Aspire Course: Strategic Communications

Registration is 15 minutes before the start time. You will need to bring either your Civil Service pass or another form of photo ID to access the venue. Failure to do so may result in denied access.

You need to make sure you receive a confirmation email. If you do not, use your Eventbrite account to check if you do have a ticket, or confirm by emailing gcsbookings@cabinetoffice.gov.uk.

You need to give GCS at least 2 full working days notice if you need to cancel. You can cancel on both Eventbrite by clicking your account - tickets - upcoming events will be displayed - then click on cancel order or by contacting gcsbookings@cabinetoffice.gov.uk

By not doing this, you are depriving other GCS colleagues of the opportunity to attend these courses, which are in high demand. Failure to notify GCS of your cancellation may affect your department's allocation of places on Aspire.

*This course counts as a piece of your CPD & 5 CIPR points*

This course will equip you with the skills and knowledge you need to design and implement strategic communication campaigns. It is based on the Government’s model for Strategic Communication called OASIS (Objectives,Audiences, Strategy, Implementation and Scoring) and you will have the opportunity to explore its 5 stages in depth.

The course will suit you if:

• You are ready to move to a more proactive and strategic communication role

• You know part of OASIS, but want to understand the whole campaign planning process

• You will be involved in campaign planning and implementation soon

• You have to advise non-communication specialists on campaigns

What will be covered:

• the context of government communication

• why planning communication strategically is important

• strategic planning and strategic plans

• setting objectives

• identifying audiences and obtaining insight

• developing strategy and ideas

• implementing plans

• evaluation

What you will be able to do as a result of attending the course:

• understand and follow a strategic planning cycle

• understand and use the OASIS framework confidently

• define the aim, objectives and tactics of a strategic plan

• write SMART objectives

• identify research needs and ways to source information

• categorise audiences and design comms relevant to them

• identify influencers and partners

• recognise and scope risks

• know what can be evaluated and how to evaluate.

The will include exercises and have real Government campaigns as examples to help you consolidate your learning.