PRO-FORMA

BRIEFING PAPER FOR MAYOR’S ADVISORY BOARD

TITLE

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AUTHOR

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ITEM NO

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MAYOR’S ADVISORY BOARD MEETING DATE

Title of Subject Matter

Communications quarterly and End of Year performance report /

Authors name, Directorate /Job Title & ext.

Takki Sulaiman /

(To be completed by the Mayor’s Advisory Board Office)

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2nd May 2012

1.INTRODUCTION/SUMMARY

1.1This quarterly and end of year report highlights a period of intense media activity and scrutiny. Performance has remained strong due to positive reports in local media outlets and in the regional/national broadcast media.

1.2The report highlights the overwhelmingly positive coverage for the council for the period January to March 2012 with 91% of coverage positive or neutral. The annual total of positive or neutral coverage is at 93% which 4 points above target.

1.3Key issues during the quarter include the Standard investigations and rebuttal, the Sex Establishment consultation, a budget to protect frontline services and Blackwall Reach8.

  1. FOR MAYOR’S ADVISORY BOARD TO CONSIDER

2.1 MAB is asked to note the report and comment on areas for action.

3. BACKGROUND

3.1This report provides statistics and analysis of the council’s in-house Communications Team’s media performance over the fourth quarter of 2011/2012.

3.2In addition to details for the final quarter of 2011/12, this report also includes comparative analysis with performance for the whole year (2011/12) with the previous year (2010/11). This can be found at Paragraph 8.

3.3 The report sets out performance on the two key elements of the team’s media work: proactive and reactive. The proactive side will cover the media releases issued by the team, with the reactive side looking at the enquiries the team has received over the fourth quarter.

3.4Coverage will also be assessed on whether it is positive, negative or neutral for the council; as well as how it was achieved.

3.5The statistics included in this report have been compiled based on weekly monitoring of media coverage and outputs, which is carried out by members of the Communications Team on a rota basis. To support this process, the CommunicationsTeam use a media monitoring programme called Precise to capture and assess all media coverage relating to the council; and a programme called Glide to record enquiries that come in to the team and also distribute media releases.

3.6A summary of how media coverage is assessed by the team is included as Annex A to this report.

4. HEADLINE STATISTICS

4.1The following headline statistics provide an overview of the Communication Team’s performance over the final quarter of the year.

  • 716 pieces of media coverage in total
  • 347 pieces of positive coverage
  • 654 pieces of positive/neutral coverage
  • 62 pieces of negative coverage
  • 91% proportion of positive/neutral coverage (key performance indicator)
  • 326 media enquiries received
  • 111 media releases issued
  • 315 pieces of coverage achieved by proactive work
  • 93 pieces of coverage resulting from reactive work i.e. media enquiries.

4.2Comparative data on how these headline statistics compare to those of the first, second and third quarter of the year are provided below:

Fig. 1

Coverage / Total 2011/12
Q1 / Q2 / Q3 / Q4
Positive / 411 / 421 / 843 / 347 / 2022
Pos/Neutral / 603 / 646 / 960 / 654 / 2863
Negative / 54 / 43 / 27 / 62 / 186
Proactive / 387 / 394 / 466 / 315 / 1562
Reactive / 69 / 57 / 49 / 93 / 268
Proportion of positive and neutral coverage / 92% / 93% / 97% / 91% / 93%

4.3Figure one shows how the team’s performance has remained at a high average level over the course of the year, with a spike in Q3 as a result of coverage relating to the council’s decision on charges for adult social care.

4.4Whilst proactive outputs have reduced in Q4, this can be attributed to the increase in reactive work.

Fig. 2

Q1 / Q2 / Q3 / Q4 / Total 2011/12
Enquires / 204 / 213 / 243 / 326 / 986
Releases / 133 / 152 / 118 / 111 / 512

4.5Figure two shows that the number of media enquiries the team received during the last quarter increased significantly.

4.6The increased volume in media enquiries in part explains the decrease in output in relation to media releases, as the team dealt with a higher number of enquiries in this final quarter.

4.7The average number of enquiries dealt with per quarter over the course of the year was 246, with the average number of releases per quarter 128.

