Delivering the annual canvass - England

Managing messages and responses

Managing messages and responses

As set out in using electronic communications you will need to ensure that you have resources and systems in place for sending e-communications and for tracking and monitoring responses.
 
If you are managing this in-house, you will need to liaise with your IT department to discuss how they can support you, which could include:

  • setting up a generic mailbox, with sufficient capacity to deal with your estimated volume of likely responses based on previous years and/or the number of emails you plan to send as part of your canvass
  • the proposed timescales for sending your communications, so that any additional help desk support can be factored in
  • any additional opportunities to check your data before sending your communications 
  • whether to send messages in batches
  • advice on how to avoid e-communications being treated as ‘spam’ or ‘junk’
  • how to track and monitor responses, including the management of bounce backs (guidance on the processing of bounce backs can be found in responses to Route 1 e-communications.)

 

Using external providers and messaging platforms

You could decide to use an external provider or a messaging platform to send e-communications to residents, both during and outside the canvass period. This may involve providing the contact details you hold for residents to a provider who will send the messages on your behalf. You will need to be satisfied that the provider complies with data protection legislation when processing data. Some messaging platforms, such as the UK Government’s ‘Notify’ service, can be integrated with your EMS system, which would enable you to monitor responses through your existing software.  

The following case study describes how this has been utilised in Tower Hamlets:

 

Last updated: 21 March 2022