PEOPLE in Hartlepool are being offered an opportunity to prove how much they care for the town.

Elections are being held later this week to fill resident representative vacancies on Hartlepool Borough Council's Central and South Neighbourhood Consultative Forums.

There are three forums, covering the north, centre and south of the town, which meet every eight weeks and give residents a chance to ask questions and raise issues of concern affecting their neighbourhoods.

Each is made up of a number of councillors and resident representatives.

The elections for the Central Neighbourhood Consultative Forum will be held at 9.30am tomorrow, in the council chamber at the civic centre, while the South Neighbourhood Consultative Forum vote will take place on Friday at the Owton Manor Community Centre, in Wynyard Road, also at 9.30am.

Regular meetings of each forum will follow at 10.30am.

Dave Stubbs, the council's head of environmental management, said: "We recently held a round of elections but not all the places were filled, resulting in five resident representative vacancies on the Central Neighbourhood Consultative Forum.

"There are no resident representatives for the Elwick, Foggy Furze or Grange wards so nominations from people living in these areas would be particularly welcome.

"However, in the event of nominations not being received from these three wards, nominations will be accepted from any residents of the central area.

"The same applies in the case of the South Neighbourhood Forum where there are currently two resident representative vacancies."

Nominations can be made at the elections and people can nominate themselves.