Wigan MBC

This award is open to a single council or where appropriate a partnership of councils, or a council-owned company. Private sector partners can enter on a council’s behalf, with the permission of the council itself. The communications function is more integral to what councils do than ever. There is increasing need to influence behaviour in relation to, for example, recycling, transport, looking out for older neighbours, or reinforcing public health messaging – including with regards to Covid. And there is the importance of building trust in the difficult decisions councils have to take in these challenging times. Campaigns can make a significant contribution to achieving these objectives, and this award is designed to showcase councils’ expertise in this area.

The Love is Not Abuse campaign is an innovative marketing campaign co-produced with victims of domestic abuse to widen public awareness on what constitutes abuse and highlight early warning signs to prevent any abuse escalating. Its central message is to highlight how domestic abuse, particularly psychological forms of abuse, can be confused by victims with forms of love. It was produced entirely by Wigan Council's in-house marketing and communications team in partnership with local victims of domestic abuse. It has resulted in 72% increase in calls to the council's new hotline.

The Local Authority is the leading local government podcast from LGC and TPXimpact. Each month we will bring together leaders and changemakers from within and around local government to discuss the most significant social challenges facing the sector. TPXimpact is a change consultancy on a mission to deliver impactful, sustainable digital outcomes that make a positive difference in how individuals and society experience the world. Bringing together leading transformation specialists, we started with the belief that organisations should make a positive difference in people’s lives. Our multidisciplinary teams use technology, user-centred design and data to deliver better results, improving outcomes for individuals, organisations, communities and society. This is transformation that matters.