BRIEF

Barnet Council aimed to address violence against women and girls (VAWG) by engaging its Street Scene workforce, frontline workers who interact with the public daily.
The challenge was to introduce this topic to a predominantly male, manual workforce in a way that avoids defensiveness, while still encouraging awareness, responsibility, and behavioural change.

INSIGHT

Behavioural change doesn’t come from confrontation, it comes from recognition and relatability.
For this audience, direct or accusatory messaging risks disengagement. Instead, the message needed to feel grounded in their reality, showing that small, everyday actions can make a difference without requiring conflict.
 
SOLUTION
 
I developed the Barnet Allies campaign, an initiative built around empathy, visibility, and shared responsibility.
At the centre of the campaign is a short film designed to act as an emotional entry point. It follows a frontline worker addressing inappropriate behaviour within his own team, demonstrating how small, non-confrontational actions can create a wider ripple effect.
To support this, the campaign introduces bystander intervention training tailored to fit into existing routines. Rather than long workshops, the approach focuses on short, practical sessions that provide simple techniques such as presence, distraction, and subtle intervention.
 
The campaign is reinforced through consistent, low-effort touchpoints, including posters, vehicle messaging, and internal communications, ensuring the message remains visible without disrupting daily workflows.
A visual identity was developed to support the initiative, including the Barnet Allies emblem, symbolising commitment to safer communities without positioning workers as authority figures.