Month by month analysis

5.January 2012

5.1A breakdown of coverage statistics for the four week period over January is provided below:

Fig. 3

January / Total
Positive / 25 / 39 / 22 / 15 / 101
Neutral / 4 / 31 / 19 / 10 / 64
Negative / 1 / 5 / 0 / 6 / 12
Proactive / 23 / 33 / 23 / 9 / 88
Reactive / 1 / 9 / 7 / 7 / 24
No contact / 6 / 33 / 11 / 15 / 65
30 / 75 / 41 / 31 / 177

5.2 In total, 177 pieces of coverage were achieved with 93% deemed either positive or neutral for the council.

5.3Half of all coverage (50%) was achieved as a result of proactive outputs from the Communications Team.

5.4 A breakdown of media releases issued over January, broken down by Directorate, is provided below.

Fig. 4

January / Total
AHWB / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
Chief Exec / 0 / 0 / 1 / 2 / 3
Resources / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
CSF / 0 / 3 / 0 / 1 / 4
CLC / 0 / 6 / 5 / 4 / 15
D&R / 0 / 1 / 3 / 1 / 5
0 / 10 / 9 / 8 / 27

5.5 In total, 27 media releases were issued during January at an average of 7 per week. The lack of media releases in the first week reflects the impact of the Christmas closure of the council offices in terms of generating stories.

5.6 Of the 27 releases, 55% covered issues relating to the CLC directorate, with D&R making up the second highest proportion of releases with 19% of the total.

5.7 Media releases were distributed on the following key issues during January, which will go some way to explaining the above statistics:

  • Vision for Blackwall Reach transformation unveiled;
  • 200 days to go! Tower Hamlets youngsters cycle to celebrate Olympic countdown;
  • Mayor’s grant goes to cash-strapped students; and
  • Olympic hopeful supports Tower Hamlets City Bid.

5.8 A breakdown of media coverage by the type of outlet is provided below.

Fig. 5

January / Total
Local / 11 / 15 / 12 / 22 / 60
National (print and broadcast) / 11 / 3 / 0 / 3 / 17
Regional (print and broadcast) / 0 / 2 / 1 / 0 / 3
Ethnic / 3 / 27 / 19 / 0 / 49
Trade / 0 / 4 / 3 / 0 / 7
Online / 5 / 24 / 6 / 6 / 41
30 / 75 / 41 / 31 / 177

5.9Of the 177 pieces of media coverage achieved in January, the highest proportion featured in the local media (34%), followed by the ethnic media (28%). Communications has a largely positive relationship with both sectors, so these figures are expected.

5.10A breakdown of the reactive work the CommunicationsTeam carried out during January is provided below:

Fig. 6

January / Total
AHWB / 0 / 0 / 0 / 1 / 1
Chief Exec / 1 / 9 / 4 / 5 / 19
Resources / 3 / 1 / 0 / 2 / 6
CSF / 7 / 12 / 1 / 5 / 25
CLC / 8 / 6 / 7 / 13 / 34
D&R / 3 / 3 / 5 / 7 / 18
22 / 31 / 17 / 33 / 103

5.11In total the team worked on 103 enquiries during January, an average of 26 per week.

5.12As with outputs, the majority of attention from the media focused on CLC issues (33%), although Children, Schools and Families also received a high number of enquiries (24%).

5.13Examples of the issues media enquiries related to during January include:

  • Child poverty, following a poverty map released as part of the End Child Poverty campaign;
  • The council’s sex establishment consultation;
  • Funding for additional police officers; and
  • The court case involving a former councillor.

6.February 2012

6.1A breakdown of coverage statistics for the four week period over February is provided below:

Fig. 7

February / Total
Positive / 37 / 39 / 22 / 40 / 138
Neutral / 35 / 42 / 40 / 23 / 140
Negative / 3 / 10 / 9 / 11 / 33
Proactive / 38 / 34 / 20 / 35 / 127
Reactive / 7 / 11 / 15 / 9 / 42
No contact / 30 / 46 / 36 / 30 / 142
75 / 91 / 71 / 74 / 311

6.2A total of 311 pieces of media coverage was achieved during February, with 89% deemed either positive or neutral for the council.

