The collaboration will see streetlife.com rapidly extend its reach to local communities across the UK, building on Archant’s portfolio of 60 newspapers, 80 magazines and 200 digital products, reaching almost 5 million people.
streetlife.com has a clear goal – to help people make the most of where they live by connecting and sharing with others in their area. In a 2011 survey with YouGov, streetlife.com reported that 51% of people described the sense of community in their area as weak or non-existent. An encouraging 44% said they’d like to become more involved in their local community, but cited a lack of time and knowledge about where to find local people and opportunities as barriers.
streetlife.com claims to have filled that gap, providing a simple and secure digital platform to exchange practical information, advice and opinions with other people in their local community. In its pilot area of Wandsworth, London, streetlife.com has become a dependable source of local knowledge for thousands of users, who use the site to share common issues and recommendations, organise social groups and discuss public services with council officials, police and other residents.
One year on, a survey of streetlife.com users revealed that 68% feel more connected to their local community since joining the local social network; 62% have chatted with neighbours they wouldn’t otherwise have been in touch with, and 75% say they’re better informed about local services, news, businesses, events and crime.
This partnership between streetlife.com and Archant will bring the same service to hundreds of local communities across the UK.
Founder and CEO of streetlife.com, Matt Boyes, said: “At streetlife.com we believe that better informed and connected neighbours help build stronger, safer and friendlier communities. Social networking has a key role to play in bringing busy people together to talk about the local issues they care about.” He continued: “We’ve shown that virtual interaction can facilitate real-world meetings, encourage people to become more involved locally, and enhance their sense of belonging. Our partnership with Archant means that communities across the nation will now be able to enjoy the benefits local social networking brings.”
Serge Taborin, Group Business Development Director, Archant added: “Archant has played an important role in keeping local communities informed and engaged for over 150 years and streetlife.com will help us to continue to do this in the digital world. This partnership is an excellent fit with Archant’s local strategy, enhancing our social media capability and enabling our audiences to interact with their local media and community, discuss issues of public interest in real time and add multi-media messages, events and polls, while also creating new commercial opportunities.”
