Domestic Abuse Campaign Briefing Update, January 2015

Transcription

1 Domestic Abuse Campaign Briefing Update, January 2015 This briefing is to inform key partners of a campaign to take place across Cheshire and Merseyside during February and March, Background and summary Domestic abuse is a significant public health issue, having a major impact upon those directly affected and their families. It affects one in three women and one in six men 1. Two women a week are killed in domestic abuse incidents every year in the UK. There were 33,261 (Merseyside) and 4,537 (Cheshire) domestic abuse incidents recorded by police in 2012/13 2. Through the Cheshire & Merseyside Public Health Collaborative Service (champs), the Cheshire and Merseyside Directors of Public Health have prioritised the development of a campaign focusing on domestic abuse from a public health perspective. Launching on 9 th February 2015, this campaign will run for 6 weeks across the nine Cheshire & Merseyside Local Authority areas. Insight based public health approach The campaign approach considers domestic abuse from a population level perspective, working 'upstream' to engage the public. Using insight from a pilot campaign in Knowsley 3 in June 2014, a widespread and statistically robust (n=400, 95%CI) survey with the public took place in November, to inform the campaign plans. Expertise on the subject from domestic abuse professionals has also been incorporated. The campaign development is based on the insights that: There is low understanding of the nature, prevalence and latest definition of domestic abuse which includes psychological abuse and coercive control Domestic abuse is seen as a private issue so do not intervene; there may be repercussions There exists a broad acceptance that domestic abuse is the social norm in some communities The default opinion is that domestic abuse is mainly in working class women. People do want domestic abuse to reduce. Further testing with the identified target audience in December and January refined an appropriate creative direction and campaign elements. In addition to educating, the broad aim is to reduce the acceptability of domestic abuse to take steps to de-normalise domestic abuse amongst the public, who will be engaged to pledge their support to help end domestic abuse. The campaign will highlight the nature and scale of the issue and generate discussion in communities and on social media. 1. Flatley, J. (2014) Focus on: Violent Crime and Sexual Offences, 2012/13. Office for National Statistics and Home Office Joint Statistical Bulletin, Office for National Statistics, London. 2. Police incident data, Home Office, Table 4.07, Focus on: Violent Crime and Sexual Offences, 2012/13 - Appendix Tables

2 This campaign is designed not to duplicate but to complement and enhance significant and successful locally delivered campaign and intervention work, including the White Ribbon Campaign. Champs has and will continue to liaise with partners to ensure the campaign complements these other approaches. The campaign A domestic abuse campaign will launch in Cheshire & Merseyside on 9 th February 2015 that aims to raise awareness around the issue of domestic abuse and gain public support to help end it. The campaign will run until around the 19 th March Responding to the insight, the campaign aims to: Improve public understanding of the new definition of domestic abuse, Increase understanding of the prevalence, nature and effects of domestic abuse, 'De-normalise' domestic abuse and it s acceptance, Highlight linked exacerbating factors and impacts including alcohol use and the effects on children, and Facilitate conversations about domestic abuse and gain public support for ending domestic abuse. Who is the campaign talking to? Whilst the campaign hopes to reach all sections of the population, an effective campaign requires more refined targeting. Following a social marketing model, a segmentation exercise used the existing geodemographic system Mosaic (Experian), along with data from the research undertaken in November 4. Together, these helped identify and agree priority groups to engage with through the campaign. The target audience for this campaign is defined as adults within Cheshire and Merseyside but this mapping exercise produced a primary target group for particular focus of year olds in social economic groups C2DE. What will the campaign look like? Concept testing was undertaken with the primary target audience to examine how the campaign creative, headline and copy would be perceived. Based on testing results, alternative routes were devised and developed to produce final creative. In summary, three creative elements will combine to form this campaign: 1. The main campaign headline will be 1 in 3 women and 1 in 6 men have suffered domestic abuse. Fact - ONS figures based on the new definition of domestic abuse. 2. This striking fact will be balanced with a campaign motif which encourages support to end domestic abuse using the line 'be a lover not a fighter', which is well used phrase locally denoting peaceful individual, providing a positive slogan for the campaign. 3. To generate support via social media, the 'heart hand' will be used. This provides a very quick and easy way for the public and people in the public eye alike to show their support to end domestic abuse. 4 Existing profiling work previously developed by Public Health has also been used to understand the profiles of the mosaic groups in Cheshire & Merseyside. 2

