What is framing, and how can it be used to grow support for building social homes?

We all know we need to build more social homes, but getting people on board with the cause is often easier said than done. That’s where framing might be able to help.

At CIH, our core purpose is to help housing professionals and organisations to deliver the best service possible to residents. However, we are also committed to building support for the sector and championing its mission. It’s why you’ll often see us putting ourselves out there to comment on government policy that we see as either helpful or detrimental to the sector. 

We know many of our member organisations are just as committed to shoring up support for the sector as we are. And so, in this member-exclusive article, we will share with you the key learnings from a recent webinar exploring how housing communications teams can grow support for building social homes. 

The session was hosted by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) and led by Sophie Gordan, principal communications strategist at FrameWorks UK, a communications specialist that works with charities and other mission-driven organisations to help strengthen the impact of their messaging. 

The importance of framing 

To understand how to use framing to amplify the strength and reach of your messaging, we first need to make clear what framing actually is. As Sophie succinctly put it, framing refers to the choices we make about the ideas we share and how we share them. “This includes what we emphasise, how we explain an issue, and what we leave unsaid.” 

She gave the example of being told one of two statements: 

1. A surgery will have a 90 per cent chance of success, or; 
2. A surgery will have a 10 per cent change of mortality 

Both these statements mean the same thing, but the way in which we perceive the same information differs depending on the way in which it is framed. 

How to tell a story 

According to Sophie, three questions need to be considered before we put pen to paper or voice to video: 

1. What’s this about, and why does it matter? 
2. How does this work, and if it's not working, why isn’t it? 
3. What can we do about it? 

1. What’s this about, and why does it matter?

In this instance, the ‘what’ is social housing, specifically building more of it. It matters because the security of a social home has been proven to positively impact people’s health and wellbeing. And it’s this correlation that Sophie says communications professionals need to highlight “early and consistently”. 

Before we drive home that connection, however, Sophie said we need to ensure our audience understands what social homes are: if they don’t fully understand the concept, what chance is there of getting them to engage?

2. How does this work, and if it's not working, why isn’t it?

If you walk your audience through the benefits of social homes, and the negative effects an inadequate supply can have, they are more likely to align with your cause and take action. As Sophie said: “When people understand something, they are far more likely to agree with it.” 

The ‘restricts and restrains’ metaphor is particularly effective in highlighting the harmful effects of a lack of social homes; for example, in showing how such an undersupply ‘locks’ people in poverty. This approach also allows you to easily introduce solutions – i.e. building more social homes.

3. What can we do about it?

Solutions are a crucial part of any messaging, especially if you want to galvanise your audience and get them to take action. However, to be effective, you must both drive home the urgency of solutions and show that they are possible and achievable. 

“People do understand that our housing system isn’t working as it should,” explained Sophie. “What’s missing is the understanding of how we got here and what we can do to change the situation.” 

Another way to increase the chances of getting people on board is to start your communications with solutions – rather than putting them at the end, where most people don’t finish reading to. 

“By bringing in solutions early in your communications, you are bringing in a counter to the fatalism that we know we are up against,” Sophie explained. 

Spead the word

The JRF-hosted webinar explored how to use framing to grow support for building more social homes. However, the same techniques can of course be applied to any other housing story you’d like to tell. The key takeaway is to understand the power of framing – and how it can be used to strengthen your story and spread your message.

“Think of frames almost like a scaffolding, which the whole sector can use to tailor their communications,” Sophie explained. “It isn’t about everything saying the same thing in the same way, but it is about using framing to build an overarching story.”

• Read the full FrameWorks UK guide

Main image: Shutterstock AI