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Improving Public Consultation

“People like us, serving people like you”

1. Why have a Consultation Strategy?

A strategy is simply – “A plan that gets us from where we are to where we want to be” (IDeA). This strategy is about how Worcestershire County Council will improve the way we consult with our local communities.

It is not always easy to get communications between the Council, and the communities that it represents and serves right. We must constantly seek to improve the ways in which we engage with and involve local people. This applies whether the Council is informing people about what is going on, seeking their views on proposals, testing ways to improve or design our services, or involving them as partners in the decision making process.

This is important because: One of our aims as a County Council is to provide a voice for the people of Worcestershire. Our values include listening to, learning from and communicating with our communities. Local people expect and deserve good quality services and decisions – consultation can help us to: ensure that services are targeted on what people want; improve take up; improve satisfaction measured over time; ensure that potential problems over changes are identified; learn from real experience and improve – continuously. 92% of our residents think it is important that the Council keeps them informed about it’s services and policies (MORI Communications Survey November 2002) There is a direct correlation between how well informed people feel and how satisfied they are with the Council: 75% of those who don’t feel well informed are dissatisfied with the Council overall, compared to only 21% of those who do feel well informed (MORI) All councils are required to consult on their services as part of best value and other statutory processes.

All this is quite a challenge! Moreover we must demonstrate that not only have we asked what people think but we have acted on what we have found out and that we’ve improved our services as a result.

This Strategy will re-inforce to local communities that the County Council is all about: -  “People like us serving people like you”

2. How this Strategy is organised

Worcestershire County Councils Consultation Strategy is comprised of 3 elements – which will improve the way we engage with our communities.

The Strategy - This document is our plan for improving public consultation in Worcestershire by using a range of techniques to consult with communities of interest and geography. The Toolkit - This is where you will find the detail – a wealth on information on how to plan and organise your consultation exercise, the legal requirements, how to engage groups that we have found hard to reach, methods to use, how to feedback your results, evaluate your consultation exercise and much more! The Website – Alongside the Strategy and Toolkit the website will also house “Ask Me! – Consultation Planner and Finder" This comprehensive and simple to use database will enable us to join up consultation exercises, plan what we do and share what we learn.

3. Key Messages

We want to give you some Key Messages – up front – so if you don’t go any further you can take this away with you: -

Apply the principles for good public consultation set out in Appendix 1!  - in particular ensure that the purpose of the consultation is clear, that consultees are clear about what can be changed and what cannot, that expectations are appropriately managed and that consultation is linked to a decision that the Authority intends to take. If you can’t (or wont!) use the results from consultation – don’t ask the question! Don’t just ask – ACT! – it is not enough to simply ask people their views, we need to feed back the results to participants, colleagues, and partners; and let people know what will happen next. We also need to evaluate what we do with the information we collect and learn lessons for the future. The Role of Members in Public Consultation - Members are a valuable resource. They are ambassadors for the Council, channels of communication to and advocates for local communities. Their role as community leaders gives Members a major input into the consultation process. Members will play a key role in the implementation of this Strategy through: instigating consultation initiatives; Cabinet Members with Responsibility approving the consultation process for major strategic exercises; providing feedback from their involvement in local groups, partnerships and forums, and through their unique relationship with local residents.  Managers must ensure when planning consultation that there are no surprises for local Members and that for strategic and potentially contentious consultation exercises that Cabinet Members with responsibility are involved early in the process and that Cabinet has signed off the proposals before you start – see section 6 below

4. The ladder of participation – Worcestershire’s model

The “ladder of participation “ is a simple model that helps us to understand what it is that we are seeking to achieve when we are engaging with the public.  All stages of the ladder are equally valid to use in different circumstances, depending on the issue concerned. Different methods of consultation and engagement will be appropriate for the different stages of the ladder. There are examples of all these in use in Worcestershire County Council.

Supporting independent community initiatives: you help others do what they want - perhaps within a framework of grants, advice and support provided by the resource holder. Acting together: not only do different interests decide together what is best, but they form a partnership to carry it out. Deciding together: you encourage others to provide some additional ideas and options, and join in deciding the best way forward. Consultation: you explain what can and cannot be changed, offer a number of options and listen to the feedback you get. Information: you tell people what is planned so that they are informed about what is happening. (Based on David Wilcox 1994)

5. Who will we consult? – understanding our communities

Communities can be defined in a number of ways, the most obvious of which is geography, but people belong to many different communities at different times of their lives. Users and citizens can be for example, members of communities of interest (commuters or churchgoers), demographic groups (young people or older people) or minority communities (black and minority ethnic groups, non-English speaking). You can find demographic information on Worcestershire’s communities on the Research & Intelligence Website. To consult successfully we need to understand the perspective of all the people we serve and the complexities of all our communities. In this way we are more able to plan for and respond to people’s needs.