3 How will the campaign engage? The campaign is an integrated, multi-channel campaign that enables all people across Merseyside & Cheshire to be informed, get involved and lend their support to help end domestic abuse. Utilising a mix of tactics, the campaign consists of: 1. Campaign Website A point of contact to inform users about the campaign and how they can support it. It will include positive messaging, highlighting that people can move on from abusive situations and go on to form healthy relationships, as well as signposting to other websites for detailed information and where to get help locally A4 Posters Posters will be provided for partners and/or distributed to a range of settings, including GP and Health Centres, Leisure Centres, Hospitals, Supermarkets and Dentists. 3

4 3. Social Media Social Media will play a key role in the campaign and aim to raise general awareness of domestic abuse, its causes and impact. It will ask for public support by introducing activity of a viral nature via the Heart Hands. The campaign will appear on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. The campaign is being supported by high profile people including actors/actresses/singers/sportspeople and organisations of relevance to the target audience, to help spread the message. A full supporter list will be available at launch and will be expanded as the campaign progresses. 4. PR PR will be targeted at all media (print, online and broadcast) across Cheshire and Merseyside and beyond and will launch with a pre-arranged celebrity press call. At a local level, photo opportunities with Directors of Public Health and others can facilitate local media engagement via locally adapted template press releases. Following the PR launch, a series of press releases will be distributed focusing around secondary messages such as the impact on children and exacerbating factors. The PR will use Valentine s Day as a hook. A full PR plan will follow and champs will liaise with partner communications leads to agree appropriate local approaches. 5. Public Engagement A series of public engagement events held in central locations across Cheshire and Merseyside will aim to engage with the target audience to encourage participation and support for the campaign. Provisional dates have been circulated to local co-ordinators for approval. Events will run from 16 th February to 11 th March Advertising Bus advertising, using the poster artwork, will run across main routes in Cheshire and Merseyside from 9 th February 2015 for a four week period. 7. Boxes & Badges Boxes and badges will be used in face to face engagement and in other central locations (to be confirmed). Members of the public can pledge their support and pick up a free badge pack, which will be in pairs so that one can be given to a friend initiating conversations within the community. How will the campaign's success be measured? The campaign will be monitored and evaluated using a number of analytical tools including public sign ups, web analytics, social media analytics, media coverage, engagement contacts, endorsement by celebs and supporters. A key outcomes measure will be the level of public support received, including people pledging their support. A follow up independent post-campaign survey will take place at the end of March, repeating and building on the pre-campaign survey carried out in November. How can I get involved? Everyone is encouraged to get involved and support the campaign. A campaign briefing document will be issued nearer to the launch date that will outline all activity and provide campaign materials such as e- signatures, the campaign brand guidelines and suggested social media postings. 4

5 Additional campaign support tools such as template newsletter/intranet articles, screen savers can be developed. Additional benefits of the campaign Running alongside the campaign, work to support all Local Authorities to embed commitment to policies which tackle domestic abuse within their areas through multi-agency working, to help partners collectively build a stronger ground swell of support for measures to tackle domestic abuse locally, regionally and nationally. As part of this, champs are holding a free masterclass in collaboration with NICE: Evidence and action: Working to end Domestic Abuse in Cheshire & Merseyside on Tuesday 3rd February 2015, 12:15 16:15 at the Select Security Stadium, Lowerhouse Lane, Widnes, Cheshire WA8 7DZ Register at Chaired by Matthew Ashton, Director of Public Health in Knowsley and lead Director for domestic abuse on behalf of the nine Directors, it will bring together and update all relevant partners on the current picture of domestic abuse and recent local initiatives to tackle the issue across Cheshire and Merseyside, such as Operation Encompass. It will include speakers from NICE, who will present on the domestic violence and abuse pathway 5 which aims to ensure a safe and robust response to incidents of domestic abuse. In addition, outputs from the campaign such as public sign ups, which will be split by local authority area - will demonstrate the public support to end domestic abuse through this campaign. This information can be used locally, regionally and nationally if appropriate to support the development of integrated policy and service solutions to tackle domestic abuse. Considerations The website is under development and there is currently a window of opportunity for domestic abuse leads and others to comment on content and suggest links to local provision for the site, which will be promoting referral to local services for support. Whilst staff at engagement events will be fully briefed on the campaign and key messages around domestic abuse, they cannot provide a support service to potential victims. Partners are encouraged to provide a presence at the local engagement events in their areas from a suitably qualified domestic abuse staff member. Local leaflets and information about local services can also be provided to offer to the public if requested. Whilst local support services are not the primary call to action for this campaign, both engagement and digital elements will signpost to local services, therefore partners are asked to be aware that contact volumes may increase. Next steps A full campaign briefing will be available prior to launch and the campaign will be highlighted at the above champs event. For further information on this campaign, please contact Pippa Sargent pippasargent@wirral.gov.uk, or Suzanne McGuckin suzannemcguckin@wirral.gov.uk or call