Discussions and informal polls

Providing discussion and petition facilities can divert citizen frustration into productive channels.  Angry citizens to vent frustration while at the same time those with valid and common concerns can attract a core of support. There can also be a process of natural modifications to the proposal in the informal stage before it gets taken forward.

Each discussion and petition is an opportunity for elected members to listen to the concerns of the citizens and to channel the discussion into an appropriate channel such as a formal petition or an online surgery.

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.

Authority and authenticity

Social media and an increase in communications contexts is changing the characteristics of organisations’ authority and authenticity.

A feature of the widespread use of social media, and the way organisations engage with it, is that communications, at least in some domains, are becoming more personal and more ‘human’ in tone. In addition, organisations are realising that official messages published on their website can become isolated from the general flow of messages from individuals, which are frequently seen as more authentic and thus carry more influence. This raises issues as to the authority and authenticity of the institution’s voice in different contexts, which must be understood and appropriately employed by all staff who engage the public over digital channels.