THE CONCEPT
The County of
Huntingdonshire
The Objectives
Methodology
THURSDAY, 25TH APRIL 2002
Local
/ Regional Media Coverage
National Media Coverage
Public Reactions
HUNTINGDONSHIRE DAY IN FUTURE YEARS
The Huntingdonshire Declaration
Key
areas
Suggestions for events
The Huntingdonshire Dinner
Local
Produce
A Huntingdonshire Day Service
An Educational Project
OPPORTUNITIES
Tourism
Economic Development
Voluntary
Bodies
Sponsorship Opportunities
PUTTING IT INTO EFFECT
Organisation
Financial
Management
Methods: Branding
Methods: Publicity Material
APPENDIX: The Huntingdonshire Declaration
"Huntingdonshire Day" is to be an annual occasion, each year on the 25th April. It was established by The Huntingdonshire Society as a "County Day for Huntingdonshire".
The Huntingdonshire Society launched Huntingdonshire Day in a series of press releases locally and nationally in March. The first Huntingdonshire Day was held on Thursday, 25th April 2002. It was a resounding success.
The press releases launching Huntingdonshire Day 2002 were issued close to the Day itself, in order that the interest generated could be maintained up to 25th April, limiting the scope for organising events with other bodies. Nevertheless we were able to publish on our website a goodly list of events both for the Day itself and for the weekend following.
Huntingdonshire Day is "a county day for Huntingdonshire". The theme is a celebration of Huntingdonshire; "a celebration of the county, its past, its present and its future." That is a broad theme which in years to come is open to exploitation in many ways and at many levels.
The date, 25th April, was chosen after consultations with local businesses. It is Oliver Cromwell's birthday. We are not theming Huntingdonshire Day on Cromwell nor including anywhere in it a celebration of Cromwell. The birth of the county's most famous (or infamous) son seemed appropriate. We had noticed that the connection was being made in independent publications before our announcement of Huntingdonshire Day. What impressed our consultees most was the success of the Cromwell Quatercentenary event on 25th April 1999.
In years to come we would like to see a public celebration of Huntingdonshire Day, with events of various sorts and sizes throughout the county. It might have a headline event in one of the towns. It is something we can explore with those who are more able to help with such things. This Report touches on that. It concentrates more on specific detail of areas we have identified from this year's activity, and benefits which Huntingdonshire Day can bring.
Huntingdonshire is a county. It has not been abolished. It is not a local government county but a geographical ("traditional") county. The Local Government Act 1972 abolished all previous "administrative counties". However the ancient geographical counties are a separate concept, pre-dating county councils by some nine centuries. They escaped abolition. Thus it is perfectly legitimate to celebrate the ancient county as an existing county. Indeed that fits the idea of a "county day" far better than trying to tie it to a merely functional local council area.
Huntingdonshire has boundaries unchanged since before the Norman Conquest. For general guidance it can be said that the county extends over the same area as the current local government District of Huntingdonshire, together also with the parts of the City of Peterborough lying south of the River Nene, and Swineshead. It excludes Eaton Socon and Tilbrook, both in the traditional county of Bedfordshire. (The Huntingdonshire Society has produced simple maps of the county of which versions can be found on the Society's website.)
Since the county extends into Peterborough, Huntingdonshire Day can be used to benefit projects in Peterborough, and in particular those in the southern part of the city. Furthermore, in ensuring that the theme of Huntingdonshire Day is not linked to a local government area, it can be distanced from political considerations.
We wish to make Huntingdonshire better known nationally, and to maximise the opportunities for Huntingdonshire to benefit from that. We have already achieved an increase in visitor numbers to Huntingdonshire (see below). There are other possibilities. These can be exploited in the fields of business, including tourism, by voluntary bodies and by others.
Huntingdonshire is invisible on a map. Although Huntingdonshire is an ideal business location, nevertheless its very absence from national mapping is its problem. It is overshadowed by Cambridge. Hunts must be made more visible.
