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Current campaigns
Background information on the Department’s portfolio of public facing campaigns with links to their individual websites and online resources.
Scared
Smokefree campaign, designed to motivate smokers to quit, portrays the fears that children have of their parents dying from smoking.
Most smokers are unaware to what extent their loved ones are concerned and often afraid of the possible consequences of them smoking. This hard-hitting campaign is designed to get them to rethink and be aware of the strong emotional effects it has on those close to them.
The TV commercial shows the courage of a young girl as she encounters many things that are usually considered scary but she is not afraid of, such as spiders, thunder and lightning, and clowns. Then she sees her mother holding a cigarette and declares that the only thing that she is really scared of his her mother smoking – she is scared that her mother will die.
The TV campaign is supported by radio, press, poster activity and display advertising on selected internet pages.
Change4Life
Change4Life is a new movement, supported by the Department of Health, which aims to improve children’s diets and levels of activity so reducing the threat to their future health and happiness. Our goal is to help every family in England eat well, move more and live longer.
Know Your Units
Strand of the Know Your Limits alcohol awareness campaign that aims to tell drinkers how many units are in their drinks and help them stick to their limits.
The campaign uses iconic imagery to help people understand how many units are in typical alcoholic drinks, and how to stay within the recommended daily guidelines for regular drinking of 2-3 units a day for women, and 3-4 units a day for men. It also warns people about how regularly drinking too much can damage their health.
Social care recruitment
The current social care worker recruitment campaign uses two real life case studies in its television, radio and press advertising.
The first case study features Joyce, who is recovering from a stroke, and her social care worker, Helen, who helps her get ready for a special occasion.
The second is about Tunde, a young man with autism, who is supported by Peter as he learns the route to his workplace on his first day in his new job.
Enabling Choice
Campaign that aims to create awareness amongst the public of the right they now have to choose any hospital or clinic for treatment after being referred by their GP.
The campaign uses cartoon characters to show the different reasons why a patient might want to choose a particular hospital such as it being close to home, or because it has the best reputation for a certain treatment.
Antibiotics! Do you need them?
Campaign with the message that antibiotics do not work on most coughs, colds and sore throats.
Adverts will be appearing in newspapers and magazines, and in addition a leaflet and posters will be displayed in GP practices, pharmacies and Sure Start Children’s Centres throughout the country. These materials will both increase awareness of resistance issues and provide an opportunity for GPs, pharmacists and patients to assess their need for antibiotics.
The campaign materials are free and can be ordered by filling in an order form.
Know Your Limits
Campaign launched last year that urges young drinkers to know their limits and to stay within them. It is designed to get the message across that too much alcohol makes you feel invincible when you are at your most vulnerable.
The campaign uses television ads, posters and a Know Your Limits website to deliver advice on sensible drinking and staying safe whilst enjoying a good night out.
This joint Department of Health and Home Office campaign is aimed at 18 to 24 year olds but it does reach out to younger audiences.
5 A DAY - Top Tips for Top Mums
Top Tips for Top Mums focuses on motivating low income mums (dads and guardians too) to share their own experiences of how easy or difficult it is to integrate fruit and veg into their children’s diet, while managing life’s other priorities.
By asking young mums what main barriers they face, such as children’s fussiness, cost, skills and ideas - we intend to capture what works best for them when trying to get their children to eat more fruit and veg.
The campaign aims to put mums in touch with each other, encouraging them to find ways of improving their children’s diets in a more engaging, fun and interactive way without extra cost or changing their everyday lives.
Condom Essential Wear
Campaign forming a key part of the Adult Sexual Health Strategy, which aims to reduce current increases of sexually transmitted infections (STIs).
The campaign focuses on ‘normalising’ condom use amongst sexually active 18-34 adults by communicating that condoms are ‘essential wear’ to protect against the threat of contracting STIs.
Launched in November 2006, it also helps raise awareness and knowledge of STIs, informing people on their prevalence, symptoms (or lack of in some cases), long term consequences, and aims to reduce the subject’s taboo status.
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