Tracing People

At Tameside Libraries Information Service, we have a number of resources which may be able to help you if you are trying to trace someone. This page is a guide to the information available.

Please note that if you are trying to trace your family tree, you should contact Tameside Local Studies and Archives Centre.

Electoral Roll

At Tameside Libraries Information Service, we hold the current edition of the full electoral roll for all wards in Tameside.

Please note that electoral registers are arranged in order of polling district and, within each polling district, in street order . The electoral roll will tell you who lives at a particular house (provided that person is registered) but you are unable to search just by a person's name. There is no publicly available Council-produced list of Tameside residents arranged by name.

Electoral registers contain information gathered the previous October. If you know that the person you are seeking would probably not have registered as a Tameside voter in the previous October, it likely that they will not be registered at their current address.

If you want to find out more about the Electoral Roll, visit the Tameside Council Electoral Registration page.

Tameside Libraries Information Service only holds the current electoral roll, if you wish to consult historical electoral rolls, you will need to contact Tameside Local Studies and Archives Centre.

You should also note that Tameside Libraries Information Services only holds the electoral roll for wards in Tameside. Many public libraries hold the electoral roll for their area so, if you need to consult an electoral roll for somewhere outside Tameside, it may be best to contact the library in that area.

A Point to Note:
The Electoral Roll may only be reproduced by making hand-written notes. You are not allowed to make photocopies of the Electoral Roll. This is a legal requirement.

Data Protection

Data Protection legislation prevents Council departments from divulging any personal information which they may hold about Tameside residents, with the sole exception of the electoral register . The electoral register may only be published in the street-by-street format to fulfil its legal purpose.

Corporate 192

At Tameside Libraries Information Service, we subscribe to Corporate 192. This includes an online listing of electoral roll data from 2001 onwards which contains over 100 million entries. Unlike the electoral rolls we hold at the library, it can be searched by name and covers the whole of the UK.

Corporate 192 is a subscription service, available only to registered subscribers, like Tameside Libraries Information Service.

Telephone Directories

Tameside Libraries Information Service holds telephone directories for the whole of the UK as well as the Channel Islands, the Irish Republic and the Isle of Man. We also take the Hull White Pages.

Please note that there is no guarantee that you will be able to find the person you are looking for in the telephone directories; a number of people, who have opted to be ex-directory, are not listed.

It is also worth noting that there is no telephone directory or index available for mobile phones.

Business Directories

Another possible avenue, if you are having difficulty tracing an individual, is to consider whether or not they may have business connections. If the person in question is the director, major shareholder or company secretary of a UK or Irish firm, it may be possible for us to find some information about them using our FAME business database.

For further information about the kind of business resources we hold, visit our Business Information page.

Other sources of information

If you are having trouble tracing an individual, there are a few other sources you could try to track them down:

Membership of associations - It is worth considering whether any clubs, professional bodies, school/college associations, voluntary groups, businesses, present/previous employers, or trade unions to which the person may belong might have an up-to-date address. Such organisations, while unwilling to divulge personal details, may be prepared to forward correspondence, or notify the person that you were seeking their whereabouts, without compromising the person's privacy.

Present resident at last-known address - He or she may have a forwarding address, or may be able to direct you to the estate agent or solicitor who acted for the person sought.

Neighbours past and present - You can use the current electoral register to note the names of neighbours at the last-known address. Previous editions of the local electoral registers are held in Tameside's Local Studies and Archives Unit. Neighbours or friends in the area may be able to give new information or confirm known facts.

Unusual surnames/alternative spellings - Other occurrences in the telephone directory of an unusual surname may well be family or relations of the person sought. Also, ensure that you have double checked all possible alternative spellings of the surname you are looking for.

Alternative methods

Private Investigation Agencies - These often advertise in the Yellow Pages. Tameside Libraries Information Service holds Yellow Pages for the whole of the UK.

The Salvation Army Family Tracing Service - This service is solely for use by families of the person sought. Application forms are available from Salvation Army centres or from the headquarters of the Salvation Army's Social Services Investigation Department Tel: 0845 634 4747.

Local newspapers - Advertisements in personal columns sometimes produce results, often from people acquainted with the person sought. Some local radio stations broadcast regular programmes which aim to reunite friends who have lost touch.

The Internet - Websites may help you to find the person you are looking for. Friends Reunited is a very well-known website, which aims to reunite old school friends.