6.3Over a third (41%) of this coverage was achieved as a result of proactive work by the Communications Team.

6.4A breakdown of the media releases issued during February – broken down by Directorate – is provided below:

Fig. 8

February / Total
AHWB / 1 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 1
Chief Exec / 0 / 1 / 2 / 0 / 3
Resources / 0 / 0 / 1 / 2 / 3
CSF / 4 / 3 / 1 / 0 / 8
CLC / 8 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 23
D&R / 2 / 0 / 1 / 1 / 4
15 / 8 / 10 / 9 / 42

6.5In total, 42 media releases were issued, at an average of 11 per week.

6.6Again, CLC provided the subject matter for the highest proportion of media releases issued by the team (55%), with CSF next highest (19%).

6.7Media releases were distributed on the following key issues during February, which will go some way to explaining the above statistics:

  • New Tower Hamlets budget announced to protect residents from Government cuts;
  • What a year for our Young Mayor;
  • Hundreds of Olympic Jobs on offer – Mile End Jobs Fair; and
  • Team USA to train in Tower Hamlets.

6.8A breakdown of media coverage by the type of outlet is provided below.

Fig. 9

February / Total
Local / 20 / 13 / 13 / 21 / 67
National (print and broadcast) / 1 / 13 / 6 / 1 / 21
Regional (print and broadcast) / 19 / 7 / 3 / 6 / 35
Ethnic / 28 / 28 / 20 / 28 / 104
Trade / 1 / 8 / 4 / 4 / 17
Online / 6 / 22 / 25 / 14 / 67
75 / 91 / 71 / 74 / 311

6.9As expected, the ethnic (33%) and local media (22%) make up the majority of all coverage achieved during February. This is an ongoing trend that was evident in the first, second and third quarters, and has continued throughout quarter four. It is notable that online coverage is commensurate with local coverage at 22% of the total.

6.10A breakdown of the reactive work Communications carried out during February is provided below:

Fig. 10

February / Total
AHWB / 1 / 1 / 0 / 1 / 4
Chief Exec / 10 / 10 / 19 / 10 / 49
Resources / 0 / 1 / 0 / 1 / 2
CSF / 4 / 5 / 1 / 5 / 15
CLC / 11 / 17 / 9 / 17 / 54
D&R / 3 / 1 / 3 / 1 / 8
29 / 35 / 32 / 35 / 131

6.11In total, the team worked on 131 media enquires at an average of 33 per week. This is significantly higher than both the overall average for the first, second and third quarters.

6.12CLC as usual experienced the highest number of media enquiries (

41%), and Chief Executive’s received the second highest number (37%).

6.13A number of issues caused this high number of enquiries, including:

  • Alleged Electoral Fraud;
  • Mayoral Advisors; and
  • Brick Lane Tarmac.

7.March 2012

7.1A breakdown of coverage statistics for the four week period over March is provided below:

Fig.11

March / Total
Positive / 27 / 42 / 15 / 24 / 108
Neutral / 33 / 27 / 18 / 25 / 103
Negative / 3 / 2 / 5 / 7 / 17
Proactive / 27 / 42 / 16 / 15 / 100
Reactive / 9 / 6 / 8 / 4 / 27
No contact / 27 / 23 / 14 / 37 / 101
63 / 71 / 38 / 56 / 228

7.2A total of 228 pieces of media coverage were achieved by the Communications Team during March, with 93% deemed either positive or neutral.

7.344% of all coverage was a result of proactive work by the Communications Team.

7.4A breakdown of media releases issued over March, broken down by Directorate, is provided below.

Fig. 12

March / Total
AHWB / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
Chief Exec / 0 / 3 / 0 / 5 / 8
Resources / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
CSF / 1 / 0 / 0 / 3 / 4
CLC / 5 / 6 / 5 / 9 / 25
D&R / 0 / 1 / 0 / 4 / 5
6 / 10 / 5 / 21 / 42

7.5In total, 42 media releases were issued during March. This is an average of 11 per week.

