How UK local authorities can deepen trust, inclusion and impact by mixing engagement methods, not just deploying surveys
Public consultations are central to democratic local governance in the UK, shaping decisions on budgets, transport, and community policy. Digital transformation, especially after COVID-19, has led local authorities and county councils to adopt online surveys as their primary engagement tool. Platforms like SurveyMonkey and Citizen Space allow councils to reach many residents quickly and efficiently. However, relying primarily on online surveys for consultation brings significant risks.
Response rates are often very low, especially among digitally excluded groups. This can result in public input that reflects the views of only the most engaged or internet-savvy residents. Poorly designed survey questions can also result in responses that add little value to the overall decision-making process. These limitations can make the process appear superficial and be dismissed as mere "box-ticking," weakening public trust and confidence in the engagement and consultation process and its outcomes.
What an online survey consultation looks like and its limitations
Surveys can reach broad, diverse sections of the population and gather quantitative data efficiently, which is essential for identifying trends and broad opinions. They can be conducted online, on paper, by phone, or in person.
A typical survey consultation by a local authority or council in the UK involves distributing a single online questionnaire. This method is attractive for councils facing time and resource constraints because it's easy to deploy, cost-effective, and delivers results quickly. However, relying solely on an online survey for consultation has significant risks and drawbacks:
1. Limited reach
A survey-only consultation approach often fails to engage hard-to-reach or marginalised groups and those most affected by digital exclusion. According to the House of Lords Communications and Digital Committee, around 10.2 million UK adults (20%) cannot perform all basic online tasks, and 4.5 million (8%) cannot even turn on a device or enter login information without help.
Older people, people with disabilities, those on low incomes, and individuals out of work are particularly at risk of being left out when running online survey-only consultations. As a result, key perspectives may be completely absent from public input, meaning their voices are not included in the decision-making process.
2. Low depth of insight
Online surveys are limited in capturing the reasons behind some responses. Multiple-choice and closed-question questions can reveal 'what' people think, but rarely reveal 'why' they think that way.
Without qualitative methods, such as in-person interviews or focus groups, UK local authorities and councils miss crucial context and a deeper understanding of how their residents feel. As the House of Lords notes, community-driven and informal engagements are essential for building trust and understanding with digitally excluded residents
3. Trust and legitimacy risks
When public input is limited to ticking boxes in a survey, people may feel their voices are not truly heard, especially if their survey contributions are hard to link to project outcomes or policy changes. This can reduce public trust and legitimacy, as stakeholders may perceive the consultation process as a waste of time. Moreover, if key groups are excluded, this can lead to conflicts of interest, bias, and the risk of decisions being shaped more by political pressures than genuine public input.
4. Security risks
Online survey platforms can expose local authorities and councils to significant security and data protection challenges. It's essential to use consultation tools that have passed strict internal IT security assessments and fully comply with GDPR requirements. Many free or popular survey platforms, such as SurveyMonkey, store data on servers outside Europe, raising concerns about data sovereignty and the confidentiality of participants' information. Using non-compliant tools or storing sensitive feedback outside the UK or EU can put the council and respondents at risk of data breaches and regulatory violations, highlighting the need for secure, locally-compliant engagement solutions.
Going beyond online surveys and using mixed public consultation methods
Effective public consultation involves more than just running online surveys. Although digital surveys can reach many people, they aren't inclusive, lead to the exclusion of many resident groups, and do not provide detailed feedback for informed decision-making or strategic planning. Local authorities and councils can collect better information and ensure more people are included by adding other consultation methods like focus groups, information sessions, and direct outreach. A mixed-methods approach makes consultations fairer, more informative, and more likely to earn public trust. Here are some public consultation methods to consider:
1. Information sessions
In-person and hybrid information sessions, such as town halls and drop-in information sessions, offer richer, two-way conversation opportunities. They allow spontaneous dialogue, capture non-verbal cues, and let communities express genuine, well-thought-out concerns. Critically, they are more inclusive and reach those who are less comfortable or unable to participate online. However, this method often requires a venue, staff, travel arrangements, and catering to special needs. Also, dominant voices in a room can sometimes crowd out others, so it is important to have a facilitator trained in engagement management best practices.
2. In-person surveys
In-person surveys enable representatives to meet people in their homes and gather richer, more authentic feedback. Many participants find face-to-face interviews more comfortable and are often willing to share deeper, more thoughtful answers compared to digital surveys. In-person surveys also help include individuals who may not have access to technology or are not confident using it, resulting in a broader and more representative opinion sample. Additionally, visiting someone's home can give representatives meaningful context about the person's environment, which may further inform their understanding of the responses.
3. Information leaflets or packs
Background material posted or handed out ensures participants are given a better chance to understand the context, complexities, and implications of what they're being asked their input on. This is key for 'informed consent' and meaningful feedback as defined in the UK Government's Consultation Principles. These principles highlight the need to "Give enough information to ensure that those consulted understand the issues and can give informed responses". The drawback of this method is the print and distribution cost, and there is no guarantee that recipients will engage with or fully understand the information.
4. Deliberative forums and workshops
Deliberative events go beyond surface opinions to explore underlying reasons, values, trade-offs, and context. Bringing together diverse groups in structured settings helps build consensus, develop options, and foster legitimacy. Recommendations from such forums are better understood and more publicly supported. However, skilled workshop moderators and a supportive environment are needed to ensure all voices are heard and keep things on track.
5. Focus groups
Focus groups allow in-depth discussion among a small but targeted group of participants, allowing you to explore priorities, attitudes, and behaviours in detail. They can help generate new ideas and can be used to refine future survey questions. Online groups add flexibility but often lack the richness of in-person discussion. Focus groups might be time-consuming and logistically complex, with travel requirements or competing commitments potentially deterring attendance. Skilled facilitation is necessary to balance voices and avoid dominant participants.
6. Online bulletin boards and discussion forums
Online bulletin boards are a place where local authorities or councils can post information on projects and provide information on participation options. Online discussion forums allow people to participate at any time during the consultation period and return to add further thoughts as they wish. For example, during the lead-up to the 2021 Census, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) ran an "Ask Me Anything" Reddit session online, where Pete Benton and other ONS staff answered public questions in real-time, while the conversation remained publicly accessible for later reading and follow-up. These forums make engagement accessible for people with different schedules and provide a permanent, written record of questions and answers that anyone can review. However, it's important to moderate forums actively to prevent irrelevant or inappropriate posts and ensure the conversation stays on topic.
Other methods of public consultation include:
Roadshows and drop-in information booths
Bring consultations to community spaces where people naturally gather, like shopping centres or libraries. Ensure that the location has high footfall and a willingness to participate.
Suggestion mechanisms (like suggestion boxes or hotlines)
Provide simple, direct opportunities for people to offer feedback. These approaches encourage regular input and can be particularly insightful for councils trying to improve services like bus routes or bicycle lanes.
Learn more about how governments can move from checklist to genuine stakeholder engagement →
The importance of providing feedback after public consultations
Feedback loops demonstrating consultation outcomes are vital to effective public consultation because they demonstrate transparency and accountability in the consultation process. When local authorities and councils report back using "You Said, We Did" reports, it shows participants the impact of their participation and that their views have been genuinely considered. This helps build trust in the consultation process. Feedback loops are even better when they allow the public to understand the decision-making process.
All responses from public consultations should be considered and openly reflected upon before any new policy or plan is finalised. Failing to close the feedback loop can erode public confidence. For example, when the UK Government spent nearly £47,000 on a controversial survey about Scottish attitudes towards independence and then decided not to publish the results
Keeping findings secret can fuel perceptions that consultations are just "tick the box" exercises and that public input isn't taken seriously. This highlights why transparent feedback is essential: it reassures the public that their input is heard and influential, making future participation in consultation and engagement more likely and meaningful.
Illustrative example: "UK County Council's public space redevelopment consultation"
Suppose a UK County Council plans to redevelop its public square. Rather than relying solely on an online survey, it:
- Posts information packs to all local households, outlining the redevelopment plans and options to provide public input on the plans.
- Sets up drop-in information booths at the local shopping centre and library where residents can review plans, ask questions, and complete feedback cards.
- Hosts an in-person focus group, followed by an evening information session accessible both in-person and online, inviting local community groups, businesses, and seldom-heard voices to participate.
- Runs a survey, ensuring questions are concise and available in multiple formats (online, over the phone, and paper versions).
- Publishes a "You Said, We Did" report summarising how feedback was used in final plans.
How Jambo supports effective public consultation and feedback loops
Jambo is a stakeholder engagement and consultation management software designed to help government teams, such as local authorities and councils, run effective and efficient public consultations and engagements. With Jambo, teams can record all consultation methods residents participate in, including in-person interviews, information packs received, and attendance at information sessions. All input and feedback from public consultations can be quickly and easily logged, ensuring that every response can be analysed and used to inform decision-making and planning.
Jambo's reporting tools make it easy to create clear reports that help close the feedback loop and demonstrate to participants how their input has influenced project decisions or policy changes. As a secure platform with a European data centre, Jambo helps teams centralise consultation data, collaborate seamlessly across departments, and build greater trust among residents.
