Enable communities

Tools and advice for local groups and communities to form and interact online should be provided. They should be easy to use and provide a low barrier to entry for new entities. This would open up new opportunities for involvement with community groups.  Even where these groups are already interacting online via systems such as Facebook or twitter, the activity should be encouraged and made visible via the Local Authority’s sites. There should be no attempts to standardise or control these platforms but templates and aggregation services could be provided.

Host conversations

Conversation and debate are good.  They break down prejudices and preconceptions that can create barriers between communities.  The Local Authority should support conversations around any piece of content, whether that is a page, a picture, a paragraph an application form, or a service.

The host of a conversation does not control it. Rather, they guide, foster and nurture it.  Occasionally the host must refocus a conversation, or calm those who have become too passionate, or even eject those who break the house rules and become abusive.  Tools to enable staff to host conversations like this must be available for any conversation on a Local Authority website.