An introduction to the work of Talk About Local and a look at some of the free and easy to use tools which can provide solutions for common challenges facing local authorities in providing and using data in user friendly ways.

1. Hyperlocal and open data: Challenges in a UK context
Federal Government District of Brazil delegation, MDDA, Manchester. November 2012.
Sarah Hartley
@foodiesarah
| http://talkaboutlocal.org | hello@talkaboutlocal.org |

2. Introduction
Talk About Local provides consulting, training and business services to help
people understand local grass roots media.
Started in 2009 with funding from major broadcaster to explore new ways of
providing public service content
Has trained thousands of people in how they can use simple online tools to find
their voice.
Campaigns for greater access to information for all citizens with opendata

3. Hyperlocal sites
- specific issue to address
Work with individuals - isolated geographically or socially
- reduction in mainstream news
_ currently more than 600 UK sites
- many campaigning
Stolen moped Grand Prixs c2002
Bingfield Park
Kings Cross
Most Saturdays when Arsenal at home
Pics – Mark Bailey

5. Towards a local pubic data manifesto
- published in September
Schools – help third parties provide decent school application information processes – publish data on places,
intake and catchment areas
Health – better information to support tough decisions on local social care as local authorities assume
responsibility – publish detailed expenditure and performance data on social care and create pro-actively
transparent local health and wellbeing boards.
Crime – people able to see that justice is being done in their community on issues they care about. Who is
appearing in local courts for local crimes, what happens to them, sentences and when people are being
released.
Planning and built environment – citizens can’t get involved if they can’t easily navigate applications and case
histories about nearby planning applications. People need to know what is going on near them to contribute to
neighbourhood plans on an informed basis. Local planning lists and decisions should be published in real time
as open data.
Licensing – citizens need to be equipped with basic information to use new powers to control bars, clubs,
pubs, adult venues, gambling venues. Publish as open data applications for all classes of alcohol,
entertainment and adult services licences. Also data about the trends and (criminal) behaviour of the licensees
and premises.
Environment – inform people’s decisions about levels of pollution in their daily lives so that they can avoid or
campaign to change it. Publish pollution levels data from all local monitoring equipment. Bins and recycling
collections can often be baroque, publish timetables and services as open data.
Transport – getting more out of largely fixed local transport infrastructure and shrinking services can only be
done with better information. Publish local timetables, parking/waiting places, usage rates, subsidy and
restrictions as open data.

6. Still locked into older CMS and
Local authorities Low risk low cost
complex web of transactional
services
Local procurement remains slow innovation
Budgets USA mobile market
Improvise
about to pass 50%
shrinking smart phone
drastically penetration
Council senior
Startling shift to mobile executives
keep having
Customers expectations keep bright ideas
leaping ahead

7. We all need to share the
pain in an age of austerity –
the web budget is cut by
30%
Oh dear – I can manage as long as they don’t want
any new stuff. But that’s not likely to happen.

8. http://www.flickr.com/photos/mafleen/5280368304/sizes/l/in/photostream/

9. We need to talk to people
online we can’t afford as
much print or traditional
consultation
Help people find their own voice online without me
having a moderation and tech support liability

10. Give people skills not a
platform
Talk About Local trains
people to find their own
voice online for their
communities that they own
and run
Camden Council,
Broxtowe Borouch
Council, Cambs County
Council, Cabinet Office,
NESTA etc

11. We need a mobile app for
our staff to communicate
on the go as roving eyes
and ears of the council
Many already have own smart phones all have
camera phones – need mobile and desktop solution
for diverse use cases

12. Street reporting – n0tice
new hugely flexible
platform developed by
GMG
Create noticeboard for
area
Use employee phones
smart or camera
All geo tagged
http://n0tice.com

13. Neighbourhood plans are
coming. We need a
something on the web to
help residents work to with
planners to draw them up
Need to visualise built environment and provided
shared work space for public and council staff as
peers

14. Google SketchUp
(now by Trimble) for
3D visualistion
Use Google Earth
landscapes/terrain to
insert visualisations
Use Blogger or
Wordpress.com as
the discussion space
Google Docs for
drafting the plan and
managing documents

15. Van Heckler
http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=340952&page=14

16. Get me some Google glass
goggle things
I saw this thing in Wired....
The in flight magazine had
this amazing...
A new way of showing people what is happening to
the place around them

17. http://talkaboutlocal.org.uk/ar/
Talk About Local has a
very simple approach to
augmented reality – just
paste in an RSS feed of
content with geo tags
and walk away.
Click, copy, paste
forget.
New posts with geotags
in your feed
automatically upload to
Layar – with click
through to your site and
‘take me there’
directions

18. Thank you! Any questions?
Talk About Local provides consulting, training and business services to help
people understand local grass roots media – please contact us for help
This work funds our public service mission to help people in isolated or deprived
communities find a voice online
Check out our new project helping the unemployed use a better online profile to
seek work at http://networkingforwork.org.uk/
Sarah Hartley
@foodiesarah
| http://talkaboutlocal.org | hello@talkaboutlocal.org |