Planning & Engagement

We are equally adept at getting communities to engage on other issues. Using techniques that have been proven in a planning context, we can successfully uncover local aspirations on diverse issues, most recently on railway timetabling and new energy sources.

Our team includes specialists in Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects.  

We have consistently led innovation in delivering NSIPs. Our approach, underpinned by social research, de-risks projects from the outset, providing in-depth insight early on, which helps streamline the planning process, reduce stakeholder pushback and avoid costly delays. Through our annual NSIP Research, presented at this year’s NSIP Forum, we’ve helped the industry identify what makes large-scale infrastructure acceptable or unacceptable for communities – and how developers can address this.

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For many people, the reality of development only hits home when construction begins: the scale of the project and the impact of on-going works are rarely understood. At this time, we can provide a ready interface between our clients and local residents: fielding inquiries, issuing newsletters and holding Community Liaison Group meetings. Construction is the time when future reputations are made: get it wrong and difficult headlines and awkward conversations can impact on sales and marketing.

In recent years, we have developed a specialism in building fire safety comms, working with developers and freeholders to ensure that timely and transparent communication about remedial works is shared with leaseholders. This is sensitive engagement, requiring on-going social monitoring to identify and tackle potential crises before they arise.

Businesses that can convince their audience of a commitment to ESG betterment, can build trust with communities and stakeholders. This is important in generating support, reducing planning delays and securing consents. We know the issues that resonate with the public at a national level and we can research how they are being applied in the local context, relevant to your proposals. We review the local stakeholder and community landscape to gain an understanding of local ESG concerns before developing positive messaging to demonstrate how you can contribute to their betterment.