Sustainable Solutions December 2008

CASE STUDY
developers are well served to consider how to
approach, engage and gain their views.
More often than not, the ‘forgotten
majority’ have a more balanced view, a
more pragmatic approach and welcome the
opportunity to give their views on their terms
- our advice is always to put them at the heart
of your consultation.
This should include considering (a) how
their views can be gathered - street stalls on a
Saturday, telephone or door-to-door surveys
in key parts of the development area, school
surveys or wider town centre surveys - and (b)
how their views can be recorded and have an
impact in the process - will respondents sign
letters of support, sign support cards or register
an interest in new job opportunities?
Within this highly political process, we
Many local residents would object to a wind turbine being installed near their homes.
are always focused on the ultimate aim, a
successful decision at planning committee.
individuals taking an interest in sustainable a hindrance, public consultation can save the With this focus in mind, ﬁ nding and mobilising
development proposals. It is essential therefore industry a great deal of time and money in the supporters can play a critical role.
that developers adopt a robust approach to long term. This doesn’t mean you can get away When I was ﬁ rst elected as a councillor
stakeholders. with a hastily produced glossy A5 ﬂ yer - it in 2002, I was amazed that I didn’t receive
You will need to start by ‘mapping’ them. will cut little ice with the planning committee my ﬁ rst piece of constituency mail until
Who are they, what’s their interest, what’s or highly cynical opposition who will quickly three months after I was ﬁ rst elected. On one
their background, what aspect of our plans pounce on any evidence of tokenism. However, occasion, when I received four letters on the
are they interested in. Often stakeholders will carefully planned strategic consultation can same subject, I knew I had a comparatively
just welcome the opportunity to be involved motivate support and deliver a valuable big issue in my ward.
in discussions at an early stage and may not permission. By encouraging supporters or members of
necessarily have any issues to raise. Each project is totally different and needs the public to write or sign letters of support
Recently, we were brought onto two a mix of strategies designed to reﬂ ect the to their local councillor, we are able to give
projects which had started out with very poor plans and communication tools needed to elected members conﬁ dence that a particular
stakeholder relations programmes. The ﬁ rst, communicate with the communities involved. project does have some champions of its own.
a wind farm planning application, began with Campaigns that we regularly run do include After all, the politicians who make the
the ward councillor (a key stakeholder in exhibitions, but also longer-term steering decisions on planning committees are heavily
any proposal’s stakeholder map) ﬁ nding out groups and community workshops. inﬂ uenced by who shouts loudest and will take
about the proposal from a constituent, rather The focus is on ‘dialogue-based’ rather positions early on in proposals, particularly
than directly from the promoter, its agent than ‘information-based’ consultation and if they are blindsided by lobbying from
or PR representative. Needless to say, the seeks to build a consensus with the community opposition groups.
councillor was completely wrong-footed and and its stakeholders. What is most interesting For this reason, it is essential to follow
rather embarrassed to know less about the and often most valuable about such a process the basic steps and have a dedicated planning
plans than his constituent, despite being the is that stakeholders are often able to hear committee strategy in place at the outset. The
representative. opposing views direct from others within alternative is often a disappointing night at
The other scheme, an energy from waste their community rather than from the scheme committee.
proposal, began with a senior councillor taking promoters or us, on their behalf. Proper, well thought-out and strategic
a negative stance to the application simply We currently run, chair and manage a consultation, not to mention effective
because he had not been engaged, informed and stakeholder forum on behalf of the promoters engagement with key stakeholders, is vital
asked for views while some other colleagues of one of the short listed eco-towns. This forum and can dramatically increase the chances of
had. Understanding a community and meets regularly and brings stakeholders to the achieving project success and with it, success in
approaching it in a thorough, thought-out and table to discuss relevant issues and enter into a delivering a more sustainable future.
comprehensive way is essential to getting the dialogue about the evolving plans.
project off on the right-foot. Importantly, we should always consider n Richard Halderthay is an account director
3. Local residents: Almost every developer how to engage the ‘forgotten majority’ who at political planning consultancy Green Issues
will have experience of the standard public don’t attend exhibitions or respond to adverts in Communications. He is a former Southampton
exhibition, inviting the public to look at papers. This is the group often by-passed by the City Councillor and now heads up some of
and comment on the thought-out planning generic off-the-shelf approach to consultation, Green Issues’ stakeholder engagement and
proposals. This is one way of doing things. but ironically is the group local authorities consultation campaigns for the renewable and
There are other ways too and far from being are particularly interested in and sustainable sustainable development sector.
SUSTAINABLE SOLUTIONS December/January 2009 13
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