if they intend to vote.
Leah Bailey, a Redditch resident, said: "I know the council is responsible for looking after the community and for collecting the bins and stuff like that.
"But if I'm honest I probably won't vote. Personally I'm a bit unsure who to vote for, I don't feel as though there's enough information out there."
Isabel Warman, a 32-year-old mum, said: "I feel if younger people had more information they'd be more inclined to vote, but I also think lots of them (the candidates) promise big things and don't really go through with it.
"I need to look at it a bit more before I decide what I'll be doing."
Zaine Jussab, an NHS worker, said: "I don't feel there's enough representation in politics for the younger generation, that's a real problem.
"Lots of things are important to me - crime, making sure young people have things to do, mental health."
Josh Beer, 27, said: "In my opinion too many of them (councillors) do one thing and say another - I can't say I'll be voting."
'Some people died for the vote'
The BBC found a sharp divide in opinion between the age groups - with older people more likely to be concerned about low turnouts.
Paul Beresford, 69, a retired engineer, said: "I do worry that some people don't seem to realise the power their vote has.
"You hear some people say 'it won't make a difference', but if we all thought that then where would we be as a society?
"Some people died for the right to vote. I've never not voted, myself."
Colin Smallman, 81, said: "I've only ever not voted when I've been out the country on holiday.
"If you don't vote, you can't complain about things. Whether it's a local election or a general one, I think it's really important.
"Some countries have compulsory voting. Maybe that is something we should look at?"
Redditch Borough Council is adopting increasingly sophisticated methods to increase awareness of the local elections, including a social media campaign.
The Labour-led authority said it was "confident" people know elections are taking place on May 7, when nine of the council's 27 seats will be for grabs.
A council spokesman said: "As part of the responsibility to run the election in Redditch we've sent poll cards to all eligible electors, including postal voters, and issued press releases.
"We are running a social media campaign and have updated our websites.
"Along with the campaigning from candidates - which of course is independent from the council - we are confident people know there is a borough council election on in Redditch."
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