In order to do this we will adopt a number of mechanisms to seek communities’ views. We will ensure in all our consultation exercises that we have clearly identified our target audience, and considered how we will reach groups who we traditionally find difficult to engage and whose views may therefore be excluded or overlooked.

In the Toolkit you will find a list of groups that we try to involve to ensure that we are Engaging Everyone in Worcestershire. We will be proactive in involving these groups in our consultation processes. We will:

Provide information in accessible formats and provide access to support for those who need help to participate in consultation – further guidance is available in Communicating with our Customers  (50.82 KB) Provide practical advice, information and contacts to those running consultation processes on how best to reach these groups Use existing networks and community organisations where appropriate to seek advice, views and opinions Be creative by using different methods of consultation Join up consultation exercises wherever possible and join with partners to avoid “consultation fatigue” Assess our success in reaching hard to reach groups by including this as a criteria in our evaluation of consultation

6. The role of Members in Public Consultation

Members are often very active in many spheres of the community, which can play a vital role in the Councils efforts to involve the public. This could be through attending parish councils or neighbourhood forums, representing the Council on special interest groups, or bringing new ideas from elsewhere through contacts with other councils.

Where local consultation is planned it is the responsibility of managers to ensure that Members are kept informed and become part of the process. The Area Democracy Team can provide you with help and advice on contacting and involving local Members in public consultation

Remember – Think Once, Think Twice, Think Local Member

Where strategic or potentially contentious consultation exercises are planned the Cabinet Member with Responsibility needs to be involved in the early planning stages - before the consultation starts. The Lead Member needs to be aware of, and have input to, the purpose of the exercise, the Project Plan  (57.00 KB) (following the model provided in the Toolkit)] and the key messages that the Council intends to communicate about this consultation.  For strategic consultations the proposals should be approved by Cabinet before the consultation is undertaken. Following the Project Plan will also ensure that appropriate feedback is provided to Members and participants, which identifies the main findings and any changes to the proposals that may be made in response to the consultation. If Cabinet have approved your consultation process they will certainly want to know the results – so that these can be weighed alongside other factors in the decision making process.

The Member / Officers Relations Protocol  (231.95 KB) gives further advice on the distinctive roles of Officers and Members

7. What will we consult about?

Consultation topics are likely to cover the following four categories: -

County Council Policies / Budgets Service Delivery and Best Value The needs of local communities Particular interest groups.

Each Directorate will identify consultation exercises planned over the next 12 months in its Directorate Performance Plan (DPP). This should include information about the purpose of the consultation, when the exercise will take place, and what is the decision making timetable that will follow from the exercise.

This information will be extracted from DPPs and the contact officer will be sent a database entry form to ensure that this exercise is entered on “Ask Me! – Consultation Planner and Finder” located on the Consultation Website. The database will enable you to identify if there are already planned consultations with a similar themes or timescales to which you could link, rather than start a separate consultation exercise. It will also identify already planned consultative meetings / forums which could be used for consulting on topics outside their usual remit.

Generally consultation should be linked to a decision that the Council intends to take. Although there will be exceptions to this it is important to be clear about the purpose of the exercise – and how the results will be used.

8. What will we do to consult our communities?

We will use existing and respected consultation mechanisms more effectively

Consultation can be defined as  “a process of dialogue that leads to a decision”.

The preference within the Authority will be to use ongoing consultation mechanisms whenever possible. Examples include: -

• Local Forums and other geographical area arrangements
• Citizens’ Panel
• Established Service User Groups and Networks

We will use all possible opportunities to “join up” consultation and to “piggy back” consultation exercises on to other events.

Examples of this include: -

• Using “statutory” consultations for wider purposes where feasible
• Using community events  (e.g. Skills on Show, Three Counties Show) to consult local people
• Using ongoing consultation mechanisms for issues outside their usual remit.  
• Exploring with partners the potential to co-ordinate consultation exercises across the County - this work will be taken forward through the Worcestershire Partnership.

We will innovate – use new ideas, best practice and learn from the experience of ourselves and others

• We will use e.technology to support and encourage consultation and debate
• We will use electronic voting and other methods that enable active participation.
• We will use the web to feed back outcomes from consultation

In exceptional circumstances we will organise specific consultations exercises

• By theme / topic  
• Where other methods will not support a Best Value Review

9. How will we communicate results from consultation?

The rationale behind public consultation is positive change and improved services. We will ensure that results and outcomes from consultation are communicated. We will be clear at the outset about the potential audiences who need to know the results, and use an appropriate mechanism to provide feedback.

We will ensure that the range of responses that we have received are reflected in the feedback that we provide. If respondents to consultation exercises believe that the results of the process have not been fairly reported they do have recourse to our corporate representations (comments, compliments or complaints) procedure.

The Toolkit provides further detail on the sorts of audiences to consider and the sorts of methods that could be used.

10. How will we ensure that consultation is effective and co-ordinated?

The Toolkit provides all the information that is needed to plan, run, analyse, feedback, and evaluate effective consultation exercises. The Toolkit provides information about the methods of consultation and involvement available, their relative strengths and weaknesses, how to use the appropriate method for the issue involved, and for where you are on the ladder of participation.

