Oakham Town Council is considering a major move into using social media to promote its activities and make it more accessible to residents.

A report for this week's council meeting on Wednesday June 9 suggests the town council could 'broadcast' its meetings using Facebook.

More immediate 'news' could also be distributed using twitter.

The move follows town mayor Zoe Nealson in recent months increasing the content of news and comment from the town council substantially in recent months and to much success.

During the past year, the town council along with others have had to use technologies such as Zoom to 'meet' over the internet in line with government legislation due to the pandemic.

But last month, central government mandated that councils must now meet face to face. But social distancing requirements are currently still in place which may restrict public entry to council meetings if too many wish to attend.

This Wednesday's meeting at 6.30pm will be held at Rol House and will be the town council's first 'full' meeting in person. It follows a face-to-face committee meeting held in late may, as previously reported by Nub News.

In the report Mayor Nealson said: "The Facebook page is continuing to grow in followers and positive interactions, we would like to carry this forward by live streaming Council meetings so that members of the public can log in and view what we are doing.

"The options for live streaming are as follows:

"Facebook – this option is available through the Facebook App and is very user friendly. The best way to livestream on Facebook is to set a phone up on a stand with the best view of the room connected to a centrally located microphone so that we are submitting the best audio possible.

"The stream would need to be activated at the start of the meeting and could be left running until the end although it would be advisable to have someone monitoring the stream so that any glitches are picked up immediately.

"The costs associated with this option include purchasing a smart phone capable of running the Facebook App, purchasing a microphone, and purchasing appropriate stands for the equipment. There would be no ongoing costs associated with this option.

"Zoom – this would work similarly to the way zoom meetings worked in lockdown. The best way to do this would be to have a laptop located where the majority of the room could be seen and a centrally located microphone. This option would require a user to monitor the zoom meeting ensuring anyone wanting to watch is allowed into the meeting.

"The costs associated with this option include the purchasing of a laptop (if there is not one already available), purchasing a microphone and purchasing appropriate stands for the equipment. There is an ongoing subscription charge for Zoom which is approx £160 a year."

"Hop In – This is a service similar to zoom but offers more functions for conferencing and user interactions. This option would also require a laptop and microphone with a user responsible for overseeing the online aspects of the meeting. The costs associated with this option include the purchasing of a laptop (if there is not one already available), purchasing a microphone and purchasing stands for the equipment. There is an ongoing subscription charge for Hop In which is approx £60 per month."

Mayor Nealson also raises the prospect of other councillors contributing to the town council's Facebook page, along with the town council also using other platforms such as twitter and Linked-in to spread its messages.

Town councillors are expected to debate the issue at the Wednesday meeting. along with a range of other items on the agenda.