Publishers are using local democracy reporters on jobs of “dubious relevance” to the BBC-funded scheme’s original brief, the National Union of Journalists has claimed.

The union staged a summit of LDRs who are NUJ members to hear their views as the scheme moves towards its second three-year retendering process next year.

According to a union press release, the reporters expressed concern that publishers are exploiting the scheme to plug shortfalls in their staffing and finances.

It warned that participating publishers are allowing widespread “mission creep” to satisfy their own demands for copy, with some failing to pay decent salaries to their LDRs despite dedicated BBC funding for each post.

The union said: “Concern was expressed by journalists over the working of the scheme in some workplaces, with multiple LDRs reporting their distinct and specialist reporting is increasingly under threat, as pressures from employers grow.

“Several LDRs have been asked to focus on wider reporting including international and broad political issues outwith the clearly defined remit of local democracy reporter roles.”

According to LDRS contractual terms obtained by the union, supplier publishers are required to adhere to productivity levels of a minimum of 30 and maximum of 40 stories per month, but many LDRs said they were being asked to work well above this.

Summit attendees said their use as substitute reporters – described by one LDR as being on the “digital hamster wheel” – had had a stark impact on their mental health.

The issue of LDR pay was also discussed, with the union repeating its previous claims that publishers are failing to pass on the full amount of BBC funding for each post.

Currently, LDR employers are only required to pay a minimum salary of £24,400 (£26,636 in London) and pass on an annual increase of only 1.5pc.

However the NUJ says freedom of information responses show that the BBC currently funds each LDR role outside of London to the tune of £38,299 and £40,551 in London.

The summit agreed that as part of the retendering process the BBC should ensure that suppliers cannot withhold the annual increase in funding from the BBC to their LDRs.

Northern & Midlands Senior Organiser Chris Morley, pictured, said: “The number of LDR members at our summit and their geographical and employer spread meant this was a representative snapshot of what is happening on the ground in the LDRS.

“It was tangible that many LDRs felt they were being unreasonably pushed around to do things that were of dubious relevance to the LDRS and its original brief. There was frustration that publishers were seeking to extract more and more from them to the obvious detriment to the founding principles of the scheme and other partners of the service.

“Our members feel the BBC is not doing enough to keep its contractual obligations adhered to and in reality are presiding over a laissez faire, permissive regime where the boundaries are being constantly pushed to the expense of the core duty to provide unique content public interest journalism.

“The up-coming retendering process is a golden opportunity for the BBC to reset the service to solve the pay anomalies for LDRs and to make sure the journalistic success of the scheme is not tarnished by any selfish opportunism of suppliers.”