Advice is also included about adherence to the Data Protection Act, and other relevant legal frameworks.

It is expected that anyone planning consultation will make use of the Toolkit, thereby ensuring that high quality public consultation is achieved.

The business planning process will identify what consultation will take place.

Planned public consultation exercises, and any subsequent exercises that arise unplanned during the year, will be logged on the "Ask Me! – Consultation Planner and Finder". It is the lead officers responsibility to ensure that they are registered. Once registered they will move through the planned, open, results obtained and subsequent decisions cycle.

This will enable us to ensure that: -

Opportunities for “joining up” planned consultation exercises are identified We are not duplicating or repeating requests for information Results of consultation exercises are shared with colleagues and with the public A link is made between consultation and decisions Interests in future consultations can be registered.

We will carry out an annual “spot check” on the database to check that it is being used across the Council. We will also audit one or two exercises from each Directorate to check that the advice provided by the Toolkit has been used in practice.

11. How will we evaluate this Strategy

The “Toolkit” provides information about how to evaluate individual consultation exercises  The indicators below assess the effectiveness of this overall Strategy.

By the end of 2005 Worcestershire County Council will have improved the way it keeps residents informed, so that 42% of respondents will say Worcestershire County Council keeps residents very well informed / fairly well informed about the services and benefits it provides By the end of 2005 Worcestershire County Council will have improved the way it keeps residents informed, so that 28% of respondents will say Worcestershire County Council keeps residents well informed/ fairly well informed on the improvements planned for services. By the end of 2005 Worcestershire County Council will have improved the way it consults with and involves local people, so that the number of people who tend to agree / strongly agree with the statement  "the Council rarely takes local residents' views into consideration when making decisions that affect them" will have dropped from 42% to 36%. (Source - MORI Communications Survey November 2002 ). By the end of 2004 100% of all consultation exercises that are undertaken with the public and are identified in Directorate Performance Plans will be logged onto the website

12. Principles of Good Practice for Public Consultation

The principles that the County Council has adopted to ensure that our public consultation is of the highest quality are set out below.  The Toolkit follows each Principle and provides you with everything you need to know to put the principles into practice.

Appendix 1 - Worcestershire County Council - Principles of Good Practice for Public Consultation

Principle One - Consultation Should be Needed Before any new consultation begins, a thorough search will be made to find out whether relevant questions have already been asked of the public. We will avoid unnecessary repetition and duplication. Consultation will aim to seek informed public opinion and not just instant reaction. Whenever possible, the council’s communication mechanisms will be used alongside consultation to inform and stimulate public interest, particularly in relation to major strategic and County wide issues. Principle Two - Purpose should be clear – the decision principle Any consultation will contain a clear statement describing why it is being carried out and how the results will be used. It will be clear to consulteees what can be changed by responding to the consultation – and what cannot. Consultation will usually be related to a decision that the Council is intending to make, and that can be influenced by the result of that consultation. This principle will be intelligently applied, as there may be circumstances in which consultation not linked to a decision is appropriate. Principle Three - Consultation should be inclusive Consultation should aim to seek a representative cross-section of views. It is widely documented that some sections of the community are harder to engage in consultation than others. Therefore, appropriate action should be taken to ensure that the views of these individuals and groups are not excluded or overlooked. The toolkit provides practical suggestions and contacts that enable this to be achieved. Principle Four - Consultation should be well planned and timely Major consultations will be identified in advance through the Council’s business planning process. Consultees will be given adequate time to prepare their response. It is recognised that the length of time will vary depending on the time of year and the level of response that is being sought. Sufficient time will be allowed for the results of consultation to be collated, analysed and considered, so that the results of consultation feed directly into the decision making process. Principle Five - Methods should be appropriate and well managed The council will use a wide range of public consultation methods. They will be used appropriately, reflecting the strengths and weaknesses of each method and will be managed with a clear understanding of the particular skills, knowledge and resources that consultation requires. The toolkit will assist with this. Principle Six - Results should be acknowledged and fully considered The full range of views expressed during consultation will be acknowledged and attention drawn to areas of agreement and disagreement. The results of public consultation will be weighed carefully together with other evidence and considerations before decisions are made. Principle Seven - Accessible feedback should be given Accessible feedback will be provided both on the results of consultation and on how they have been used, in order to encourage greater public participation in the future. Principle Eight - Effectiveness should be evaluated The effectiveness of major public consultation will be evaluated and the results shared to encourage broader lessons to be learned. Evaluation will consider not only the number of responses received but also the quality, cost and timeliness of the consultation and the overall usefulness of the results in helping to inform decisions. Good practice principles adapted from Bristol City Council Consultation Strategy

13. To find out more about this Strategy contact:

Sophie Gilkes – Marketing Development Officer - 01905 822057 or email sgilkes@worcestershire.gov.uk