The Scottish Government

Listen

Chris Martin, Julie Angus and Neil Caffery, TNS System Three
ISBN 0 7559 3977 8 (Web only publication)

This document is also available in pdf format (120k)

TNS System Three was commissioned by the Scottish Executive Office of Chief Researcher (OCR) to conduct research to provide the Scottish Executive Education Department (SEED) with direction to improve the way in which information is communicated to its stakeholder groups.

The key aims of the research were to:

• Explore the internal process and planning of all relevant Scottish Executive Education Department (SEED) communications through an examination of communication material issued over the previous 12 months.
• Explore stakeholder perceptions of the effectiveness of the communication methods currently used by SEED and identify any other preferred methods of communication.

Main Findings

• There is considered to be an overwhelming volume of written communications, with stakeholders at the top of the communication chain experiencing difficulty in both managing to consume the high volume of written documents and ensuring that they reach their intended audiences. Little forewarning of communications relating to new initiatives compounds this issue.
• There is a perception of a lack of contextual information on Scottish Executive Education Department's (SEED) written communications, with many documents not clearly indicating their purpose and their target audience. This, together with the volume of communications, leads Local Authority officials and teachers to often make their own judgement as to the relative priority of different communications, with important documents sometimes being overlooked.
• Recognition of the SEED's brand is currently low, particularly among classroom and probationary teachers and parents, who have little understanding of SEED's role and remit.
• There is a perception from outside the department of a lack of co-ordination within SEED. Disjointed communication from different areas within SEED and difficulties arising when initiatives are launched or reports are requested at conflicting times of the year were mentioned. Perception of poor co-ordination is exacerbated by SEED's inconsistent format and style in written communications.
• Current channels of communication between SEED, Local Authorities and schools generally work well. Head teachers welcomed their Local Authority acting as communication 'gatekeeper' and would be concerned about being overloaded if their line manager was bypassed. Information for their reference only, however, would be happily received directly from SEED, as long as its purpose and target were clearly detailed.
• Among parents, schools are almost universally seen as the main provider of information. However, both parents and teachers expressed considerable concern as to the effectiveness of the current 'school bag drop' arrangements. There is further scope for SEED to consider how best to support teaching staff in ensuring effective distribution of their communications to parents.

Background

SEED is responsible for disseminating policy related information to a wide range of audiences.

In June 2004, the Scottish Executive Office of Chief Researcher (OCR) commissioned TNS System Three to undertake research in order to inform SEED's communications strategy with their target audience.

The key stakeholders identified were teachers (at all levels), parents and Local Authority officials.

Method and sample

The research was carried out in 2 stages:

• Stage One: Desk Research to identify the target audiences of communications from different SEED teams and explore the format, volume, timing, and methods of distribution of these communications.
• Stage Two: Qualitative Research among key stakeholder groups. In order to explore the effectiveness of the communication methods currently use by SEED and how these could be improved, 16 mini groups among teachers, 4 case studies with local authorities and 6 focus groups with parents were conducted across Scotland.

Findings

The key findings from the research are shown below.

Recall and overall perceptions of SEED communications

Level of recall of communications was highest among Local Authority officials and head teachers and lowest among new probationary teachers and parents. Parents were more likely to recall communications coming directly from school. There was very little recall of SEED communications among parents.

Communications are generally prioritised by teachers and Local Authorities according to level of relevance and actions needed. Therefore, the focus tends to be on the content rather than the origin.

A number of factors influenced stakeholders' ability to recall communications from SEED:

• For head teachers and Local Authority officials, the volume of written communications from SEED and other organisations leads to difficulties in digesting all the information and in ensuring that it is effectively disseminated.
• Timing of communications also influences recall and ability to peruse communications. Concerns were raised over clashing of timings, whereby different departments in SEED placed demands on Local Authorities or on schools at similar times.
• There was widespread concern among head teachers regarding the lack of planning or forewarning of certain communications. This is an issue particularly with communications relating to an initiative or policy that requires time and resources to be allocated.
• Among teachers and Local Authority officials, communications from other agencies, such as General Teaching Council, Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Education and the Scottish Qualifications Authority, are more easily recognised and absorbed due to a clearer understanding of each agency's remit, indication of relevance and target.
• Stakeholders found it difficult to distinguish SEED documents from those of other educational agencies, signifying a weak identity.

