New Halesowen News online service puts public in the picture

Every decision a council makes can affect the lives of local people – be it their quality of life, property, local services or amenities.

The new platform delivers added value to local councils by extending the reach of their statutory notices in print, to the huge digital audiences of Newquest's local websites, many of which now reach over 70% of their local population.

Complementing improved visibility and transparency online, the public can also be kept informed of local council decisions across any of their preferred mobile or tablet devices, as the site is fully responsive.

Key features of the new service include:

• Hyperlocal Search – search by distance and local authority

• Email alerts – set multiple locations and receive relevant notices

• Two-way conversation and social media sharing – share, comment, write to your MP or Council for each notice

• Dedicated local authority pages – view notices by council and access their contact details.

Future updates will include information on council services, news and updates.

The new public notices platform has been in live beta since November last year and is now live across all 160 of Newsquest’s local sites.

To see an example click here

Henry Faure Walker, Chief Executive, Newsquest Media Group, commented: "In order to make sure the public is kept properly informed it's essential that local councils and Government bodies continue to use their local newspaper to advertise their notices in print and online.

"Our local news websites now regularly reach over 70% to 80% of the population of their local towns and cities. There is no media platform with this scale of local audience penetration and no better place for local authorities to communicate with their local residents. Local councils squirrelling important notices away in a dark corner of their own websites is not a viable alternative."