We were immensely proud to work with the Department of Health on one of the biggest public health campaigns in recent history: the Government’s immunisation of 300,000 girls a year against HPV, the virus that causes over 70% of cervical cancer cases.
Our support was built around championing a cancer prevention measure of national importance – a job made doubly challenging given that take-up of the vaccination was entirely optional.
At its heart, was a tightly tuned press office that combined media monitoring and story placement with the flexibility to respond opportunistically to the news agenda.
With Dawn Primarolo MP, Minister of State for Public Health, we produced a television news release, comprehensive briefing materials and a case study of the pilot scheme inManchester. Also crucial were our relations with cervical cancer charity Jo’s Trust and the support of celebrities such as Tina O’Brien and Jo Wiley. As a separate strand of activity, we created a roadshow that toured shopping centres and summer festivals, aimed directly at an older group of 17-18 year old girls, many of whom were no longer in school so unlikely to be influenced by the schools support programme.
In the first year, a staggering 87% of eligible girls took the decision to have the HPV vaccine - a remarkable success.
Since its initial launch, we ran follow-up support activity reminding girls to complete their three doses of the vaccination; and in a broader context sent influential journalists back to school to show them what it’s like being 12 years old today.