# The Senedd Cymru (Representation of the People) Order 2025, Article 71: Schools and rooms for Senedd election meetings

Extent: E+W

(1) Subject to the other provisions of this article, an individual or party list candidate at a Senedd election is entitled to the use of, free of charge, and at reasonable times between the last day on which notice of the election may be published in accordance with the table in rule 1(1) of Schedule 5 and the day preceding the date of the poll—
(a) a suitable room in the premises of a school to which this article applies, or
(b) any meeting room to which this article applies.
(2) The purpose for which an individual candidate may use a room in accordance with paragraph (1) is to hold public meetings to promote or procure the giving of votes at that election to that candidate.
(3) The purpose for which a party list candidate may use a room in accordance with paragraph (1) is to hold public meetings to promote or procure votes at that election for the registered political party on whose party list the candidate is included.
(4) Subject to paragraph (5), this article applies to—
(a) a community, foundation or voluntary aided school the premises of which are situated in the Senedd constituency for which the election is held, or an adjoining Senedd constituency, and
(b) a meeting room situated in the Senedd constituency for which the election is held, or an adjoining Senedd constituency, the expense of maintaining which is payable wholly or mainly out of public funds or by a body whose expenses are so payable.
(5) A candidate is not entitled under this article to the use of a room in school premises or a meeting room located outside the Senedd constituency if—
(a) there is a suitable room in premises within the constituency which are reasonably accessible from the same parts of the constituency as those rooms in premises located outside the constituency, and
(b) those premises are ones to which this article applies.
(6) Where a room is used for a meeting in pursuance of the rights conferred by this article, the person by whom or on whose behalf the meeting is convened—
(a) must defray any expenses incurred in preparing, warming, lighting and cleaning the room and providing attendance for the meeting and restoring the room to its usual condition after the meeting, and
(b) must defray any damage done to the room or the premises in which it is situated, or the furniture, fittings or apparatus in the room or premises.
(7) A candidate is not entitled to exercise the rights conferred by this article except on reasonable notice, and this article does not authorise any interference with the hours during which a room in school premises is used for education purposes, or any interference with the use of a meeting room either for the purposes of the person maintaining it or under a prior agreement for its letting for any purpose.
(8) Schedule 8 makes further provision with respect to the rights conferred by this article and the arrangements to be made for their exercise.
(9) For the purposes of this article, except those of paragraph (6)(b), the premises of a school does not include any private dwelling, and in this article—
(a) “dwelling” includes any part of a building which is occupied separately as a dwelling,
(b) “meeting room” means any room which it is the practice to let for public meetings, and
(c) “room” includes a hall, gallery or gymnasium.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/wsi/2025/864/article/71 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/senedd-cymru-representation-of-the-people-order-2025/article-71
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.