Envelopes filled with broken glass, petrol through the letterbox and anonymous, threatening phone calls.

These are just some of the ways councillors in Medway say they have been targeted while serving the public.

Several of them – representing both sides of the political divide – said they had received verbal abuse and rude gestures while out campaigning, while some had experienced more serious threats while in the comfort of their own homes.

The Local Government Association (LGA) is asking Westminster to consider making it easier for councillors to retract personal information such as telephone numbers and recommending money be provided for protection at ward surgeries.

We asked Medway councillors what their experience was like and whether they backed such a move.

Cllr Gareth Myton, group whip for Labour, says councillors have reported receiving envelopes filled with broken glass posted through their letterbox and their cars being defaced.

And while he says he often understands people being angry with councillors and in the heat of the moment saying things beyond the pale - it’s when it goes further and becomes a serious matter he worries.

Cllr Myton, who represents Fort Pitt ward, added: “I understand people get frustrated, we all do. Sometimes you might get on the phone with somebody, you might rant and rave and lose your rag and then later you calm down.

“But eventually you get to a point where it crosses a line.

“I talked to one councillor who has had at least two envelopes stuffed full of broken glass through their front door with their name on it. I don't think anybody would think that is the right thing to do.

“And you’ve got to take into account that it’s not just councillors at risk to that sort of attack, their partner or children or a pet effectively become a target too."

One of of the most contentious aspects of the changes the LGA is proposing is the availability of contact information.

“Obviously, the whole point of having addresses available is for transparency reasons, and I totally agree that local politicians should be as accountable and transparent as possible," Cllr Myton explained.

“But we’ve also got to consider people’s safety because, while this sort of thing doesn’t happen to every councillor, it does happen to a fair few and it can be incredibly concerning.”

Previously, members of parliament were required to have their home addresses publicly available but this was changed in 2008 and the LGA are arguing rules for councillors should be brought into line.

Cllr Myton argues the case for this has only grown over the years as politicians at all levels have faced increased threats and violence. The most extreme examples including the deaths of MPs Jo Cox and David Amess.

Rochester and Strood MP Kelly Tolhurst has previously warned how politicians have become “fair game” for vitriol which goes beyond normal criticism, having herself been targeted.

Elsewhere, in Dartford, MP Gareth Johnson had to get police involved after receiving a barrage of , a Conservative colleague and friend.

And in county hall, counselling has been offered to representatives on the receiving end of abuse for going about their daily duties.

Cllr Myton, first elected to Medway Council in May of last year, says social media, and the ease with which abuse can be sent, has helped contribute to a hostile political atmosphere.

He added: “I've seen people responding to council candidates of both political parties in quite an aggressive way on things like Twitter. It's politics, a bit of rough and tumble comes with it,

“But that rough and tumble shouldn't get to the point where people are getting bricks thrown through windows or subjected to hate mail or much, much worse, which unfortunately has happened.

“But the problem with social media is that you don’t actually see the person you’re speaking with, they’re disconnected from you when you’re saying this stuff.

“If you want to go to a councillor’s surgery and slag them off to their face, that takes a bit of confidence, or ringing them on the phone, that means you’re still actually interacting with a person.

“Whereas bashing out a tweet or comment on Facebook is dead easy to do and I think often people might say something and are egged on by others.

“I think to a certain extent social media ratchets up and makes people more angry.”

Tory leader Adrian Gulvin has been a senior member of his party and was a portfolio holder in the last administration in charge of Medway Council.

He says abuse has only increased over the last 30 years he’s been in local politics.

Cllr Gulvin, who represents Lordswood and Walderslade ward, explained he himself has been the subject of two very serious threats which had to be dealt with by police.

He said: “A general lack of politeness on the doorstep when you are out canvassing I can fully accept because people often get upset about things when any political party comes to their door.

“It’s understandable that residents may be angry about particular issues but there is a point where it takes a step too far.

“I have been involved in politics locally now for 30 years and I would say generally people’s attitudes towards local politicians and parties has got brusquer.

“But what’s more worrying is when it becomes more blatant threats.”

What’s more worrying is when it becomes more blatant threats

On two occasions, Cllr Gulvin has had to report threats to the police which have resulted in having to have his letterbox temporarily sealed due to fears of petrol being poured through.

