Running hundreds of consultations across policy, planning and community projects
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The challenge
Scottish Borders Council wanted to revitalise their consultation approach. They had existing consultation processes in place but weren't getting the engagement they hoped for. They needed to bring their consultation activity primarily online and required a platform that could handle diverse engagement needs, from statutory consultations to internal surveys, whilst ensuring data compliance in the wake of GDPR legislation.
The approach
The Scottish Borders Council wanted to revitalise their consultation approach.
Scottish Borders Council adopted Citizen Space in 2017 as their central consultation hub. The platform's built-in data compliance features gave them confidence that all data would be safe and secure. They use Citizen Space for both public consultations and internal engagement, creating private surveys to consult with staff and stakeholders without needing a separate platform.
The council made extensive use of features like skip logic, which routes respondents through relevant questions only. This allowed them to combine multiple surveys into one, for example gathering feedback about two events in a single form rather than running separate consultations, reducing workload whilst improving accessibility for respondents..
The results
Since 2017, Scottish Borders Council has run a comprehensive programme of engagement through Citizen Space, demonstrating the platform's flexibility across different types of consultation work:
Policy and strategy development including their Active Travel Strategy (301 responses), British Sign Language Plan, and Community Plan, all feeding directly into formal council strategy and decision making.
Community asset transfers and place-based projects such as consultations on The Wilton Centre in Hawick (68 responses), East Station Office in Peebles (142 responses), and multiple public toilet repurposing projects, supporting communities to take ownership of local assets.
Infrastructure and community improvements including play park consultations in Eyemouth, Langlee, and St Abbs, with the Langlee consultation receiving 138 responses that directly shaped the new equipment installed in July 2024.
Local planning and development work such as the Burnfoot Community Survey (150 responses plus 138 informal conversations) which resulted in a community plan with six clear priorities agreed by the Community Planning Partnership.
Smaller, targeted consultations on specific facilities like sports pavilions and community facilities, ensuring even decisions affecting smaller groups receive proper consultation.
The council's "We Asked, You Said, We Did" approach demonstrates how they close the loop with communities, showing clear outcomes from each consultation. Citizen Space helped bring their consultation activity in line with their 'Fit for 2024' programme, aimed at making the council more adaptable, efficient and effective.
Delib is a govtech leader specialising in consultation and engagement, trusted by over 600 government organisations worldwide, including major planning projects. Since 2004, we've been building secure, accessible digital platforms to make participation simpler, fairer, and more inclusive. Our flagship product, Citizen Space, was built in collaboration with the UK government and has supported more than 11 million responses across over 110,000 democratic activities.