Havant Borough Council’s new ‘Stakeholder Engagement Framework’

~ HCS Editor

On September 8 2021, the HBC Cabinet approved draft Stakeholder Engagement Framework documents with the Hayling Island Seafront Regeneration Update and the Havant Regeneration Programme update.

You can open both of these two page documents by clicking the links. While they differ slightly at a detail level, they share the same key attributes, quoted below:

Guiding Principles

  1. Two-way communication and engagement – stakeholders have the opportunity to make their views, need and ideas heard while giving the Council the opportunity to do the same.
  2. Clear and consistent messaging – ensure messages are clear and consistent in respect of progress and decisions.
  3. Open and transparent – providing stakeholders with access to relevant information, while also recognising the need for confidentiality and/or for treating information sensitively, as appropriate.
  4. Approachable – building trust and confidence and treating people with respect.

Havant Civic Society and other residents’ groups around the Borough fully embrace these guiding principles, and have done since the Opportunity Havant Regeneration Strategy document was first published in October 2018. We are still waiting for demonstration that the Regeneration Team also embrace these principles.

The only other Guiding Principle that we’d like to see written into these framework documents is ‘Timely’, enabling the residents groups to contribute to the early definition of the programme components.

Stakeholders

  1. Residents – including community groups e.g. Havant Civic Society
  2. Businesses and business groups/representative, including investors/potential investors.
  3. Strategic partners – e.g. Solent Local Enterprise Partnership, Hampshire County Council
  4. Infrastructure organisations – e.g. South Western Railway, Network Rail, Portsmouth Water.

Havant Civic Society, just one of the alliance of residents’ groups, has been pushing hard for recognition for residents as stakeholders in Regeneration since October 2018. We are delighted with this confirmation that the HBC Regeneration Team now recognises the value we bring.

Types of Engagement

  1. Briefing – providing information often in a formal manner
  2. Updating – giving the most recent news or information
  3. Informing – imparting knowledge of a fact or circumstance
  4. Engaging – a 2-way process of interacting and listening for mutual benefit
  5. Two-way Dialogue – exchanging ideas and opinions, project team and stakeholders listen and hear what’s being said
  6. Consulting– seeking views and feedback on a proposal for consideration in decision making.
  7. Collaborating – working together to achieve a common purpose
  8. Participating – process of groups or individuals having the opportunity to become actively involved in a project.

The residents’ groups are happy with this definition of the types of engagement, in particular, points 4, 5, 6, 7 and 8. In our experience to date, the only levels of engagement experienced have been of types 1, 2 and 3, and then, not always in a timely manner.

Methods of Engagement

A variety of methods can be used to engage stakeholders, including (but not
limited to)

  1. meetings (online or physical)
  2. surveys
  3. presentations
  4. workshops
  5. updates via website and social media

HCS are comfortable with all of these forms of engagement.