Teenage safe-sex drive backed by Blue Rubicon

Matt Cartmell 08-May-08

The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) has selected Blue Rubicon for a PR campaign to help adults to instil safe-sex messages in their children.

The campaign will be parent-focused, contributing towards the Government's Teenage Pregnancy Strategy for England, and will last for one year.

The agency was appointed in a competitive pitch handled by the Central Office of Information (COI).

Blue Rubicon will deliver a media relations programme alongside existing stakeholder and partnership agencies, creating an integrated campaign. 'It is all about reassuring parents and providing them with helpful hints and tips, showing that it's all about having a conversation every day,' said Blue Rubicon partner Fiona Joyce, who will lead the account.

The Teenage Pregnancy Strategy represents the first co-ordinated attempt to tackle both the causes and the consequences of teenage pregnancy. The aim of this particular strand will be to encourage parents to talk to their children about sex and relationships at an early stage as well as providing information on how to do this.

This follows news that schools will be made to keep records of teenage pregnancy, pupils' drug problems, criminal records and obesity levels under government plans to give parents a realistic picture of children's lives.

The ideas, set out in a discussion document from the DCSF, suggest schools would become accountable for 18 new targets, including teen pregnancy rates.