Our chairman was a few years ago speaking to a colleague in London, and was asked about getting to Huntingdon for a meeting. She began with "I know I can get to Cambridge from Liverpool Street. Can I get a cab to Huntingdon from there?" The answer of course was not to go to Cambridge in the first place. This illustrates however a difficulty which business in Huntingdonshire has: the giant magnet effect of Cambridge. It is not so much that business is drawn to Cambridge but that Cambridge looms too large in the minds of those outside, for understandable reasons. Businesses will suffer unless they can implant in the public mind that Huntingdonshire is a separate entity with its own merits, not a secondary location. This is an opportunity which Huntingdonshire Day provides.
Tourism likewise will benefit. After issuing the first public announcements of Huntingdonshire Day members of the Committee spoke to those involved in tourism (in particular in the Huntingdonshire Association for Tourism). We were told that individuals have considered that Huntingdonshire Day might increase visitor numbers if properly promoted.
We also wish as a separate matter to boost local pride and self-esteem. This is helping local people to feel positive about themselves and their sense of identity.
Putting a message across needs publicity. That is at the heart of our efforts.
The field of publicity falls into local and national. We have all met local journalists and read their work. Any local events with a bit of colour will be of interest. This Report looks into the ways The Huntingdonshire Society has identified for generating coverage, both locally and nationally.
Local coverage will boost local pride. National coverage is needed for bringing in outside interest and investment. We did have the one success this year with The Times (see below), though that area was not pressed as hard as it could be. Given more of a "run-up" to Huntingdonshire Day 2003 the opportunities can be properly exploited and perhaps linked to other themes and promotions.
On 25th April 2002 the activities for Huntingdonshire Day were extremely limited. In order to maintain interest and momentum The Huntingdonshire Society announced Huntingdonshire Day a very short time before the day itself. It did mean unfortunately that organising events was not practical (albeit that we did explore several we could do). In the end we contented ourselves with hiring a town crier (Michael Blackburn, the town crier of St Neots) to read "the Huntingdonshire Declaration" in the streets of St Neots, Buckden, Huntingdon, St Ives, Ramsey and Sawtry. However even with such limited activity the press interest was substantial.
At each of the readings members of The Huntingdonshire Society's committee handed out to passers-by leaflets about the Society and spoke to them about their reactions to what the Society was doing. Encouraging and supportive reactions were almost universal, which was very heartening. (See also in this section under Public Reactions.)
The "Huntingdonshire Declaration" is pure theatre, but with an important message proclaiming Huntingdonshire's continued county status. (See below under "Huntingdonshire Day in Future Years".) The Huntingdonshire Society put the wording of the Declaration on its website. We included with our leaflets given out on the day an insert with the words of the Declaration.
In conjunction with this the Huntingdonshire Society launched a page on its website giving events for Huntingdonshire Day. This included events which were not specifically organised for the Day but which would be happening on or around it, and in particular at the weekend. Some neatly fitted to the theme. Such coincident events included a concert by the Huntingdonshire Philharmonic Orchestra, the Huntingdonshire -v- Cambridgeshire cricket match and the St Ives Freedom of the Town ceremony.
A great deal of positive publicity was generated not only for Huntingdonshire (and of course for The Huntingdonshire Society) but also for the towns in which the meetings took place. If this could be achieved with such a limited programme then more focused activity would be very beneficial for those making use of it.
Press coverage was the main aim this year. We aimed at both the local press and the national press. The local newspapers and broadcast media were those who provided most coverage. As far as we are aware, only The Times picked it up among the nationals.
In the course of the Day itself Rupert Barnes, the Chairman of The Huntingdonshire Society, did two radio interviews (both on BBC Radio Cambridgeshire) and one television interview (for Anglia Television) and both met and spoke to many print journalists.
Mr Blackburn and Mr Barnes were followed round, in St Neots, Huntingdon and St Ives, by a team from The Town Crier. In Ramsey the Peterborough Evening Telegraph joined them. They took photographs not only of Mr Blackburn making a reading but also of Ramsey itself. This is something the Society was anxious that they should do, in order to provide some publicity for Ramsey as a visiting destination for people from Peterborough.
Coverage was in two stages. The Hunts Post, the Town Crier and the Peterborough Evening Telegraph covered the story from our first press release. On or immediately before Huntingdonshire Day all local newspapers had a version of the story.
