Deciding what to measure and knowing if the results are good is one of the eternal challenges of PR.

by Mandy Pearse

I never thought I would miss the Audit Commission but at least the Best Value Performance Indicator (BVPI) survey all councils had to carry out until 2010 allowed us to compare resident satisfaction, value for money, how informed people were and their views on services

IpsosMori showed using the data there was a clear link between delivery of clean and green services and resident satisfaction and the LGA still provide a set of standard questions for Heads of Comms to use if they conduct Residents’ Surveys. But the numbers of Council conducting surveys has fallen in recent years.

We also know there is also a link between an engaged and informed workforce and their likelihood to advocate for the local authority. So it has been important for local authorities to ask these questions in staff surveys but the frequency of these surveys has also fallen off.

This means we have less attitudinal data.

Where are we with measurement?

The rise of digital communications has provided us with ways to track audience engagement and calls to action. But we do need to be clear on whether we are reaching our residents, tax payers and service users and if they act on our messages. Simply having high volumes of followers, sign ups or views tells us little about impact.

We also know that there are a set of key building blocks such as having a communications strategy, an organisational narrative and an annual communications and campaign plan which tend to be present in those Councils with good reputations.

But the amount of good quality data which we can use to compare is limited.

What does good look like in 2022?

I’m setting out to find out in the Public Sector Benchmarking Survey 2022. The survey is open to all UK Heads of Communication in councils, combined authorities and fire authorities. It is free to complete and you will get a summary of the results.

Please take the survey at

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/Comms2point0_benchmark

Mandy Pearse is director of Seashell Communications and former president of the CIPR. You can say hello on Twitter at @MandyPearse

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