Planning and delivering an effective PR campaign to create mass awareness around the second reading of Lord Falconer’s Assisted Dying Bill

We were enlisted by Dignity in Dying to drive a proactive media campaign in the lead-up to the second reading of Lord Falconer’s Assisted Dying Bill in the House of Lords.

Our role was to ensure the campaign gained as much momentum as possible in the lead-up to the bill reading to spread mass consumer awareness, educate and inform; whilst carefully taking into consideration the obvious sensitivities surrounding the subject matter and public opinion.

Activity included working with case studies to place their highly emotive and personal stories and experiences across the mainstream national and consumer media, demonstrating how and why the bill would help those living with terminal illnesses. We also worked closely with Dignity in Dying’s partner charity Compassion in Dying to create a calendar of informative feature content focusing on preparing for end of life, and end of life care, to share with relevant consumer journalists.

Another key element of our campaign activity was to work with several of the Dignity in Dying organisation’s high profile patrons, including Sir Patrick Stewart, Sir Christopher Woodhead, and Prue Leith, who shared their own personal reasons for supporting the campaign and wanting a change in the law. We also worked with the in-house press team to plan and execute a media strategy on the day of the bill reading – coordinating a high-profile photo call and schedule of broadcast interviews for Lord Falconer and a selection of patrons and supporters.

In the days following the bill reading we continued to source press opportunities to help spread the message that the Assisted Dying Bill had successfully passed its second reading, moving to committee stage. Our media campaign helped to ensure that Lord Falconer’s Bill successfully passed its second reading

Our work ensured that the issue of assisted dying was kept at the forefront of the mainstream news agenda in the weeks leading up to the bill reading.

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