Among the broadcast media BBC Radio Cambridgeshire made at least two broadcasts on the theme: in the morning and at midday. Anglia Television covered Huntingdonshire Day from Huntingdon, including an interview with Mr Barnes and a number of "vox pops".
Most of the local newspapers, at one stage or the other, included in their article the wording of the Huntingdonshire Declaration. This was encouraging for The Huntingdonshire Society as the Declaration contains the message of the Day in a nutshell. In their broadcast on the day BBC Radio Cambridgeshire included Mr Blackburn crying a shortened version of the Declaration.
Apart from alerting the press as to what we were doing, we also dropped in the suggestion that by reading the Declaration in six towns Mr Blackburn might be breaking a world record. It might indeed have been a record. The claim could just as well have been nonsense. However it did generate more interest. The claim of a world record was faithfully recorded by several newspapers, and formed headlines in at least two of them.
Thus, with comparatively little effort, the main aim of the Day, publicity, was achieved.
The Times carried an article about Huntingdonshire Day, and about Huntingdonshire in general, in its Saturday edition on 20th April. It was a long article: a full half page spread in the Weekend section. The article was prompted by a press release from The Huntingdonshire Society but most of its content came from the Huntingdon Tourist Office, whose details we had included in our letter.
The Times article was rhapsodic about the beauties of Huntingdonshire. The county's villages and St Neots came in for particular praise. It even included hints on activities for a holidaying family.
The Huntingdonshire Society could not on its own have supplied the material for such a fulsome article as that in The Times. Without the help of the Tourist Information Office the article simply would not have been written. The Society is very grateful indeed for that help. As a result of it we can confidently say that more people in the AB bracket know of Hunts and what it has to offer. They will be encouraged to visit and we dare say visitor number have been increased.
We achieved this example of national coverage by adopting a different strategy. The Society's initial tactic was to send a standard press release to the news editor of each newspaper. However a tale of local eccentricity, good for the locals, did not interest national newspapers. Instead therefore we looked at which sections of the newspapers do cover stories like this, and adapted our approach accordingly. Our aim is to interest people in coming to see Huntingdonshire, to boost the local economy. Therefore we looked to the features editor rather than the news editor. This is a lesson learnt late in the day, which can be employed with more vigour in future years.
The main response for The Huntingdonshire Society internally is a greatly increased membership since 25th April!
Public reactions on the street were, on the whole, very positive. In Buckden the main audience were in fact primary school children, so Huntingdonshire Day provided an interesting educational thing, both in the theme itself but also as Mr Blackburn gave a brief, lively talk on the history of town crying. In the larger towns it was a broader cross-section of local people. In general the reaction to what we were doing was that Huntingdonshire Day was "a jolly good idea" or "It's about time someone did something like this".
The only negative reactions came in St Neots. This is apparently more to do with the disaffection which some in St Neots have towards the District Council. It is unfortunate that an understandable gripe about local administration can be cutting a great town off from natural affection for its historical roots. Nevertheless, in St Neots even those negative reactions were in a minority.
In Ramsey several people expressed their delight that something should be coming to Ramsey. This seems to bear out the recent suggestions that the people of Ramsey feel forgotten. Again, that is somewhat outside The Huntingdonshire Society's remit. It emphasises though the need to ensure that benefits of Huntingdonshire Day are not concentrated only along the banks of the Great Ouse. Huntingdonshire Day in future years should benefit Ramsey and indeed the villages further north.
After Huntingdonshire Day the committee received further comments. We were asked by people in Kimbolton and Yaxley why we did not hold readings there. The simple answer of course is that Mr Blackburn has only one throat to wear out, and we could not be everywhere at once! We would love to do events in Kimbolton, Yaxley and elsewhere. We are aiming to bring it all the way up to Fletton. That will only be possible however if local people get involved. Parishes can hold their own readings of the Declaration for example.
The areas we would seek to reach in future Huntingdonshire Days are determined by those who will most benefit from it. This would include tourism, to encourage visitors from outside to come to Hunts: to stay here and to use the holiday facilities available. It will include business, with the twofold aim of encouraging those from outside the county to do business with the Huntingdonshire business community and of building on business relationships within the county. Farmers too could benefit from the promotion of local produce. Finally we would seek to provide a showcase for voluntary bodies.
