Community Partnership

TV

Coming soon - within the next few weeks you will be able to view the film initiatives that play on our community partnership television network.

Summary
Inverness City Partnership (ICP) and safeinverness, with other agency partners, have established  a new community information service for the Inverness area.  Working with Highland Wellbeing Alliance partners, the Inverness Community Partnership TV Network (CPTV) will provide an effective and responsive medium for putting out messages on a wide range of local initiatives.

Inverness CPTV Aim:
To raise public awareness of the work of the partners, local services, initiatives and events to increase community confidence and engagement.

Objectives:
1.       Improve understanding of what the various partners do and their local priorities
2.       Increase take up of local services or participation in events
3.       Change perceptions or behaviours in relation to community safety and health issues, community confidence and civic pride
4.       Provide a responsive and cost effective communication tool
5.       Project a positive image of the Inverness area for the local population and visitors

What is it and how does it work?
The system involves installing ten 42” plasma screens in areas which attract high volumes of the public in a waiting situation where they will get maximum exposure to the information.  The locations are:
Raigmore Hospital (main restaurant)
Service Point, Church St
Tesco Extra Cafe (Inverness Retail Park)
McDonalds (upstairs)
Inverness College (Longman Campus, Refectory)
Inverness Airport (Cafe Lounge)
Inverness Leisure
Inverness Library
Eastgate 2 (upper hall)
Tain Health Centre

The screens run a 30 minute loop of “infomercials” covering local public services or initiatives, community safety messages, emergency warnings or missing persons, events of all types and community projects.  These will be interspersed with generic national information, locally produced material of suitable quality and Scottish news, weather and sport reports.

Initially 11 short features were filmed locally and new features are created each quarter. 

Content
The content and playlist is planned and controlled by an Editorial Board drawn from the CPTV Partnership Steering Group.  It is non-commercial.  To ensure a balanced content 6 categories have been identified as being relevant for our area: Community Safety; Public Services; Environment; Health; Economic Development; and Cultural Events.  Content can be tailored to each specific site - e.g. young people in MacDonald’s or the College, visitors at Inverness Airport.

The main film schedule is updated quarterly but the ability to add Instant Messages means the library of material can be refreshed much more regularly.  Instant Messages are fixed images (rather like a Powerpoint slide) with various backgrounds which can be called up from the web-based library and up-to-date text added.  These can be edited and uploaded within an hour and changed as often as we like.

There is also space reserved on the playlist for missing person or emergency messages e.g. severe weather alerts.

Who is behind the Network?
There are 8 local partners who formed a Steering Group to implement the Inverness system and who raised the £175,500 funding required to procure the Network for a 3-year period.  The Group also established the Editorial Board.  Following a presentation to the Small Town Networks Forum, Tain indicated interest in being a pilot rural location to assess the potential for further roll-out of the Network.

Following a robust competitive tendering process, Inverness has awarded a 3-year contract to Community Communication Network Ltd. (CCN), a company established in 2003 to transmit information on community safety and other public initiatives on behalf of community safety partnerships, local authorities or strategic partnerships.  CCN has developed an inclusive package of hardware, software, creative content and web-based management to provide the full service under one contract.  Nick Ross of Crimewatch is a patron and the first network was launched by Tony Blair in his constituency at Easington Co. Durham in April 2003.  Networks have now been rolled out in a further 17 towns and cities across the , including Glasgow which launched in April 2006.

Acknowledgements
The Inverness Community Partnership Television Network has been made possible by the financial contributions of:

Inverness City Partnership
Northern Constabulary
HIE Inverness & East Highland
Highlands & Islands Fire & Rescue Service
The Highland Council
Highland Drug & Alcohol Team
Safeinverness
Highland 2007

and is supported by:

Highland Wellbeing Alliance and NHS Highland

If you would like to broadcast information on the screens please complete this form and return to CPTV, City Partnership Office, Town House, Inverness, IV1 1JJ.

For futher information about the Community TV Network please contact Inverness City Partnership on (01463) 724380 or by e-mailing info@citypartnership.org.uk