Measham Parish Council

Dawn Roach Clerk to Measham Parish Council: "It's very important to us to ensure our website has got plenty of relevant, up to date information about what is going on in the parish, community, district and county, including things ranging from vacancies and grants to grit bins.

"We get some feedback from users, when they make comments on things and we also get a good number of page views each year, over 36,000 at the last count.

"Many people don't know who does what and they can find it so confusing but with our A-Z of services page the problem is sorted. By the side of each service there's a small icon to show whether the service is delivered by the county, district or ourselves. These pages get a high volume of visitors, helping us to respond quickly and direct users to the right place.

"The website system helps all parishes to take a consistent approach to the provision of information for local residents, making it easy for them to find whatever it is that they're looking for when they visit any parish site. The shared look and feel of the sites gives them a brand identity.

"I like the Calendar system which works well, allowing us to create entries for each meeting and attach the relevant agendas and minutes to them. We're now using the module that highlights the last and upcoming meetings.

"When it comes to preparing content for the site you have to think like the customer and also write for the internet - usually this means being very concise. I make good use of pictures which makes the site user friendly and attracts people to it.

"Having an area for members only has been very useful. We're a large parish council and its essential we have a private place for viewing important documents and resources. In this section I've put all our Health and Safety documentation and meeting notes with developers. It's an efficient way to handle 'business' information and helps members to be better engaged with the work of the council.

"I'm now using the newly provided Open Data template which is brilliant. It has saved me a tremendous amount of time and if it hadn't been supplied I would have kept putting off the task and probably not got around to it.

"The technical support we've had over the years has been brilliant. It helps me feel on top of things. If I'm happy the members will be happy!"