The Highland Energy Community Partnership (HECP) aims to enhance energy efficiency and sustainability across the region, uniting six local partners: Contin, Jamestown and Tarvie Projects, The Garve & District Development Company, Lochbroom and Ullapool Community Trust, Transition Black Isle, Gairloch and Loch Ewe Action Forum, and Coigach Community Development Company. Each organisation brought different skill levels and internal support for communications, prompting the creation of a project-wide Communications Officer to foster collaboration and ensure consistent messaging.
Recognising the need for cohesive communication, the Communications Officer introduced Canva, a graphic design platform, offering free licenses to all partners. This initiative encouraged collaborative content creation, enabling partners to share stories and resources more effectively.
One challenge was ensuring all partners utilised Canva effectively. The Communications Officer provided tailored templates, allowing partners to submit briefs for draft materials. This collaborative approach not only saved time but also maintained a consistent brand identity across communications. Regular online meetings became essential, allowing partners to finalise content efficiently despite the Communications Officer’s limited seven-hour workweek.
The results were significant. Partners reported increased community engagement through well-crafted articles, newsletters, flyers, and social media posts. Outreach efforts generated inquiries for the Energy Officers and boosted visits to HECP web pages, enhancing visibility for energy initiatives.
The collaboration fostered unity within the HECP, with organisations learning from one another. The Communications Officer also assisted with social media analytics, enabling partners to evaluate and refine their campaigns effectively.
Moving forward, the HECP will continue this collaborative model, adapting to community needs and ensuring energy efficiency remains a priority. The key takeaway is the power of shared resources and collaboration, demonstrating how partners can engage more meaningfully with their communities through effective communication strategies.
As Claire Divine, TBI Energy Officer said:
“I’ve found working with Craig (the Communications Officer) extremely useful. Our process involves me providing a brief or remit for the artwork I need for social media/events, and Craig then creates an initial idea. We then collaborate in real time in Teams using Canva, refining the design together until we’re both happy with the final piece. This approach is highly productive, eliminating endless back-and-forth emails, and I would encourage the team to adopt this collaborative method as it’s both quick and easy.”
HECP produced the following resources using the collaborative approach outlined above: