COI launches £3m ethnic minority roster review

by Jacquie Bowser, Brand Republic 14-Aug-07, 10:20

LONDON - The Central Office of Information is reviewing its roster of agencies that specialise in communicating with the black and minority ethnic communities, an account worth approximately £3m a year.

The review, which is expected to be completed by March 2008, aims to attract a broad range of agencies, from well-established firms to niche freelancers. They will need to cover several marketing communications disciplines and reach a variety of audiences, including ethnic minorities, refugees, asylum seekers, faith groups and travellers.

The roster was first established in 2004, following COI's Common Good Research into communicating with ethnic minorities.

Agencies on the current roster include Focus Consultancy, Media Moguls, Media Reach Advertising, TMP Worldwide, Uproar and Equality Foundation and The Watch-Men Agency.

Patricia Macauley, COI's head of black and minority ethnic communications, said: "The UK's population has evolved since 2004. We will develop the [roster] to reflect the diverse range of audiences the government needs to reach. For example, there has been a growing need to engage smaller communities now living in the UK, such as Angolan and Congolese.

"We are looking for agencies that have a real insight into the audiences and a proven track record in communicating with them effectively."

Previous COI campaigns aimed at black and minority ethnic audiences include blood donation, stop and search, forced marriages, fire safety, voter registration, illegal food import and Job Centre Plus.