The new committee would reflect the changing nature of public sector comms and could be renamed ‘local public services committee’. The proposals were discussed during a CIPR meeting at City Hall last Thursday.

Haringey head of comms and CIPR local government chair Mike Browne explained the reason for the proposal: ‘Local public services are becoming more interchangeable, and people are finding it increasingly easy to move from jobs in local councils to fire, police and the voluntary sector.’

Browne said that the proposal will be reflected in the CIPR Local Government awards, which will this year include a new category called the London Campaign award, which is open to all local public services in London.

This year’s CIPR Local Government conference will take place in Bath on 15 to 17 October and will feature a keynote speech from London’s first professor of PR, Julia Hobsbawm.