Portal’s full launch is announced
The local news media sector has announced the full launch of the Public Notice Portal – an initiative to further promote public notices to communities and enhance local democracy by harnessing the sector’s massive online audiences.
The portal, which went live in a September soft launch, is backed by local publishers in membership of the News Media Association – including the team behind the Maidenhead Advertiser and Slough & Windsor Express – with others expected to come on board imminently, further strengthening the coverage of public notices across the UK.
The site now displays more than 10,000 live notices at any given time with an average of 2,500 notices now being added by local publishers every week.
The portal has been developed by the local news media industry – including Reach plc which built the website – with £1million from the Google News Initiative.
Public notices are surfaced on the main pages of local news websites, further enhancing people’s access to and understanding of important information about planning, construction, transport links, roadworks, and licensing changes in their local area.
The portal is fully searchable by postcode, type of notice, and – in addition to operating as a standalone site – delivers notifications for users who have signed up to receive alerts about particular types of notices, or notices relating to a specific geographic area.
You can also access it by using the widget that appears in our online stories about public notices.
Media Minister Sir John Whittingdale MP said: “Newspapers remain a vital source of trusted information about local government decision making, including through the delivery of public notices.
“The Public Notice Portal is an excellent example of innovation from our local news sector which will support
local democracy by boosting online visibility of this essential information.
“Ensuring the activities of all local authorities are recorded in the portal will be key to its success, so I encourage local authorities and local press to work together to bring the full benefits of this tool to people across the UK.”
Last week, in its response to the Culture, Media and Sport Committee’s report into the sustainability of local journalism, the Government described the portal as a ‘welcome innovation’ from the local news media sector and pledged to keep public notices in printed local newspapers.
Visit publicnoticeportal
.uk to view the portal.