Borough Council calls on residents to tell them the best way to get news out to the community

Erewash Borough Council is looking to boost how it gets news out to residents – and is asking local people for help.

The borough used to boast a string of traditional weekly papers that could be relied on to cover town hall affairs. But across Britain these have dwindled in the age of the internet.

The authority – which covers the major Derbyshire towns of Ilkeston and Long Eaton – has already stepped in with the launch last year of its own regular newsletter called EBC News. More than 6,000 people have signed up via the Erewash Borough Council website to get the bulletin emailed to them. 

The borough council has expressed an eagerness to explore other ways to keep residents up to speed. These include a looming revamp of its website to encourage more people to visit it.

As part of its mission to ensure locals get the latest information the council is seeking feedback on its communications strategy – via an online consultation. 

Residents are urged to spare a few moments to complete a short survey. It runs until Monday 17th February and can be found here.

Deputy Leader, Councillor Becca Everett, who is also Lead Member for Community Engagement, said: “The aim is to improve on the great strides we have already made in the way we communicate with residents. The council is committed to openness and transparency so it is important to us that local people are happy that they are being kept informed.

“It has become an increasing challenge to get information out since not everybody regularly visits our website or follows our social media channels. The messages we are keen to share include a lot of good things that are happening at the council. We want people to let us know the best ways to get information to them.”

A separate survey is being held for businesses and organisations that the council partners with. It can be found here.

Click here to sign up to the borough council’s e-newsletter.