Cabinet approves Participation and Engagement Strategy

The Cabinet of Bridgend County Borough Council has considered and approved the publication of a Participation and Engagement Strategy, in light of the responses captured during a 12-week consultation on the draft strategy.

Following widespread engagement with residents of the county borough and other key stakeholders between the end of October 2023 and January 2024, a total of 227 responses were received.  Feedback came from online completions, paper replies and suggestions submitted to an online ideas board.  The majority of respondents agreed with the proposed aims of the strategy which were to:

• Introduce an easy, accessible online hub to collate all of the local authority’s consultation, engagement, and participation activities, with the long-term objective of developing a portal that connects all pathways for participation in the county borough.
• Ensure effective engagement and participation across Bridgend County Borough.
• Use the latest and best methods of engaging with county borough residents.

In line with current legislation, we have a duty to engage effectively with our residents. It is our responsibility to establish clear communication channels, ensuring that our messaging is transparent, whilst also enabling residents to express their thoughts and opinions.

We promoted the consultation through many platforms of communication, ranging from social media to several engagement events that took place across the county borough - it is encouraging to see how the majority of the respondents agree with the aims that have been offered. This is a fantastic basis on which to move forward in developing advanced communication relations with the residents of the county borough.

Councillor Rhys Goode, Cabinet Member for Housing, Planning and Regeneration