Attitudes and behaviour towards different communication methods

The research sought views on different forms of communication.

Written communications:

• Among head teachers and Local Authority officials, due to the high volume of written communications many documents were ignored or put aside and forgotten about.
• Contextual information was a key issue for many. Many documents arrived with no clear indication of target or purpose.
• Documents that are personally addressed are more likely to be read and digested by stakeholders.

Electronic communications:

• Electronic communications were widely used and valued by Local Authority officials, and are increasingly employed by schools. Parents did not receive any electronic communications.
• Probationary teachers were more confident about using electronic communications than longer serving classroom teachers. Other forms of communication:
• None of the target groups considered the media to be a key communication tool.
• Teachers expressed frustration with the lack of forewarning of policy initiatives being announced through the media and the number of negative news stories regarding Scottish education.
• Parents' recall of communications through the media was low and much related to 'perennial' media stories such as those related to 'league tables'.
• Local Authority officials suggest that face-to-face communication with SEED had recently become more common. This was almost universally recognized as an improvement.

Among head teachers and Local Authority officials, there was a perception that opportunities lie in increased electronic communications, helping to reduce the amount of paper documents, and a desire for increased face-to-face communications. Among parents there is potential for greater use of local media and school groups such as the Parent Teacher Association, School Boards or at parents' evenings.

The chain of communications

Communications generally channelled down from SEED to Local Authorities, who passed them on to head teachers. Head teachers would then pass these on to the appropriate staff. Communications generally reached parents through the school bag drop.

In some cases, Local Authorities were bypassed, with SEED communicating directly with schools. There was little support for this. Local Authorities, being more aware of each school's context and situation were viewed as the appropriate channel for communication from SEED.

Breakdowns can occur in the chain. Two common reasons given for these breakdowns were documents being sent to out-of-date contacts in Local Authorities and schools, and a lack of detail accompanying communications as to who the target audience was.

There was also evidence of breakdowns within schools. This was dependent on the number of documents which head teachers were required to distribute, and the mechanisms in place for this.

There is clear potential for a review of the school bag drop as a distribution tool. Concern was expressed by teachers and parents as to the effectiveness of this method. There was no consensus as to the relative merits of direct mailing compared to the school bag drop.

Detailed Assessment of Communication Formats

There is a clear preference for smaller, more concise documents which provide links to further information, ideally in electronic form, with a hard copy available within each school or Local Authority.

The preferred length of documents among parents was generally around 4 to 8 pages, and the most commonly preferred formats were A5 booklets and multi-page leaflets.

Complaints were voiced over the glossiness of documents; some teachers felt that documents could look professional without too much money being invested. There was no consensus among parents on what was visually arresting.

Ensuring that the language and tone is pitched at the right level was considered crucial by all stakeholders. Parents particularly praised 'jargon buster' sections of documents.

There were widespread requests for more uniformity of style and format to aid recognition. Multiple and inconsistent branding leads to confusion and negatively affects awareness of SEED's role.

Clear titles, explanations of the communication's purpose and its intended target audience were considered very important by all stakeholders. It was felt that the labelling and signposting of documents could be improved.

While there was praise for the amount of information that was available electronically through the SEED website, criticisms were voiced with regard to its ease of navigation and effectiveness of search facilities.

There is scope to develop the website further as a communication tool, and a point of reference for further information, perhaps with different interfaces for professional and non-professional users.

If you have any enquiries about social research, please contact us at:

Tel: 0131 244-2256
Fax: 0131 244-5393
Email: socialresearch@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
Web: www.scotland.gov.uk/socialresearch

The report, "SEED Communications Strategy Research", which is summarised in this research findings is available on the Social Research website at www.scotland.gov.uk/socialresearch

This document (and other Research Findings and Reports) and information about social research in the Scottish Executive may be viewed on the Internet at: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/socialresearch

The site carries up-to-date information about social and policy research commissioned and published on behalf of the Scottish Executive. Subjects covered include transport, housing, social inclusion, rural affairs, children and young people, education, social work, community care, local government, civil justice, crime and criminal justice, regeneration, planning and women's issues. The site also allows access to information about the Scottish Household Survey.