The Huntingdonshire Declaration remains a key element for the future, as indeed similar Declarations have remained for other county days around the country.
The "Huntingdonshire Declaration" is a proclamation in public which calls to remembrance that Huntingdonshire is still a county and has been since 921 AD. It gives thanks for the county's many blessings and finishes with a rousing "God Bless Huntingdonshire! God Save the Queen!"
We would ideally like a big public celebration, or a series of local ones. It is something we are advocating, but which is entirely dependent on the availability of funds. As such we cannot claim to call the tune. Whether such a public celebration can take place and the size and shape of it are matters in other hands, though we are willing to help.
We can however talk in more detail of other proposals.
Theatrical events like those of 2002 have a big part to play. The Huntingdonshire Society will organise a reading of the Huntingdonshire Declaration again. It could go to different towns and we will encourage others to hold readings. Parishes can also benefit by organising their own events. (The Huntingdonshire Society committee is not big enough to do everything ourselves!) There may be many ideas coming out of this, such as village f tes, races on the Great Ouse, a tug-o'-war over the Great Ouse or any quirky, traditional or peculiar event which can be thought of. At least one event ought to be designed to bring journalists and television cameras in from outside.
The Huntingdonshire Society has discussed various particular proposals for activities on future Huntingdonshire Days, some of which are outlined below.
We have discussed an "Annual Huntingdonshire Dinner" in concept with the Huntingdonshire Business Network and with the District Council. The guiding idea for the Annual Dinner so far has been to create an annual formal dinner aimed mainly at the business community. It could be simply for Huntingdonshire businessman and civic dignitaries as a social and networking event. It could also be used to bring in potential business partners and investors from outside the county; inviting them to meet the local business community to see what they can gain from doing business in Huntingdonshire. It could in addition act as a lead-in to the annual "Meet the Buyer" event held in June.
The proposal for an Annual Huntingdonshire Dinner has been well received. However it does need practicality to organise it, which falls to the business organisations. It needs an initial pot of money put in. (The intent nevertheless would be to recoup the whole cost in ticket sales.)
Farming is of course a major industry in the county. Agricultural shows are limited in number and by their nature do not always reach the whole of the audience from which local farmers could benefit. When the Society discussed this with the local branch of the National Farmers' Union there was made a suggestion to promote local produce in the Annual Huntingdonshire Dinner. There is a great deal of variety in local produce: it might even be possible to source most of the meal from within Huntingdonshire. Certainly it could be all British produce. The practicality of that however would be for the organisers of the Dinner.
Whether a connection is made with the Annual Huntingdonshire Dinner or not, in any case we believe that Huntingdonshire Day is an ideal opportunity to promote local farm produce.
While speaking of all the good things there are in Huntingdonshire I am anxious of the need to remember where our blessings come from. It would be very appropriate to hold a service of thanksgiving. This is something which other counties have had for some time. There is an annual service in Kent, for example, regularly conducted by the Bishop of Maidstone. There is an annual Yorkshire Day Service, which has been conducted by the Archbishop of York. A county service is held in Rutland too. There might be others we do not know of. One of the patrons of our Society, the Reverend Robert Van de Weyer, has advised us on how this could best be organised. Amongst the advice he has kindly given is the suggestion that the service be held on the nearest Saturday to Huntingdonshire Day. (That would also get over the difficulty of having an evening service clashing with the Annual Dinner.) However the details are yet to be worked out.
Huntingdonshire Day provides an ideal occasion for building on the National Curriculum. This already incorporates elements of local history at junior school level. We feel this could be developed into an enriching cross-curricular study involving geography, history and economics as well as social and religious issues.
The opportunities to be exploited are in three categories: public, private and voluntary. However there is a good deal of overlap. The public field is largely a matter for the district council, the county council and Peterborough City Council, in their respective areas of competence. In the private field are opportunities for local businesses to profit individually. The voluntary sector is a third important area where again publicity within the county and beyond can be a help in furthering the aims (and income) of participating organisations.
