Case Study: Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council achieves higher Household Enquiry Form response rates with Civica's Mobile Canvasser App

Blackburn increases Household Enquiry form response rate using mobile Canvasser App

Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, with an electorate of just over 100,000 across 17 wards, faced low Household Enquiry Form (HEF) response rates—particularly in less-affluent areas. To address this challenge the council trialled and then adopted Civica's Mobile Canvasser App (MCA) on tablets to improve doorstep engagement and reduce reliance on paper forms.

Civica supplied the MCA on tablets so canvassers had up-to-date data in the field; five canvassers using tablets completed 2,798 of 4,099 HEF reminders, and tablet users achieved a 72% return rate versus 54% for paper-based teams. The council also saw two canvassers’ response rates rise from 65% with paper to 78% with the MCA, along with immediate savings on print/postage, no scanning, faster working, and more positive, trusting interactions with electors.

Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council

Sean Gambles

Business Development Officer