From collecting waste to animal welfare, and school places to trading standards, the hundreds of vital local services of a council will be brought to life in 140 characters when councillors and staff from South Somerset District Council take part in a tweetathon on Wednesday 18 November.
They will be among thousands nationwide to tweet using the hashtag #OurDay, to give residents an insight into the hundreds of jobs councils do every day. During #OurDay last year over 8,000 twitter accounts participated, sending more than 10,000 tweets and reaching 3 million people.
#OurDay has been organised by the Local Government Association, which represents more than 370 councils in England and Wales, and the Knowledge Hub. The LGA is encouraging as many councillors and local authority staff as possible to take a couple of minutes out of their day to tell the world what they’re up to as part of a 24-hour live tweetathon, from 00.01 on Wednesday, by using the hashtag #OurDay.
Councillor Ric Pallister, Leader of South Somerset District Council said, “Communication with all our residents is hugely important and smart technology reaches many who wouldn’t otherwise link to the part this Council can and does play in their lives. #OurDay is a chance for residents to understand the vital work we do in the community and to look beyond the obvious like collecting bins and litter picking streets. Day in day out our staff provide residents with hundreds of services that are at the heart of helping our communities function, many of them are things people may not even be aware of.”
Councillor David Simmonds, Chairman of the LGA’s Improvement and Innovation Board, said, “It’s important that councils explain what they do and that residents get a chance to hear some of the stories behind the huge variety of vital work that is put into practice from Town Halls up and down the country on a daily basis.
“Councils make a real difference in their communities, but much of what we do is out of sight, like helping vulnerable children. #OurDay is a chance to reflect 24 hours in the life of a council, from providing care for the most vulnerable in our local community to cleaning our streets.
“I hope as many local authorities, councillors and staff as possible get involved and highlight the good work that is going on in their communities. Councils are the most open and transparent part of the public sector and using social media is an easy and effective way for us to communicate with our residents and answer any questions they may have.”