This has massive implications for engagement and consultation.  Ask yourself what you are doing with these tools for broadcasting and engaging?   Be good to hear from some good examples out there, especially in the social sector.

Today’s news is a multimedia spectacle. Advertising, marketing, public relations and interactive disciplines collide and overlap daily — sometimes fighting over who owns the space, other times bringing alternative perspectives to the table to create stronger programs…..more

Neighbourhood Planning

Neighbourhood Planning will allow communities, both residents, employees and businesses to come together to say where they think new development should go.   This means that developers will need to engage early, to ensure that local plans include provision for things like renewable energy schemes, residential developments, waste management and so forth.   They will need to work more closely with communities, on an ongoing basis, rather than parachute in new proposals.

Pre-Planning Consultation

The Act introduces a new requirement for developers to consult local communities before submitting a planning application.  Importantly this means that developers will need to demonstrate how they have amended schemes as a result of the consultation, when they submit their application.  Failure to do so will increase the risk that their application is not successful on the grounds of inadequate or flawed consultation processes.  More participatory and pro-active consultation methods will be needed avoid this.

Reform of the Community Infrastructure Levy

Local authorities are allowed to require developers to pay a levy when they build new developments.  The Localism Act will make the levy more flexible.  It will provide local authorities more freedom in setting the rate and the Government will have the power to require that some of the levy goes directly to the neighbourhoods where the development takes place.  This means that developers will have more of an opportunity to talk to local people (and their representatives) about how their communities can benefit directly from proposed developments.

Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects

The Act abolishes the Infrastructure Planning Commission and restores its responsibility for taking decisions on major infrastructure projects (like train lines, power stations and large scale wind farms) to Government ministers.  As political animals these ministers will be swayed by public opinion and presently too much, poorly designed, consultation creates the impression that opposition to proposed developments is well supported.  Whereas often the truth is that many local people are at best apathetic.  They have just  not been involved in the consultation properly; meaning that the voice of the most vocal is the only opinion that is being heard.  The Act therefore makes it even more critical that an inclusive and pro-active approach is taken to consultation that does not allow the vocal few to dominate local dialogues and inappropriately sway ministerial opinion.

These highlights from  the Act show how consultation and community engagement has been placed at the centre of the planning process. This also means that if developers do not raise their game these changes will play into the hands of the vocal few (these are not bad people by the way), severely undermining their ability to gain consent.   A recent study shows that 82% of local Councillors believe that planning consultations only hear the views of the most vocal.  Better consultation and a more collaborative approach to engagement is needed if developers are to  gain consent (and make their developments better).

Participate has designed an inclusive, proactive and engaging approach to community engagement that helps to increase the likelihood of consultation being successful.  This still involves speaking to the most vocal residents, who are a valid and important stakeholder, but also means adopting methods that seek to tap into the views of the full spectrum of stakeholders involved.  This we believe generates more useful insight that can be used by developers to improve proposals, demonstrating that they work together with local communities and thereby increasing their chances of gaining planning permission.

Tell us what you think?

Oh and if  you need our help then get in touch with jonathanbradley@participate.uk.com  or give us a call on 0845 094 8191.  Our Twitter handle is @participateuk .

A newly unveiled slogan and the logo of purple mountains atop a green swoosh isn’t proving so popular with some in the Pikes Peak region, where some people have taken to Facebook to voice their displeasure with Tuesday’s announcement.

Read more: http://www.gazette.com/articles/social-128656-media-campaign.html#ixzz1dxnSoDno

So here are a few tips on how planning consultations can avoid only capturing the views of the most vocal people:

• Take time out to understand more about the community involved.  Break this down into discreet groups.  Not just by age and gender and other demographics.  But also by interest or stake or by influence.  Then decide which groups to contact and how they should be involved.  Don’t expect them to come to you.
• Use different methods of engagement for each of these groups.  People are more likely to take part if you use methods that suit the way they communicate.  So, for example, don’t be surprised if younger people tend not to turn up to your public meeting.  Ask yourself if you would have gone to such a thing in your teens? 20s? 30s? 40s even?
• Avoid using open dialogue methods like drop in events or public meetings and nothing else.  Yes they are often necessary but they are also the best way to capture the views of the people most affected or in some cases the vocal minority.  Those who don’t know it affects them stay well away from such things
• Include proactive methods of engagement, like street engagement, or door knocking, or face-to-face surveys.  Go out to the people and make sure you speak to those who don’t think these issues affect them, when most of the time they do.  Do something interesting.  Give something away, like a coffee and a cake whilst having a discussion.
• Don’t rely on leaflets.  Ask yourself this.  If you felt (possibly wrongly) that a proposed heat from waste plant had no impact on your life then would you go out of your way to complete a consultation leaflet?  Probably not.  But often  it does affect people even if they don’t know it.  But if you had strong opinions and objected then you would certainly fill it in, and get your friends and family to as well.  You would become one of the most vocal.  So leaflets, and the same goes for postal questionnaires, tend more towards capturing the views of the most vocal.  The “am i boverds” stay well away.
• Use social media to reach out to new audiences.  To get your message across.  To challenge misconceptions and myths.  Be certain that the most vocal will have a Facebook page, they will be tweeting about how horrendous your scheme is.  Listen to what is being said on social media sites and engage. Opting out is not an option!
• You may need to provide incentives for some people to take part.   For many developments it is important that we here the voice of citizens not just the most local people.  Or a representative sample of them in reality. Unfortunately many people will not take part unless they are paid.  So to get a representative sample together, not just the most vocal, to take part in a focus group or a deliberative workshop or something similar then you need to provide an incentive, and often this is cash.  Some people don’t like this, but its a practical reality. Ask any market research professional.
• Make sure there is room for influence.  You need to make certain that it is clear how the consultation will be used to make changes to your plans, before they are submitted. And feedback.  People may not like your plans but things just get even worse if they think that your consultation is a sham too.  And remember to feedback.  Tell people what you did because of the consultation.  Otherwise they won’t want to take part, unless they are one of the most vocal.

• 3 of 4 Seniors and 82% of those 55-64 use social media
• 46% use social media to connect with friends
• 18% of parents say they use socnets to connect with their children
• 27% of siblings are using social media to stay connected
• Residents in ‘college towns’ are more likely to be ‘heavy’ Facebook users

And where America leads the UK often follows so expect similar adoption rates here over time if we are not there already (in some places).

Of course this revolution in how we communicate begs many questions for people who care about people and places.  For example, do you know what’s happening in your town right now?  What’s the sentiment in your city today? What do local people think of the services that you provide right now?  What’s the experience of the places you care about this week?  If you don’t know then you need to start listening.  To find out more contact jonathanbradley@participate.uk.com or @participateuk