Resource shares campaign insights at Leeds GCS Network
On 2 July, Jonny (Head of Creative) and Chris (Creative Account Director) joined communications professionals from across Government at the Leeds Government Communication Service (GCS) Network event, to deliver an interactive creative workshop and sharing the story behind the West Yorkshire Violence Reduction Partnership’s Keep the Door Open campaign.
The Leeds GCS Network brings together Government communicators from across the region to share knowledge, develop skills and learn from successful communications campaigns. It provides an opportunity to exchange ideas, explore best practice and strengthen communications through collaboration and shared experience.
Bringing creative agility to life
The interactive workshop, Agility in Action, was designed to replicate the fast-moving challenges communications teams face every day. Participants responded to a live brief, adapted to changing stakeholder requirements and worked collaboratively under tight deadlines.
Rather than searching for the perfect solution, the session focused on developing the flexibility, creative thinking and stakeholder management skills needed to deliver effective communications in complex environments. The workshop sparked discussion, debate and plenty of fresh ideas, while highlighting the importance of remaining agile when projects evolve and priorities shift.
From insight to creative strategy
The second session explored the audience insight behind Keep the Door Open, the anti-knife carrying campaign developed with the West Yorkshire Violence Reduction Partnership.
Research with young people uncovered a critical insight: many did not see carrying a knife as an act of aggression, but as a form of protection. Understanding this perception fundamentally changed the communications challenge and shaped the campaign strategy from the outset.
Rather than relying on fear-based messaging or shock tactics, the campaign focused on future opportunities, personal choices and the potential consequences of carrying a knife. The result was Keep the Door Open, a campaign designed to challenge perceptions and encourage positive decisions without alienating its audience.
Attendees also heard how audience testing, validation workshops and ongoing engagement helped refine the creative approach and ensure the campaign resonated with the young people it was designed to reach. The session demonstrated how insight-led communications can create more meaningful connections and drive behaviour change.
Why audience insight matters
The presentation generated plenty of discussion, particularly around the role of audience understanding in developing effective behaviour change campaigns.
The discussion reinforced the importance of audience insight in behaviour change communications and highlighted the value of sharing experiences across the profession. By learning from real-world campaigns, communicators can develop more effective strategies, create stronger audience connections and deliver better outcomes.
“It was fascinating learning about how the insights on the young audience led to the end creative and campaign strategy. It sparked lots of conversation in the room. Many thanks to the team for joining us.”
Vicky Day
Campaigns Lead, HMRC
Let’s start a conversation…
Whether it’s a knowledge-sharing session or workshop, we’re always happy to talk about the challenges, lessons and successes behind our work. And if you’re looking for support with a campaign, behaviour change programme or creative communications challenge, we’d love to chat. Get in touch with the team at Resource to discuss your next project or event.