We have been working with Cavendish for three years, transforming the way we engage and promote our new restaurants and setting a new global standard for the McDonald’s brand. Their expertise in politics, engagement, and digital campaigning has been a key part of our success and that is reflected in some stunning results, including planning consents achieved against officer recommendation.
Nick Hemstock,
Head of Acquisitions,
McDonald’s
Background
Cavendish was selected after competitive tender to help McDonald’s achieve ambitious growth targets across the UK & Ireland. Our approach, working closely with the development and communications teams at McDonald’s, is considered by McDonald’s as the global standard for supporting new restaurant projects.
Our focus on local engagement and relationship building, alongside effective digital consultation and support mobilisation, has seen our teams across the UK & Ireland deliver successful planning consents, most notably securing permissions against officer recommendations to refuse.
Strategy
Cavendish has provided direct support to over a hundred different sites, reaching tens of thousands of stakeholders and securing thousands of formal letters of support for applications.
Our work includes:
Risk Assessments – providing detailed analysis to guide acquisition and strategy on new sites, looking at the political and community issues, and social media demographics to inform digital campaigns and consultation.
Relationship Building – building relationships with key local authorities in target locations and communicating key economic and social benefits of new McDonald’s restaurants.
Messaging and digital content – development of key message assets, helping to promote benefits and challenge misinformation around key issues, including the development of digital content and assets for digital campaigns.
Political Briefings – using our regional teams’ expertise on the ground to help brief and consult with key decision-makers.
Consultation – pre-application consultation, both digital and in-person to allow local communities an opportunity to provide feedback and discuss key issues and providing a Statement of Community Involvement alongside the planning application.
Media Relations – supporting the local media teams with proactive and reactive media statements.
Supporter Mobilisation – using digital campaigns and pre-application engagement to find and mobilise support for planning applications. Cavendish has successfully procured over 5,000 letters of support through our target social media work.
Planning Committee Support – providing political advice and support for committee deputations and helping to secure approvals against recommendations to refuse.
The
results.
Our work has included significant successes, including:
- Reaching more than 50,000 stakeholders through our consultation and digital campaigns
- Securing over 5,000 letters of support, for new restaurants
Supporter mobilisation – getting support from the Town Council and over 400 supporters in Christchurch through digital campaign leading to an approval, securing a delegated approval after 293 letters of support were generated for the planning application in Perry Barr, an approval in Rhyl after mobilising 200 expressions of support to counter objections, and 335 letter of support in Brownhills leading to a committee approval.
Overturning recommendations to refuse – overcoming a recommendation to refuse in Larkhall, where Scottish planning policy on NPF4 restrict drive-through restaurants, by securing 539 letters of support and working with and briefing key decision-makers to secure a vote at committee in favour.
In Dinnington, we secured an approval against a recommendation to refuse on employment land supply. 194 letters of support, alongside cross-party support from local councillors and the new Labour MP, saw a unanimous vote to approve the application. We also worked closely with the local franchisee who addressed the planning committee.
Supporting COP26 – securing a building warrant from Glasgow City Council, allowing the sustainable refurbishment of McDonald’s Sauchiehall Street restaurant in the City Centre, providing the location for meetings during the conference with the Lord Provost of Glasgow.
Engaging communities – launching the first ever pre-application on-line consultation with McDonald’s and engaging over 1,000 consultees in Norwich.
+50,000
Stakeholders reached.
+5,000
Letters of support.