Tourism promotion in general comes within the public sphere. However the ultimate aim behind it is to boost the income of those who run guesthouses, hotels, facilities and venues. It goes without saying that while the public sector helps attract visitors in general, it is of little use if those visitors just drive through and do not stay long enough to spend money.
There is therefore a need for, in particular, the District Council and the Huntingdonshire Association for Tourism to look at playing a role. Such bodies must do their part to use the opportunities for general publicity which Huntingdonshire Day presents. It should be featured on the tourism literature already published for example. It is then for individual businesses to blow their own trumpets to attract the visitors, perhaps by advertising on leaflets, sponsoring events, launching their own publicity stunts and so on.
The more "theatrical" events outlined above are particularly suitable for this sort of promotion.
The same public / private co-operation is found in economic development. On the public side there are a number of initiatives in this area, in particular those run by or under the auspices of Huntingdonshire District Council and Peterborough City Council. However one of the more onerous tasks is to blow the trumpet outside Hunts, to outside investors. Huntingdonshire Day is an ideal opportunity. It can be a valuable opportunity for promotion both on it own merits and as a lead-in to other events, such as the "Meet the Buyer" event in the Summer.
Individual businesses will be able to take advantage in any of a number of ways. A company might sponsor a Huntingdonshire Day event. It might advertise in the publicity literature.
A business could instead organise its own publicity stunt to catch the theme. These often attract a couple of column inches, or even a visiting camera crew. It is all free advertising. The usual one is a bakery selling cakes decorated for the theme. A pub might hold a theme night, or a challenge competition with a rival establishment, or have a Huntingdonshire Day menu with a local twist. Companies might wish to buy a flag to fly on the day (see below) to show their support, or to show their support in another way. Company PR departments are generally not slow to come up with ideas though, so we will not try to pre-empt their ingenuity too much here.
Much of the life of the county is found in its voluntary organisations. Huntingdonshire Day presents an opportunity for clubs, societies and charities to show themselves and their activities off. This might be by participation in local events organised by others or by their own special event. For drama and music societies, for example, it could take the form of a play or a concert on the day, as a showcase for the society's year-round activities.
Many organisations do announce programmes of events in advance. However the impact is not as great as it could be. One has to know where to look for these events lists. As part of a larger promotion however there is a pooling of publicity for mutual benefit.
Beyond these mercenary motives there are the best reasons of all to hold a Huntingdonshire Day event: for the love of it and to celebrate this beautiful little county.
These cannot be fully explored at this point without expert advice. However there are several apparent openings. Lessons can be taken from Yorkshire Day. Sponsorship has long formed part of that but only recently has a public relations firm been called in. It has been successful. Hunts is smaller. We can exploit basic sponsorship opportunities in any event. We would look at the figures though before hiring a consultancy. The money spent on fees must be earned back. The hiring of a consultant might therefore be only for the future.
Sponsorship provides an opportunity for companies seeking publicity to associate themselves with Huntingdonshire Day, in return for a contribution. Having developed a common logo etc. we can then license the right to use it. There will be advertising space on publicity material. A sponsor might get publicity from saying simply "We support Huntingdonshire Day".
To be blunt, the Huntingdonshire Society cannot organise big events. We simply are not strong enough to do so and our financial resources are not enough to do all we would wish to.
Activities must be organised by those taking part. The Huntingdonshire Society can help with co-ordination and branding (see below). However it is for individual bodies and companies to do their part. Theirs will be the seed capital put into activities from which they will ultimately benefit. They will have the task of organising the events they are funding. If they do not then nothing will happen.
There will be a proper concern that funds put into this venture are properly used. If any participator thinks that the money is going to The Huntingdonshire Society they have a reason for concern. It will not. Funds put into the venture must be properly used and not appropriated for one organisation's benefit: Huntingdonshire Day is for us all.
An income is possible if one talks of selling sponsorship rights and selling tickets for events. As far as The Huntingdonshire Society is concerned, Huntingdonshire Day is not intended as a profit- making venture in itself. It is a venture intended to benefit the county. Any income must be properly accounted for. We would expect any income generated for Huntingdonshire Day itself first to go towards repaying funding capital, with a reserve for future years. Any excess profit could be directed towards projects within Huntingdonshire for community benefit, or we could nominate each year an "Official Charity", which would receive spare profits, if any.
