Media and publicity protocols
These protocols cover the basic procedures that we should adhere
to within specified situations. Publicity is about letting people
know what we do and the value of our work. It is important that
staff and members of Allerdale Borough Council maintain strong,
professional and honest links with the media at all times.
Key aims of media relations
- To improve the public's understanding of the work of
Allerdale Borough Council.
- To demonstrate the Council's commitment to transparent
ways of working, by being open with the media.
- To enhance the reputation of Allerdale Borough Council,
by promoting and celebrating the successes and achievements of the
Council and its partners.
- To defend Allerdale Borough Council from unfounded
criticism, by ensuring that the public are properly informed of all
the relevant facts.
- To influence the content and tone of the reporting of
Allerdale Borough Council, by taking a proactive approach to media
management.
- To boost staff morale.
Who does what...
Members
Members have a key role in communications. They communicate
opinion and views and have a key role to play in publicising
initiatives and successes. Allerdale Borough Council's functions
are discharged corporately. It is, therefore, wrong for public
resources to be used to publicise individual councillors. However,
the Leader of the Council, Executive Members, the Chairman and the
Chairmen of Committees will often be approached by the media, as
representatives of the Council, to comment on corporate issues. It
is essential that officers ensure that members, if they wish it,
are properly briefed and guided on handling such inquiries.
Officers should place a high priority on providing media guidance,
when requested and where appropriate, to any member on ward issues.
The Leader, Executive Members and Chairmen will also be approached
for quotes for the Council's own news releases. All members are
entitled to media training/guidance on request.
The Corporate Management Team
The Chief Executive and the Directors will help lead by example
by responding positively whenever possible to requests for
interviews or quotes.
Heads of Service
They will be responsible for providing key facts and details
within their areas of responsibility to make sure media reports are
correct and informative. They will lead by example by responding
positively to requests for interviews /quotes. They will have
responsibility for flagging up important issues to the
Communications team. Officers should never give journalists their
subjective views or opinions on specific Council policy.
Communications and Marketing Team
The Communications team is based in Allerdale House. Telephone:
(01900) 702526.
It is responsible for:
- Corporate media relations.
- The management of all sensitive or seriously contentious
issues.
- Co-ordinating suitable responses to media enquiries
within the Council.
- Researching, producing and distributing news
releases.
- Supporting members and officers during media
interviews.
- Maintaining daily relations with the local
media.
- Providing advice to directorates, services and officers
on their media relations.
- Providing media training.
- Providing guidance and advice to members, where
appropriate, on media relations.
- Contributing expertise to all major media
campaigns.
- Providing advice on any media relations
issue.
- Evaluating the effectiveness of Allerdale Borough
Council's media relations.
The Council's approach to the media
Tell the public what we do
One of the highest priorities should be to provide the public
with a much clearer idea of what services the Council provides and
how we provide them.
Be open
There are many things we do that some people, inevitably, will
not like, often because they have not been fully informed. It is
the Council's job to give them all the relevant facts and promote a
better understanding of the Council's services, plans and
policies.
More importantly, there are many things we do that are
wonderfully positive. We will endeavour to place a high priority on
celebrating our achievements and sharing them with a wider
audience.
Media relations and the law
We are required to provide agendas to the media on
request.
We are required to admit the media to meetings and must specify
exempt business to exclude them.
Staff should also adhere to the code of recommended practice on
local authority publicity, contained in section 27 of the Local
Government Act 1988.This makes it clear that any publicity
describing the Council's policies and aims should be as objective
as possible, concentrating on facts or explanation or both. Any
comment should be objective, balanced, informative and accurate.
Publicity produced by the Council should be free from any political
bias.
It is not the function of Allerdale Borough Council's media
relations to publicise individual councillors. In the interests of
public accountability, however, it may be appropriate to publicise
the views of a member who is representing the Council as a whole:
for example when the Chairman speaks as the first citizen of the
whole community.
News releases
A release may promote something positive, it may defend
something controversial, it may provide information, it may explain
a complex issue or it may notify the media of an event we want to
publicise.
All our news releases should help promote a better understanding
of Allerdale Borough Council and must be free of any party
political bias.
The Communications team will issue Council news releases to ensure
they are:
- Set out in corporate style.
- Corporately branded.
- Open. No Council release should conceal, confuse or slant
the information in such a way as to be misleading.
- Expressed in plain English, avoiding jargon, councilese,
legalise and acronyms.
- Factual. Our credibility with the media will depend on
accuracy.
- Distributed to all the appropriate media and put on the
Council's website.
- Developable. Releases should always include a contact
name and number.
Embargoes will only be used when considered essential. This
would most typically be when a news release is linked to a launch
event, when an issue of confidentiality requires it, or when a
third party requires it (e.g. announcement of award or additional
funding).
Media enquiries and interviews
The media should address their initial enquiries to the
Communications team. Councillors will normally be the first choice
for TV or radio interviews. However, officers can handle broadcast
interviews where necessary. The appropriate councillor for
media interviews is normally the Executive Member, Chair or
Vice-Chair of the relevant committee.