Case Study: North East Transport Plan Consultation

The Partnership

Before founding Fellshore, Jen Robson led the North East Transport Plan consultation as part of her role within the North East Combined Authority. Working with an incredible multidisciplinary team, spanning the combined authority, seven local authorities, policy, evidence, and communications, she brought together the expertise needed to deliver the most responded-to public sector consultation the region has ever seen.

The North East Mayor was clear: this consultation had to reach more people than any before and that’s what was delivered.  That ambition shaped everything, from design to delivery, and set a new benchmark for engagement in the region.

The Context

The North East Transport Plan set out an ambitious vision for how transport could support economic growth, sustainability, and quality of life across the region. To succeed, it needed to reflect the views of local people, businesses, and partners and to secure genuine buy-in across communities.

The Approach

The consultation programme was built to be wide-reaching, inclusive, and accessible:

• A digital platform hosting surveys and information, presented in a way people could understand

• 36 community events across towns, villages, and city centres, as well as online sessions

• Targeted outreach to young people, women and girls, disabled residents, and disadvantaged groups

• Direct engagement with businesses, statutory consultees, and local stakeholders

• Pushed boundaries with innovative approaches, we analysed over 28,000 open-text responses in detail, using AI-driven sentiment and thematic analysis to deliver real-time insights (thanks WordNerds)

The Results

• 16,294 total responses, making it the most responded-to public consultation in the region’s history

• 84% of statutory consultees responded, ensuring strong institutional and expert input

• Diverse participation, with 37% of respondents identifying as disabled and 7% under 25 (a significant shift from typical consultation demographics)

• 81% public support for the Mayor’s vision of a green, integrated transport system

• 64% said they would use sustainable travel more if improvements were made

• Insights directly shaped the final Transport Plan, including stronger commitments on safety, inclusivity, accessibility, and integrated ticketing

Beyond the metrics, the process-built trust in regional decision-making, gave residents a genuine voice in shaping their transport future, and demonstrated the value of placing communications and engagement professionals in the lead.

The Takeaway

This consultation showed what happens when engagement is done well: people feel ownership, leaders gain legitimacy, and strategies are strengthened.

At Fellshore, this lived experience underpins our Engage offer. We know what it takes to design processes that are inclusive, credible, and effective, because we’ve done it from the inside.

If you love consultations as much as we do, read the full consultation findings and recommendations here, this document demonstrates. If we can help with anything you are working on at the moment, we'd love to chat.