This request relates to your authority’s marketing, communications and engagement activity, including associated staffing, budgets, spend and functions. I am seeking this information to better understand how local authorities resource and deliver communications, engagement and consultation activity. For the most recent full financial year for which data is available, please provide the following:

1. Organisational structure and staffing
a) The total number of employees (FTE) working wholly or primarily in marketing, communications, media, public relations, engagement, consultation or related functions: Ten
b) The directorate, department or service area in which these staff sit: Chief Executive’s Office
c) A breakdown of roles or grades where available (e.g. senior leadership, managers, officers).
Managers: Three
Officers: Seven

2. Budget and expenditure
a) The total annual budget allocated to marketing, communications and engagement activities: £725,709
b) The total actual spend for the year: £678,399
c) A breakdown of spend between:
• Staff costs (including salaries, on-costs and temporary staff or contractors) - broken down by post:
Managers: £253,770
Officers: £416,669
• External suppliers or agencies
• Advertising and media spend Paid-for social media: £8,000
• Website development: £80,000
• Graphic and digital design: Budget not held centrally
• Print expenditure: Budget not held centrally
• Events, consultation exercises and engagement programmes: Budget not held centrally
• Any other significant categories of spend: Software licences (email newsletters and consultation platform: £51,163

3. Core activities
Please outline the core activities undertaken by the marketing, communications and engagement function(s):
Corporate communications – email newsletters
Media relations and media releases
Campaigns and public information
Internal communications
Digital and social media
Web development
Public consultation and engagement
Stakeholder or partner communications

4. Discretionary vs non-discretionary activity
Please indicate:
a) Which marketing, communications and engagement activities are considered essential or statutory (including any required by legislation or regulation):
Statutory consultations
b) Which activities are considered discretionary or non-essential: Communications
c) Any distinction you make between internal, external and community-based engagement.

5. Consultation and engagement spend
Please confirm:
a) Total spend on consultation and engagement activities (internal and external): £170,981 (this is included in the totals above for staff and software licensing)
b) How this spend is categorised or recorded within your authority (e.g. as part of communications, policy, regeneration, public health or other budgets): Part of the communications and engagement budget