ABOUT

Gallagher Group is one of Kent’s largest family-owned construction businesses, with a heritage spanning more than five decades across aggregates, groundworks, civil engineering and property development.

They approached us with a clear challenge. They wanted to tell a human story that demonstrated the breadth of opportunity within the construction industry and, in doing so, inspire the next generation to consider it as a career.

THE BRIEF
At the heart of the brief was 13-year-old Finn Gallagher, whose passion for plant machinery, and in particular JCB, led to a rare opportunity. Finn was invited to train on a JCB 3CX Backhoe Loader and attempt to achieve his CPCS qualification during the school holidays.

The story needed to feel credible, responsible and grounded, while still capturing the sense of ambition and possibility behind the opportunity.

OUR APPROACH
We recommended an observational documentary approach, rooted in factual people-led storytelling, following Finn before, during and after an intensive two-week training programme with instructor Derek Mansfield of Flynne Plant Training.

Filmed throughout the school holidays, the focus was on the full experience, capturing the pressure, progress and learning by combining fly-on-the-wall coverage with fixed rig and aerial footage, supported by interviews and self-recorded video diaries.

This allowed Finn’s personality, determination and moments of uncertainty to emerge naturally, creating a series of films which are credible, whilst reinforcing Gallagher Group’s commitment to skills, safety and long-term investment in people.

THE OUTCOME
Finn passed both his theory and practical CPCS exams with distinction, becoming the UK’s youngest qualified digger driver.

The story gained significant national and local media coverage, positioning Gallagher Group as a business actively championing skills development and opening up conversations about careers in construction.

The series of films were released consecutively via Digger Finn’s YouTube channel, where they achieved over 400,000 views within the first month. Supporting trailers were re-versioned for Instagram, TikTok and LinkedIn, extending reach across multiple audiences and platforms.

Following the digital launch, we partnered with KMTV to produce ‘The Story of Digger Finn’, a 30-minute broadcast documentary. The programme was aired to more than 250,000 homes across Kent, further amplifying the story and its impact.

Alongside the films, we delivered a suite of photography captured throughout the project. These images were supplied to national press, regional media and construction industry publications, providing Gallagher Group with an adaptable bank of assets to support ongoing PR and communications activity.

“Digitom have achieved a perfect balance of storytelling. I can see this being fascinating to a wide audience, whether involved in the construction industry or not!” Stephen, Finn’s Dad