Research project
The FSA Risk Communication Toolkit
A toolkit and checklist to help our policy, science and strategy teams to plan effective risk communications.
Risk communication refers to the exchange of real-time information, advice and opinions between experts and people facing threats to their health, economic or social well-being.
Objectives
The toolkit provides a framework for communicating food risk to consumers. It has been developed to:
- Make risk communications planning rigorous and consistent with the latest thinking
- Support science, policy and strategy teams in understanding how to communicate effectively
Research approach
The content of the toolkit is drawn from advice from the FSA Science Council and a working group of the FSA Advisory Committee for Social Science, and supported by bespoke research including:
- A review of the available literature exploring risk communication theory and the way that 18 other Government organisations have set out their communications toolkits
- Qualitative research with communications practitioners and intermediaries as well as consumers across England, Wales and Northern Ireland
The toolkit comes with a checklist to use when developing risk communications.
The core principles outlined in this toolkit are complementary with the Government Communications Services’ OASIS model which was developed to bring order and clarity to planning campaigns.