Laois Council called upon recruit PR person to drive message

A Communications Officer should be recruited by Laois County Council to ensure that work undertaken by Laois County Council is shared with the local community and the wider population, according to a Laois Councillor.

Cllr Thomasina Connell, Fine Gael, made the call in a statement.

"County Laois has a great story to tell. We are a vibrant population now with over 51 nationalities residing here. Almost 100,000 people live here. Everyone here knows that Laois is a great place to live, work, play and raise a family but we need to up our game in getting our message across.

"Laois County Council do exceptional work across all sectors, bringing communities together, organising events and festivals, celebrating our culture and arts, growing our local economy; but we need to tell the people what we are doing and ensure that everyone has a chance to join in. We need to appoint someone who can effectively communicate the positive developments happening in our county, ensuring that every resident is aware of the strides we are making.

"A Communications and Public Relations Officer will play a pivotal role in doing that. They will market our projects, engage with local media, manage our social media presence, and organize public events. This role is not just about promoting what we do; it’s about building a connection with our community so that we all have a sense of pride in our achievements.

"In addition, we need to raise our profile both regionally and nationally. We have excellent transport links with Dublin and Cork, we are situated in the centre of Ireland and have motorways criss crossing our County. This is the perfect location for large scale industrial and logistical businesses to place themselves so they can grow and thrive. But we need to market ourselves better. We have an IDA park that is not fully occupied and this needs to change. Any new business that comes into Laois to set up to offer local jobs is a success story. We need more of this," she said.

Cllr Connell highlighted initiatives such as road and transport links, economic development projects, cultural events and environmental sustainability programmes.

"Each of these projects contributes to making Laois a better place to live, work, and visit. Yet, without a strategic communications effort, these successes often go unnoticed or underappreciated," she said.

The Portlaoise councillor highlighted the importance of social media as and essential way to communicate with thousands of people.

"Currently we have nobody employed in Laois County Council who is responsible for our messaging and this needs to be urgently addressed. While the Council share individual projects they are working on via our facebook platform, it is not sufficient. We need a dedicated professional to share our stories. Without one many of our achievements remain unknown to the very people who benefit from them. In addition we do not have an active Instagram platform for Laois County Council and we are losing out here.

"I am urging the Council today to appoint a Communications and Public Relations Officer so we can drive our message and get our story out about the great projects we deliver, who we are and what we have to offer," concluded the councillor.