Best Campaign £10,000 and Under
The Valleys Heart and Soul Campaign, Welsh Government and Equinox Communications
The Welsh Government asked Equinox Communications for an integrated campaign to promote the Valleys in South Wales, to residents and tourists. What was previously a highly industrial area had become notoriously deprived.
The agency's objectives included raising the aspirations of residents and increasing pride in the area, as well as making people aware of the Valleys as a destination.
Equinox supported Only Boys Aloud in a bid to discover the next generation of male singers aged 14 to 18. A media relations campaign was based around the story of boys who signed up. Filmed rehearsals and interviews peaked with four TV programmes dedicated to OBA being shown on BBC Wales. The campaign's success speaks for itself, with 76 per cent of polled residents saying that OBA has improved opportunities for young people in the area.
PUBLIC AFFAIRS
Changing Cancer Care in Wales, Macmillan Cancer Support
Macmillan organised an integrated eight-month campaign to mobilise the public and influence politicians before the National Assembly for Wales 2011 election.
Believing that Labour would win the most seats, the team focused its attentions on influencing Welsh Labour. Positive coverage was secured and hundreds of campaign supporters took part in two e-actions supporting the campaign.
Each of four parties committed to some or all of Macmillan's election calls. Labour included all election calls in its manifesto, explicitly referencing its work with Macmillan.
Outstanding In-House Public Relations
Carmarthenshire County Council
Carmarthenshire County Council had a great year. A team of 20 operates its own professional PR agency, SirGarPR, which covers all PR functions, working for internal clients and partner organisations including Dyfed Powys Police.
The list of outstanding achievements in 2011 included the development and launch of Brian - an intranet site - and a successful council tax benefits campaign. The team has received positive feedback for its work. This included a media survey that revealed its press office provided an excellent service and a residents' survey, which showed that 73 per cent of respondents felt informed and more than a third had used the website.
Outstanding PR Consultancy
Golley Slater PR
Golley Slater PR has a corporate mission to be the premium PR brand in Wales. To achieve this, it involves the whole team in business planning, development and growth.
Demonstrating excellent client feedback from campaigns including The Big Lunch, Golley Slater goes above and beyond the expected level of service in all areas of business.
Supporting managing director Andy Appleby to become Wales' first CIPR chartered practitioner was one of many outstanding achievements of which the team can be justly proud.