7.6As has been the case throughout the majority of the performance year, CLC accounted for the highest proportion of media releases (60%), followed by Chief Executive’s (19%).

7.7 Media releases were distributed on the following key issues during March, which will go some way to explaining the above statistics:

  • Bengali Heritage Month;
  • Council successes in tackling dog fouling and the sale of counterfeit goods;
  • The Spitalfields and Banglatown By-Election; and
  • The Electoral Commission’s endorsement of the council’s electoral practices.

7.8A breakdown of media coverage by the type of outlet is provided below.

Fig. 13

March / Total
Local / 12 / 12 / 13 / 17 / 54
National (print and broadcast) / 3 / 5 / 1 / 12 / 21
Regional (print and broadcast) / 10 / 2 / 2 / 4 / 18
Ethnic / 19 / 42 / 10 / 12 / 83
Trade / 3 / 5 / 4 / 0 / 12
Online / 16 / 5 / 8 / 11 / 40
63 / 71 / 38 / 56 / 228

7.9As expected, the ethnic (36%) and local media (24%) make up the majority of all coverage achieved during March. This is an ongoing trend.

7.10A breakdown of the reactive work Communications carried out during December is provided below:

Fig. 14

March / Total
AHWB / 0 / 0 / 2 / 0 / 2
Chief Exec / 5 / 2 / 5 / 5 / 17
Resources / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0 / 0
CSF / 5 / 0 / 1 / 3 / 9
CLC / 13 / 7 / 10 / 9 / 39
D&R / 7 / 6 / 8 / 4 / 25
30 / 15 / 26 / 21 / 92

7.11The team dealt with a total of 92 enquiries inMarch, an average of 23 per week.

7.12As in previous months, CLC issues accounted for the highest proportion of enquiries (42%) with D&R issues the next highest (27%).

7.13Media enquiries covered wide range of issues during March, with examples provided below:

  • The fence in Victoria Park;
  • Blackwall Reach;
  • Mayoral Advisors; and
  • The future of the council’s youth service contract.

8.Conclusions

Media coverage

8.1As set out at the start of this report, whilst the Communications Team has achieved a slight decrease in the number of pieces of coverage in total in this Quarter, this is a reflection of the significant spike in overall coverage in Quarter 3 (relating to the council’s decision on charges for social care), rather than a significant drop in performance levels in Quarter 4. A further impact in Quarter 4 is the pre-election period, which commenced in the middle of March 2012, and restricted the ways in which the Communications Team could promote the work of the council.

8.2The overall performance for this Quarter exceeds the Team’s Key Performance Indicator of 89% positive or neutral coverage at 91%. Overall, the Team’s performance for the year is 93% positive or neutral coverage.

Fig 15

Q1 / Q2 / Q3 / Q4 / Average
% pos/neu coverage 2010/11 / 92% / 94% / 96% / 93% / 93%
% pos/neu coverage 2011/12 / 92% / 93% / 97% / 91% / 93%

8.3Figure 15 shows that whilst performance across the two years has

varied, the average performance against the key performance indicator has remained consistently high at 93%.

8.4Overall, the ethnic and local media outlets still provide the highest proportion of media coverage, whilst high profile issues in this Quarter such as Olympic jobs being generated, the Mayor’s Education Award and Blackwall Reach regeneration plans have also resulted in good quality regional coverage.

Outputs

8.5While the team issued a lower number of media releases than in Quarters1 and 2 (111, compared to 133, 152 and 118) these outputs have still resulted in 654 items of positive coverage. In addition, the team has ‘sold-in’ stories to the media – pitching ideas in order to achieve coverage – and sought to minimise the impact of potentially negative media stories during this period.

8.6Overall, CLC still accounts for the majority of all outputs, and this remains as a result of the high profile nature of many of the services managed by that Directorate.

Reactive

8.7There was a significant increase in the number of media enquiries the team dealt with in this final Quarter of 2011/12.

8.8CLC issues continue to dominate the type of media enquiries the team works on, which as explained previously, is not surprising given the importance of CLC services to residents and their links to the Olympics.

