Voters heading to their local polling station in one Bucks village will be met with an unexpected surprise – a sinkhole that appears to have opened overnight.

People across Buckinghamshire and the UK will head to the polls to have their say on who the next government should be between 7am and 10pm today, July 4.

As well as reminding voters to bring their photo IDs to comply with new regulations, Bucks Council has issued a further warning to those living in the village of Pitstone in Leighton Buzzard after a sinkhole opened near a polling station last night.

The village’s polling station, Pitstone Memorial Hall on Vicarage Road, will be more difficult to reach via car after council crews were dispatched to fix a sinkhole in The Pightle area at around 9:30am this morning.

Workers are expected to remain onsite for the rest of the day and until 3:30pm tomorrow, July 5.

A traffic control system of multi-way light signals is in place along the B489 towards the memorial hall.

A spokesperson for the council said: “We are aware that a sinkhole has opened near the polling station in Pitstone.

“Access to the polling station is unhindered but please allow extra time if going there to vote. We apologise for any inconvenience.”