Agenda item

            The Committee considered the undernoted report:

 

“1.0     Purpose of Report or Summary of main Issues

 

1.1        The purpose of this report is to:

 

-       Update Committee on the POP engagement activity and the number of responses received.

-       To request a Member’s workshop on Thursday 18 May 2017 to outline the consultation carried out, provide initial feedback on the issues raised and set out the process for the formal reporting of the results.

 

2.0       Recommendations

 

            It is recommended that Committee:

 

-       Note the information set out in the report in relation to the responses received and the next stages in the LDP process.

-       Agree to the Members workshop on Thursday 18 May 2017.

-       Note the proposal for the formal POP consultation report be brought to Committee in June.

 

3.0       Main report

 

3.1       Key Issues

 

            Preferred Options Paper (POP)

 

            The Preferred Options Paper is a detailed document with 48 different Preferred Options grouped under the four Strategic Aims and was accompanied by a suite of supporting documents, comprising:

 

·        POP Summary or ‘easy read’ public document (made available in large print and Braille)

·        Youth POP

·        Information leaflet and pop-ups

·        18 Topic Papers underpinning the preferred options

·        Sustainability Appraisal Interim Report (Incorporating Strategic Environmental Assessment)

·        Non-Technical Summary for the Sustainability Appraisal (Incorporating Strategic Environmental Assessment)

·        Countryside Assessment

·        Equality Impact Assessment (EQIA) Screening

·        Commissioned reports on housing and population growth and economic growth

 

3.2       Hard copies of the Preferred Options Paper and the POP Summary were printed and used throughout the consultation period. All the additional supporting documents were available online and supplementary publicity materials such as the information leaflet and pop-ups (outlining the four POP themes) were utilised for the consultation events and ongoing engagement activity.  Tailored POP presentations were developed and delivered to audiences.

 

            POP engagement

 

3.3       The Statement of Community Involvement was published in June 2016 and sets out the minimum level of engagement required during the LDP. Given the overlap of the Belfast Agenda and POP consultation periods it was recognised that consistent and clear messages needed to be provided for stakeholders and effort was made to carry out joint consultation events. Whilst the POP had separate contact details for the consultation, the clarity of messages and signposting was in line with wider council activity.

 

3.4       In total there were 82 consultation events for the POP consultation which consisted of:

 

·        4 area events (with the Belfast Agenda and Local Investment Fund)

·        52 stakeholder consultations (including meetings with adjacent councils)

·        18 public facing engagement events

·        1 drop in session for Section 75 groups

·        7 internal events

·        Regular meetings with the LDP Steering Group and statutory consultees

 

3.5       In addition to the four area based events the team engaged with communities of interest (Youth Forum, Festival Forum, Senior’s Forum); organisations covering specific areas of the city (Belfast Area Partnerships, Neighbourhood Renewal Partnerships, Belfast Hills Partnership, Resident Groups); business organisations (BCCM, Belfast Chamber of Trade and Commence, Harbour Commissioners); professional bodies (RICS, Royal Society of Ulster Architects); and the adjacent councils.  There were also 18 public engagement events in which staff set up pop up information booths in busy public areas such as St George’s market, Castlecourt, Europa Station, Ulster Museum and the student unions in UU, BMC and QUB. 

 

3.6       The LDP Unit worked closely with the Equality Unit within council to develop an engagement programme with Section 75 groups and held a drop-in session, spoke at the S75 Insight Project and at the S75 Consultative Forum and held an event for disability groups in Grosvenor Hall.  The POP summary was also produced in large print format and Braille.

 

3.7       The programme of events was effective in both informing the public and facilitating general awareness of the broader plan process whilst encouraging responses and debate. Lessons learned from the POP consultation will inform the ongoing work to plan for the engagement as part of the next stage in the Plan development.

 

            Formal responses to the Preferred Options Paper

 

3.8       Formal responses to the POP were received via email, Citizen Space and hard copy.  In total:

 

·        44 responses were received via Citizen Space

·        100 responses were received via email

·        4 hardcopy responses were received

 

3.9       Working with the Youth Forum the Youth POP summary was distributed to 13 schools.  This generated an additional:

 

·        47 Citizen Space responses

·        58 hardcopy responses

 

            POP communications

 

3.10     A range of communications tools were used throughout the POP consultation period with an aim to reach as many audiences as possible and included:

 

·        Social media: Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

·        Online advertising: Facebook - boosted post, Google AdWords and display advertising.

·        Printed press advertising - Belfast Gazette, Irish News, Newsletter, Belfast Telegraph and Belfast Media Group (North Belfast News, Andersonstown News, South Belfast News).

·        Belfast City Council website

·        Press releases: Launch and close of consultation

·        Media coverage (Radio and TV)

 

3.11     The final data is still being collated but the initial communication analytics reveal the following:

 

·        The Facebook reach for the period running up to the close of the consultation reached 6,500 people.

·        There were 18,230 Twitter impressions (the number of times a tweet has been delivered to the Twitter stream) for the period running up to the close of the consultation with an average engagement rate of 1.65% (above 1% is considered a good rate of engagement).

·        Between 26 January - 20 April 2017 the POP webpage had 2,433 unique page views, with an average time of 08:26 minutes spent on the page.

 

            Analysis of POP data

 

3.12     Analysis of the information received from the POP consultation is underway and it is proposed to present the formal consultation report to the June Planning Committee. In order to provide members with the opportunity to explore some of the issues raised in the consultations, it is proposed that a Member’s workshop is arranged for Thursday 18 May 2017. The workshop will provide initial feedback on the issues raised, outline the process for the formal reporting of the consultation finding and highlight the main issues raised by respondents.

 

3.13     Financial & Resource Implications

 

            The resource implications will continue to be kept under review in relation to the five-year plan programme.

 

3.14     Equality or Good Relations Implications

 

            There are no Equality or Good Relations Implications.”

 

            The Committee noted the contents of the report.