London Borough of Lewisham: Year 2 Q3 update

Lewisham plans to test its powers to restrict high in fat, salt or sugar (HFSS advertising and utilise donated outdoor advertising space for health promoting advertisements.


The Childhood Obesity Trailblazer Programme is funded by the Department and Health and Social Care and administered by the Local Government Association. Public Health England is also providing expert support and advice.

Progress

  • Finalised voluntary agreement with JCDecaux that HFSS restrictions and health promotion messages on void estates in Lewisham to start from January 2020 and be monitored.
  • 15 per cent of advertising time provided on digital boards in the borough for exclusive use by the Trailblazer.
  • Poster campaign produced by young people launched on the digital screens on the 18 March, four screens adapted to include motion content. Communications team prepared a press release
  • Next street survey conducted by local evaluation partner taking place in May and again between now and end of the year (three to four total) to check if people recognise the campaign.
  • Young Mayor’s team produced first poster, which is up
  • Expression of interest (EOI) for procuring co-production from local organisations opened in December. Now complete - contract awarded end March.
  • Four to six weekly steering partnership group meetings continuing. Representatives attended a workshop in January to share learning and Delivery Service Partner (DSP) attended recent meeting to deliver reflections session.
  • Communication webinar (or live video production) content to be agreed at sub-group meeting in early June.
  • A reference group has been set up and met twice to date (membership include community representatives like food businesses, and public health representatives like nurse and patient members) and provided feedback on poster work.
  • Community organisation, Food for Purpose, has linked with an African-Caribbean community organisation to carry out some insight work. They have devised draft principles of nutrition resources and are currently looking at putting together a narrative. A follow up meeting has been organised to discuss the vision and how to get the narrative across; Lewisham will feedback to the SG.
  • Robust framework based on co-production work being devised.

Challenges

  • National impact of COVID-19 on the Out of Home (OOH) advertising estate has affected the progress of the project, however hoping to see work pick up in Q2 and Q3 (including work with other media owners). Also slowed progress on improving food offer (COVID-19 impact on food businesses) and planned evaluation (dependent on conduction street surveys but could not take place due to COVID-19 impact) However work beginning again with food businesses and evaluation partner.
  • Changing from virtual methods to in-person workshops to develop co-production advertising material.
  • Finding a sustainable model going forward.

Learnings

  • The importance of cross sector collaboration and maintaining relationships through pandemic restrictions.
  • Value test and learn approach and ability to learn when things do not go as planned.
  • Engaging the right stakeholders at the right time and consider capacity, competing priorities, time to plan and access to remote communication methods.

Next steps

  • Local evaluation partner shared revised evaluation process with the steering group. Evaluation measures to be confirmed by steering group following March meeting. Proposals include:
    • Repeat baseline survey April/May (200 person sample) subject to no changes to roadmap timescale;
    • Semi structured interviews with key stakeholders (via steering group) (ongoing);
    • 1 x 200 person survey in June following launch of next campaign material

Then to liaise with national evaluation partner. Detailed plans in place for rest of 2021.

  • Outsmart to develop process to engage other media owners into the Lewisham voluntary restrictions.
  • Lewisham Council’s Communication team to review communications plan for the Trailblazer to include timings of displaying campaign materials across the whole council estate and press release. Communications on new campaign materials forthcoming.
  • Schedule reflective learning session with Delivery Service partner.
  • Produce Lewisham COTP case study.
  • Celebrating diversity of borough event to take place - will help engage
  • Waiting for confirmation that all 44 council owned billboards can be used for COTP campaign shortly, and then again in September and October. Alongside this, 4 (of 12) motion content billboards are still being used to display COTP content.