Nurses are the heart and soul of England’s Heath Service (the NHS), but they were leaving in unprecedented numbers.

33,000 nurses had left in 2017 alone.

In 2017, university nursing applications nosedived. Applications fell 36% over 2 years with 14,000 fewer applicants.

An unforgiving media and political cultural narrative meant perceptions of public nursing careers were losing appeal.

In research, we uncovered how crucial support networks were for both recruiting and retaining the workforce.

We took a step back to look at the bigger picture.

It was integral that we made friends and family proud of the careers their loved ones had chosen.

So, our campaign would not only speak to existing or prospective nurses but extend to their loved ones. Given the size of the NHS workforce – 1.5 million – this meant everyone in England.

We recognised the need for a broader NHS repositioning as an employer brand.

This meant moving the brand away from the perceptions of a dated, neglected institution toward one of a progressive and hopeful, beacon of humanity.

Our Objectives:

1. RECRUIT: Reverse declines in Nursing university applications

2. RETAIN: Increase nursing job satisfaction

3. RETURN: Increase number of ex-NHS staff considering a return

We needed to uncover what would make the nation-at-large envy a career as a nurse in the NHS: to ignore the headlines and portray it as the progressive and hopeful, beacon of humanity it is.

The work that the service and it’s nurses perform every day, on such a scale, with a gritty and quiet confidence was what inspired us.

This meant that the campaign wouldn’t only be about rational information like skills gained, variety of roles or experience acquired but would be a deeply emotional one.

We’d shine a light on the NHS’ purpose: that good healthcare should be available to all, regardless of wealth.

At the same time, we’d use the people that make the service special – it’s staff – to tell the story.This was of course, the first and largest public health system.

As recently as 2012 too, Danny Boyle’s opening ceremony of the London Olympic games contextualised the NHS as a core narrative of our national story.

Our strategic territory was simple, confidently explaining the humble, yet confident spirit we wanted to portray:

This is the NHS, this is what we do.

Our strategic territory was re-worded to become our more inclusive, simple and flexible national platform: We are the NHS.

The link between creative and strategy was clear and simple. We would take a step back and allow the people of the NHS to shine.

We created campaign assets for TV, Radio, OOH, social and CRM using real NHS staff and patients in working hospitals, shot by a marauding director, over three days.

This level of authenticity was integral to us winning over current and ex-staff, whilst also avoiding an outsider-looking-in ad.

With a month between pitch win and air date it made for an anxious few weeks. Despite this, it turned out to be the most awe-inspiring and honest way to capture the humanity of the NHS, including the recording of the birth of baby Maisie, the first live birth to be shot for and featured in an ad.

We launched during the Football World Cup which gave us the perfect context for a pride-rousing campaign.

It was the nation’s most liked advert of 2018. (Adwatch)

In the first week of the campaign, searches for ‘nursing careers’ reached their highest level since 2005. The campaign drove 410,838 web visits, +604% YOY. (Google Trends, Google Analytics)

We met our three objectives:

RECRUIT: Nosediving Nursing UCAS applications were reversed

Against a backdrop of a 13% decline in 2018, we delivered a 4% uplift, an increase of 1,260 applications, the first since 2015. (UCAS)

RETENTION: NHS Staff Job Satisfaction Grew

10% point decrease in ‘I would get greater job satisfaction working somewhere other than the NHS. (Kantar)

RETURN: Past NHS Staff Considered Returning

19% point increase in those considering returning. We drove a threefold increase in visits to ‘Return to Nursing’ website. (Kantar)

- The National Health Service, the publicly funded national healthcare system for England, is the largest single-payer healthcare system in the world.

- Founded in 1948, today it employs over 1.5 million people, putting it in the top five of the world’s largest workforces, alongside the US Department of Defence, McDonalds, Walmart and the Chinese People’s Liberation Army.

- Brexit has also an immediate impact on EU nurses joining the NHS. Following the vote, numbers plunged by 80%, from 10,000 to under 2,000 (NMC).