More than 176,000 people will now asked to register to vote in the biggest overhaul of the voting system in nearly a century.

Under the old voter registration system the “head of the household” registered everyone living in a property, but now voters will be responsible for their own registration.

Haringey Council has written to people to tell them about the changes and to inform people they need to make sure they are on electoral the register.

Nick Walkley, Haringey Council's chief executive and electoral registration officer, said:  “Being on the electoral register not only allows you to vote and have your say, it can also have an impact on things like your credit rating, so it is important to take action if you need to register again.”

The letter will also tell people whether or not they are on the open register. This is an extract of the electoral register, but is not used for elections, and can be bought by any person, company or organisation.

Voters can request to be excluded from the open register.