Freud Communications scoops £1m Department of Health PR account

DH confirmed today that Freuds will ‘manage creative PR around all the Department’s public health campaigns’.

The newly created single brief covers four of the department's major comms programmes - Smokefree/Tobacco Control, the Change4Life obesity campaign, Older People and Younger People.

Freuds has been handling the DH's flagship anti-obesity drive Change4Life since 2008, worth up to £45k per month to the agency. Freuds' new contract will take effect from 1 January and is thought to be worth about £85k a month.

Consolidated was formerly working on a project for DH called My Health London, and has previously handled the DH's swine flu vaccination campaign, while Blue Rubicon previously worked on tobacco control campaigns.

A statement from the Department of Health said that the newly integrated approach would make cost-savings of about 25 per cent.

The statement added: ‘Too often in the past the Department has held separate conversations with the same people, one day talking to them about their diet, the next about their alcohol consumption without recognising linked behaviours. The department is now tailoring its social marketing activities through the life course, so that at each stage in an individual’s life, there is a trusted brand, providing all the information, support and resources, he or she might need.’

Sheila Mitchell, head of marketing at the Department of Health, said: ‘Freud Communications delivered a really exciting pitch. It has some big ideas that we believe will not only promote good health but will really change people’s behaviour.

‘Our public health social marketing strategy takes us to the next level, adopting a life-stage based approach, which will make our campaigns more effective and save money.’

She added that Freuds would forego a percentage of its fee if the agency does not meet specific targets.

Meanwhile, MEC will manage media planning around the newly combined outreach drives.

This article was first published on prweek.com