ADD2780 - Commissioning of polling to establish baseline Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for the Mayor’s Clean and Healthy Waterways Plan

1.1    The Delivering a Greener and More Climate-Resilient London delivery plan commits to developing a Clean and Healthy Waterways Plan (the Plan). This is a 10-year programme to address water quality, biodiversity, accessibility and inclusion in London’s waterways. The Plan is formed around four themes for delivery. Two of these – accessibility, and inclusion and engagement – require baseline quantitative measures to assess progress towards agreed goals and targets.
1.2    In accordance with the Contracts and Funding Code, the Greater London Authority (GLA) will commission a supplier to produce two online surveys, lasting 15-20 minutes each. These surveys will be shared with at least 1,000 Londoners aged 16 and over. There will be detailed quotas/weights (relating to age, gender, education, ethnicity, social grade etc.) and quality assurance consistent with British Polling Council standards. Wave one, in September 2025, will establish the baseline; wave two, in 2026, will enable tracking.
1.3    This polling will measure:
•    public awareness of, and access to, waterways;
•    levels of engagement in activities in, on and alongside waterways;
•    perceptions of safety, cleanliness, inclusivity and representation;
•    barriers to access and engagement, including cost, facilities and awareness;
•    disaggregated data for underrepresented groups (by age, ethnicity, income, gender and disability).
1.4    Outputs will include topline results within one day of the fieldwork closing and fully accessible data tables within one week.
 

2.1    The outcomes from this polling will:
•    create a robust, representative baseline for key performance indicators relating to accessibility, and inclusion and engagement;
•    inform how measurable goals are set in the Clean and Healthy Waterways Plan to 2035;
•    enable year-on-year tracking of public attitudes, awareness and behaviours;
•    provide data to support press and stakeholder communications.
 

3.1    In accordance with the Public Sector Equality Duty (section 149 of the Equality Act 2010), the polling will:
•    identify disparities in awareness, access and engagement among protected groups (including disabled Londoners and ethnically diverse communities);
•    inform actions that advance equality of opportunity, and foster good relations, between those who have a protected characteristic (as per the Equality Act 2010) and those who do not;
•    monitor change over time.
3.2    Sampling, quotas and weighting will ensure robust representation. Analytics will be disaggregated to evidence barriers and enable actions for underrepresented groups. Suppliers must comply with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR); and codes issued by the British Polling Council and the Market Research Society. This work will require safeguarding measures for online surveys of those aged 16–17.
 

Key risks and issues

Links to Mayoral strategies
4.1    This decision will support delivery of a 10-year Clean and Healthy Waterways Plan. This aligns with the London Environment Strategy’s goals on blue-green infrastructure and equal access to nature.
4.2    This decision will implement a key action of the Delivering a Greener and More Climate-Resilient London delivery plan (see: appendices and supporting papers, below).
Consultations and impact assessments
4.3    Measures and design have been developed in collaboration with the GLA’s Social Research Team and Environment Policy officers, alongside secondary research of existing consultation measures.
Data protection
4.4    The supplier will be required to comply with GDPR and GLA data security requirements.
4.5    The supplier will act as data controller for fieldwork. No personal data will be shared with the GLA; only aggregated results will be reported.
Conflicts of interest
4.6    No conflicts of interest have been identified for any officers involved in the development of this proposal; or the drafting or clearance of this decision form.
4.7    Officers involved in scoring invitation-to-tender responses will complete Declaration of Interest forms as per Transport for London procurement and commercial activity requirements.
 

5.1    Approval is being sought for up to £25,000 to procure fieldwork and data tables for two waves of polling.
5.2    The funding will come from the allocated ‘Delivering clean and healthy waterways’ budget line. The expenditure will be incurred in the 2025-26 financial year.
5.3    All appropriate budget adjustments will be made.
 

6.1    This work will be carried out according to the following timetable:

• MD3384 Delivery Plan – Delivering a Greener, More Climate-Resilient London
• London Environment Strategy