LCA publish new London Political Map
Produced in partnership with London Councils, the new 2008 map shows the political control in the capital at a borough, London Assembly and parliamentary level
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Communicating complex change  
Metropolitan Police Property Services

The Metropolitan Police manages one of the largest property portfolios in the UK, currently valued at over £1.6bn, comprising over 6 million square feet of space including 174 police stations, 600 operational buildings, offices and back-office facilities to support over 40,000 police officers and civil staff.

The ownership of this estate is vested in the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA) while the management of the estate rests with the Property Services Department of the Metropolitan Police Service (MPS).

The MPS operates in a unique environment in London and is currently undergoing an extensive period of change and modernisation. As a high profile organisation delivering a key public service, the MPS therefore faces major external scrutiny from the media, politicians, pressure groups and others across the Capital.

LCA was appointed in December 2004 specifically to address these issues through the development of a communications programme for the Metropolitan Police Property Services.

The main role of this is to communicate to key stakeholders how the changes being made to the property assets will directly benefit policing in London. Understanding the background, the size and condition of the estate and the specific major changes being made are stressed, so that these changes are seen as part of the larger picture not as individual local issues.

LCA has helped to develop individual documents for internal and external audiences looking at specific issues including environmental and planning agendas within the MPS and toolkits for supporting communication and consultation in each of the boroughs.

In December 2006 the Estates Strategic Plan, consultation and communication strategy and implementation plan, was agreed. LCA provided significant strategic guidance to TP and Property Services on this document and has worked with both departments on the papers recommendations. This includes the production of Property for Policing – a document explaining the operational estate in 2007 and the Asset Management Plans which were consulted on across London for three months.

In 2007 LCA re-tendered and won the contract with Property Services and is now looking at addressing the challenges of communicating to all stakeholders the shift towards the delivery of the estates changes.

LCA liaises regularly with the communications teams of the MPA and MPS to ensure that the work of the Property Services Department is in line with the larger Metropolitan Police communications agenda.