He added: “The first was over the mosque that was proposed to be built in Gillingham.

"I do not think the planning application was particularly controversial, but there were some people in the room from Britain First that were trying to stare everybody down and when it got to that item I think people got a little nervous.

“I spoke very much in favour of it as I thought it would be a good building to have as a landmark and for inter-faith relations.

“A week or so later my wife picked up the telephone at home and there was a woman at the other end who said she was from Britain First and made a series of threats.

“She said a lot of people didn’t like what the council had done and they knew where we lived.

“It was incredibly unpleasant for my wife to have to go through out of the blue.

“I reported it and we had to have a visit from the police because a number of members of the planning committee had received similar threats.”

Another threat was after Cllr Gulvin made comments about gangs in Medway.

He said: “I was chair of the community safety partnership talking about the gangs in Medway and trying to put them into perspective by saying that although there are gangs here they’re not like the large gangs of places like London, Manchester, and Liverpool.

“I used a football analogy that the gangs we have here were the equivalent to Chatham Town rather than Manchester United.

“Well, there was posted on some social media site after that somebody had said 'If councillor Gulvin thinks were in the minor league, we’ll show him that we’re not'.”

“They also posted online a map of where my house was, my address, and gave a date and time to meet there.

“When I was shown the post, it was incredibly threatening and I was very concerned. It was taken quite seriously and we were recommended to have our letterbox sealed because it has happened where petrol is poured through the letterbox.

“It made us feel very uncomfortable. I had to go knock on my neighbours doors and explain that I’d had this threat and warn them there was the potential.

“I was given a hotline number to the police to get a fast response if anything did happen.”

When asked about whether he thought the suggestions made by the LGA are necessary he conceded they were as the police are genuinely worried about threats to councillors.

“And, of course, it’s not just councillors," Cllr Gulvin added. "When I got home and my wife told me about the phone call, that was quite upsetting. Family members should not have to put up with that sort of abuse.”

Cllr Gulvin says he knows many councillors face abuse and shouting in the street from unhappy residents - some of which is just a venting of frustration that has no serious threat behind it.

But he worries targeted abuse can intimidate people who are only trying to serve their local area.

He added: “I’m big enough and ugly enough where some things might not be as much of a worry, but if a younger councillor who’s living on their own receives these sorts of threats it can be incredibly intimidating.

“I’ve still got my address and phone number in the public domain because I think it’s important people should be able to contact me if they have problems in their neighbourhood, and thankfully the very serious threats are not common for me.

“But these threats do nag at the back of your mind and give you pause every so often because someone might want to hurt you or your loved ones.”

The LGA has lobbied the government to change laws around the display of local official’s home addresses due to the scale and severity of abuse they receive.

Currently the rules are a grey area with some councils removing councillor’s home addresses if they ask while others require evidence of serious threat to the official before taking the information down.

In June last year the LGA asked councillors across the country about whether they had faced abuse as a councillor.

Of the 815 who responded, three quarters said they had felt threatened or intimidated at some point during the election campaign.

The study also found councillors said the amount of abuse they were receiving had increased over the previous year.

The majority of Medway’s Labour group list the group’s offices at Gun Wharf as their contactable address however their phone numbers and emails are available for residents to contact.

But their addresses and phone numbers are legally required as part of their declarations of interest and can only be removed if it’s determined to be necessary.

In neighbouring Swale, many of their borough councillors list only an email address, with no office or home listed and no phone number to be contacted at.

The current legislation means that while MPs don’t have to publish their addresses, councillors do and in order to have it removed they have to file a request with the monitoring officer and show they are subject to violence or intimidation.

The definition of this is broad which has meant there is inconsistency in how it is applied, with some Monitoring Officers hiding addresses after one specific incident while others asking for a consistent pattern.

The LGA also wants the government to provide specific funding for security at councillors homes, such as security lights and cameras, as well as extending specialised police support that is available for MPs to councillors so they can arrange security at ward surgeries and meetings if necessary.

These requests were made ahead of a House of Lords debate on January 11 about parliamentary democracy and standards in public life where the lords discussed the risks local officials face.

In the debate, the upper chamber discussed the importance of protecting local politicians and officials from intimidation and violence and aimed to draw the government’s attention to the issue.