To ensure this, The Huntingdonshire Society would be happy to create a separate entity for this purpose. It might be able to claim charitable status. Learning lessons from similar ventures, this body should consist in addition to The Huntingdonshire Society of the leading participants and core sponsors: those putting their money into the events. That way we can ensure not only proper financial control but also that the venture is properly directed to serve the priorities of those whom is it designed to benefit.
"Brand recognition" is a necessity for a wider event. It will come into play strongly next year. No attempt was made this year to achieve that as such. (This year we just used The Huntingdonshire Society's own logo.) We felt it would have been counterproductive to adopt a logo which would have to be changed next year. A logo and the other elements of a recognisable "brand" must be created to serve the needs of those who have an interest in promoting it, and in consultation with them.
The first, most obvious element of brand identity will be a common logo. We would recommend some use of the hunting-horn motif. It is a badge long associated with Huntingdonshire, appearing on the arms of Huntingdon and Godmanchester and of the Huntingdonshire District and formerly County Councils, and indeed (as the unlikely necklace of a great bustard) it represents Hunts in Cambridgeshire County Council's arms.
A county flag is another suggestion. The idea of a county flag is far from unprecedented. County flags form an important element of local celebrations in Yorkshire, Lancashire, Rutland, Pembrokeshire and Cornwall. A county flag has publicity interest. It is also the sort of thing which local businesses and parish councils might wish to display on the day as a way of showing support. The Huntingdonshire Society proposes a gold hunting-horn on green for this: just such a flag appears in the crest of Huntingdonshire District Council's arms.
Beyond the purely visual elements of "brand identity" we move to common themes, and inevitably into the realms of advertising "tag-lines" and "sound-bites". From the standpoint of a respectable voluntary organisation these seem a little demeaning, but commercial organisations will realise, as we must, that there is no getting away from these things. Again, these are best worked out in due course to fit the needs of those with an interest in the opportunities Huntingdonshire Day presents.
Publicity material should be designed to build on the identified themes and branding.
There are already events lists published by Huntingdonshire District Council, Peterborough City Council and others. We would like to include Huntingdonshire Day on those. Individual events will have their own material, which again can use the same brand logos. We would also propose a Huntingdonshire Day web page. That could appear on The Huntingdonshire Society website as at present or independently, with links to participants' own websites. (The Yorkshire Day website is donated by a local internet design company, and is of course providing a good advertisement for that company.)
Huntingdonshire Day is established. The Huntingdonshire Society intends to pursue it in future years. If it remains no more than a chance to yell in the streets then so be it. However that would be a terrible waste of an opportunity.
Huntingdonshire Day presents not just a way for one local voluntary group to raise its voice. Huntingdonshire Day presents opportunities for local businesses, voluntary groups and statutory bodies to present their wares both inside the county and beyond. It is an opportunity to pool resources, sharing publicity for the individual benefit of each business and sector.
Comments and observations on the contents of this Report, and the suggestions it puts, are welcomed. Likewise The Huntingdonshire Society would like to hear as soon as possible of any events, sponsors, volunteers, participants, plans etc. All these should be addressed to:
mail@huntingdonshire.org.uk01923 897 975
Further information about The Huntingdonshire Society can also be read on the Society's website at:
www.huntingdonshire.org.uk
THE HUNTINGDONSHIRE DECLARATION
THIS DECLARATION is made today, in the year of our Lord Two Thousand and Two, in the 50th year of the reign of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
BE IT KNOWN that this day, the 25th day of April, is Huntingdonshire Day. This day is set aside for the celebration of that most excellent County of Huntingdonshire, and the unique distinction enjoyed by its people of being true Huntingdonshire men and women.
For 1,081 years Huntingdonshire has stood as a county. It is a county still and let no man deny her birthright. For though this shire is small it is great, and a man of Huntingdonshire might rise to the highest, for good or ill, or be great in his own home. On a 25th April each year every man and woman of Huntingdonshire can stand proud of their county, and give thanks for the many blessings with which Huntingdonshire is blessed. Thus we declare once more this day:
"God bless Huntingdonshire!"
GOD SAVE THE QUEEN!