Following on from the community enterprise idea, another
thing sprung to mind.
In the UK,
elections typically happen on a Thursday, often closing schools to use their premises as the polling
station. This means that parents may need to find childcare, so they
either need to take time off work or have to pay for childcare. And for a
self employed person, time away from work means no wages.
The Church of Scotland has campaigned in the past for
international justice and democracy, for example in Burma. So should we set an
example by offering our buildings for use as polling stations.?
The sanctuary of many churches often lies empty all week, and there may also be room in the halls, so
I feel it shows a good example that we are encouraging democracy by allowing polling
to take place in our buildings. Also, it helps our communities by
ensuring the schools stay open and parents can carry on working.
We have a small mission hall that used to be used as a polling station and it was never an issue, then health and safety stepped in because there was no toilet. In rural locations there are still churches with no toilets! ( always a problem when you've driven a distance to get there! Thank good ness for big gravestones) that notwithstanding I think it's a great idea.
ReplyDeleteMy more rural church is used as a polling station (and a post office).
ReplyDelete