middletonpark - @ 20six.co.uk

When I was a Lead Member I was involved in the initial talks for the establishment of Marketing Leeds.
It was an interesting project where Leeds was basically playing catch
up to places like Manchester, Birmingham and even Milton Keynes
(disclaimer: wearing my professional PR consultant hat I wrote the
communications strategy paper to brand Milton Keynes as MK) who had
already done it.

My problem with Leeds, Live it, Love it is not the idea, but the fact it has been implemented so badly.

This is more than just sad. Some of us really do live in and love Leeds
and just wish people who are being paid respectable fees and salaries
to do a job would do it a bit better.

I was away last week when it was all launched so it was with great
excitement that I took at look at what it was all about. What a
disappointment. Read more about it on my professional PR blog.

3.10.05 16:35

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Quick update

Life has been pretty frantic recently, which is my only excuse for not
posting on this blog more often. Some of the things happening at the
moment include:

Police Meeting

The three Middleton Park councillors all had a good meeting at lunch
time with Inspector Neil Lineham, who is the head of the community
policing team in Rothwell division, which includes Middleton Park ward.

We covered a number of areas including the latest dispersal order that
applies to the Sissons in Middleton and the Brooms in Belle Isle. I'd
be very interested in hearing back from local people on their
experience of the orders. I'm particularly interested in hearing from
young people and their parents.

Tonight's meetings

Tonight there are two community meetings that I should attend.
One is to discuss the ongoing issues around the Sharp Lane planning
application and the other is the Westwood Community Association. I'm
going to the Westwood's while my colleague's Geoff Driver and Judith
Blake are going to the Sharp Lane meeting.

Friday's activity

On Friday I'm meeting up with Groundwork Leeds and some local residents for a
community clean-up as part of Operation Cava - a joint council/police
initiative to smarten up the area and crack down on anti-social
behaviour. We are meeting at Middleton Park Grove at 10:00. In the
afternoon there is another session meeting at 13:00 at Intake Square.
I'll only be at the morning session as in the afternoon I have a
meeting with Leeds Tenants Federation and some tenants from Hull.

5.10.05 18:43

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Motiv8 with Groundwork

I spent this morning helping a crew of young people on the Motiv8
programme who were doing a fantastic job with a clean-up and litter
pick in Middleton. The programme is run by Groundwork Leeds and local councillors support it with funding from the area management budget.

The BBC also turned up. It is great to see the media taking an interest
in young people doing something positive, instead of the usual coverage
about anti-social behaviour and hoodies.

7.10.05 12:39

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XP: BBC News - Row over live it love it brand

The BBC story
about the Leeds, Live it, Love it brand is now out with a quote from me
and Councillor Keith Wakefield. There is a response from Tony Stanton,
CEO of An Agency Called England (formally known as Mediaworks).

And I'm sorry but Marketing Leeds CEO Kevin Johnson's claim that "the
cost of developing the Live it Love it brand was zero, but the
research, printing and launch show had so far cost £150,000" just
doesn't add-up. The term 'research' can cover a multitude of sins and
no PR company or agency works for nothing.

In my professional experience the two most expensive elements of
developing a brand are the research and the implementation (producing
new stationery, signs, vehicle livery etc). Also a £150,000 for print
and the launch show sounds expensive. That's a hell of a lot of print.

Tony Stanton, the chief executive of An Agency Called
England said he had come up with the 'Live it Love it' idea completely
independently and only in the process of due diligence did he find it
had been used elsewhere.

Tony is no doubt right that they came up with the idea completely
independently but the bit that doesn't add up is the "in the process of
due dilligence". That is the sort of the marketing bullshit that is
used all the time by PR and marketing people. I know, I admit to having
done it myself. It makes you sound like a lawyer and you hope it makes
you seem more professional. After all due dilligence is what lawyers do
for you when closing a deal.

It wouldn't sound so impressive if you said "I typed a couple of words
into Google and this is what I found". But that's all it takes to find
out just how many times the phrase has already been used in place
marketing and branding.

I don't like critiscising fellow professionals in my home town (and my
comments certainly aren't directed to the people on the board of
Marketing Leeds, some of who I know and have respect for) but feel I
have to do it for two reasons:

1) Leeds has some worldclass businesses, universities, organisations and people. They all deserve better than this.

2) As well as running a Leeds-based PR company I am also an elected
city councillor and have a duty to the people of Leeds to ensure that
their money is spent as effectively as possible. I remain to be
convinced.

I'm cross posting this to my PR blog and would like to invite
any of those involved to visit one of the two sites and use the
comments to respond to some of the critiscism from myself and lots of
others. Over to you.

7.10.05 17:51

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Bonfire burns itself out

Labour Councillors Stuart Bruce and Judith Blake (Middleton Park) have
reacted angrily to the news that there will be no bonfire held in
Middleton Park in Leeds, this year.

The annual bonfire in Middleton Park attracts many hundreds of local
residents but has been cancelled by the ruling Liberal and Tory Groups
this year due to the actions of a small minority last year who engaged
in threatening and disruptive behaviour.

Local Labour Councillors and Friends of Middleton Park have put in an
enormous amount of effort into the area to help deal with issues such
as anti-social behaviour and vandalism so that such events can be held
in Middleton Park.

Sadly these efforts have not been recognised with those running the
Council cancelling the event with little or no consultation with ward
members.

Councillor Stuart Bruce (Middleton Park) said:-

"I find this announcement made at the last minute, badly timed and
above all the wrong decision! Banning Middleton Park bonfire due to
problems last year is very unfair to all the hundreds of law abiding
people who turn every year to enjoy themselves.

"Calling off the event doesn't increase safety in the area whatsoever,
instead it makes it worse as now you could have any number of people
staging there own unsupervised bonfires in the park.

"Surely a better solution is just improved co-ordination and
communication between all involved parties on how to avoid and deal
with the unfortunate circumstances witnessed last year. I do not
believe cancelling the bonfire is the answer."

Councillor Judith Blake (Middleton Park) said:-

"We all have to make sure local families and park staff are not put in
danger. We need to put in adequate security and policing rather than
putting the whole area at risk by cancelling this annual public
firework and bonfire event."

8.10.05 11:53

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Bonfire fury ignites storm of protest Tonight's Yorkshire Evening Post carries our story about the Tory/Lib Dem council's decision to cancel the Middleton Park bonfire. If you're as angry as we are about this decision to snub south Leeds then call the YEP Talkback line and register your protest on 0113 238 8152 or email eped@ypn.co.uk.
11.10.05 13:36	Permalink / Comment

Blazing mad letters to the Yorkshire Evening Post about our bonfire

I have been inundated with complaints from local people in Middleton
and Belle Isle who are blazing mad about the Tory/Lib Dem council's
decision to cancel the Middleton Park bonfire. Many of them have
written to the Yorkshire Evening Post complaining and have been kind
enough to copy me in on their letters.

We will have to wait and see if Councillor John Proctor, the Tory in
charge of Leisure Services, will listen to the concerns of local people.

14.10.05 15:09

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