8.9The Communications Team is continuing to notice an uplift in the number of Olympic related media enquiries, and is continuing to gain interest from international media. This interest is set to rise in the run up towards the Olympic Games.

8.10It remains important to note that the Communications Team often has little control over the nature and amount of enquiries it receives. However, the increase in enquiries coupled with the maintained level of positive and neutral coverage over the course of 2011/12 demonstrates how the team has become more adept at preventing negative stories appearing or least neutralising them. This is extremely important in terms of protecting the reputation of the council.

9. COMMENTS OF THE CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

This report provides statistical analysis of the Council’s communications service’s media performance for the 4th quarter period January-March 2012. The overall net expenditure on the service for the year was broadly in line with the net budget of £262K.There are no financial implications from this report.

  1. CONCURRENT REPORT OF THE ASSISTANT CHIEF EXECUTIVE (LEGAL SERVICES)
  2. The Council is subject to statutory obligations requiring it to consult with local people and to publish proposals, decisions, fees, bye laws, policies and other matters. Communication with people in Tower Hamlets is, in this way, key to the delivery of a range of council functions. Communication may in any event be a fundamental part of delivering council functions, for example to educate or to promote services. The Council is, additionally, subject to a duty to involve, which requires the Council to take such steps as it considers appropriate to involve representatives of local people in the exercise of its functions. It is consistent with these functions for the Council to monitor the effectiveness of its communications work.

Appendix A

Media monitoring briefingnote

Monitoring coverage of the council and how that coverage has been achieved is essential to measuring the effectiveness of the Communications Team’s work. Having a consistent approach to monitoring coverage will ensure that data is robust and can be used as an accurate measure of the team’s performance. Crucially, the proportion of positive/neutral overage compared to negative coverage is a key performance indicator for the service.

This briefing sheet sets out the headline do’s and don’ts of media monitoring to ensure that the procedure is carried out both accurately and consistently.

When media monitoring, we do monitor the following types of coverage:

  • Any coverage that mentions the council and/or named officers
  • Any non-political coverage that mentions the Mayor, or councillors
  • Any coverage that mentions a service universally accepted as being managed by the council. These services include:
  • Trading standards
  • Idea Stores
  • Planning
  • Parking or “traffic wardens”
  • Licensing
  • Waste or “bin men”
  • Borough-wide educational performance
  • Letters for publication written by the Communications Team
  • Coverage that whilst not explicitly mentioning the council, was achieved beyond any doubt as a result of the work of the Communications Team.

When media monitoring, we don’t monitor the following types of coverage:

  • Mentions of Tower Hamlets as a place rather than the council e.g. housing prices, pollution levels, crime scenes etc.
  • Letters mentioning the council that were not drafted by the CommunicationsTeam
  • Coverage of political issues
  • Opinion pieces such as regular newspaper columns by political representatives or other individuals. This includes blogs.
  • Coverage of individual schools unless it involved a contribution from the Communications Team
  • Coverage of health service initiatives unless it involved a contribution from the Communications Team
  • Coverage of Tower Hamlets police matters unless it involved a contribution from the CommunicationsTeam
  • Online coverage of articles that also featured in print editions i.e. we do not count coverage twice
  • Comments on online articles

What is positive coverage?

Coverage is considered positive where on balance, an article presents the council favourably. This encompasses the following types of coverage:

  • Coverage achieved as a result of pro-active communications (unless interpreted as overtly negative)
  • Coverage that communicates key messages of any of the following:
  • Mayor’s priorities
  • Community Plan themes
  • Directorate priorities
  • Objectives of a specific service, initiative or event
  • Coverage where the council is praised for its performance, level of service or intentions.

What is negative coverage?

Coverage is considered negative where on balance, an article presents the council in a way that could lead to readers having a poor perception of the council. This encompasses the following types of coverage:

  • Coverage where the council is openly criticised; either based on reports, resident comments and/or other sources
  • Coverage where the council’s performance in certain services and/or service areas is presented as unsatisfactory
  • Coverage where policies and specific actions from the Mayor, members and/or officers are considered as harmful to the council’s reputation
  • Coverage where a policy decision is presented as having a detrimental effect on residents and other service users

What is neutral coverage?