ABOUT

Concept:

Every five minutes, a vulnerable child runs away from home, many using the rail network.

This campaign set out to do one simple - but vital - thing: get people to look up.

Avanti West Coast and Railway Children came together to stop people in their tracks and earn their attention. Showing them how they can change the journey of a vulnerable child by spotting the signs and reporting it to a member of staff or the British Transport Police.

Creating a national safeguarding campaign built around a symbolic, cinematic five-minute short film.

Execution:

‘Your Presence Is Presents Enough’ was brought to life by BAFTA Breakthrough writer and director Daisy-May Hudson and Railway Children’s Youth Ambassadors, whose lived experiences informed the script, characters and tone.

From the outset, the ambition was not just to release a film, but to ensure its message followed passengers into the real world – embedding the campaign across the entire Avanti West Coast network with:

Station tannoy announcements: Recorded by Jessica, the child runaway actor from the film and played hourly across all 16 Avanti West Coast-managed stations throughout the festive period.

‘Reserved for Runaways’ seat signage: Installed on platform and waiting room benches across the line. Drawing on the familiar visual cues and iconicity of ‘priority seating’ signs - something passengers instinctively recognise.

OOH Takeovers: Creating film posters to garner awareness and attention around the short. Displayed on billboard spots at 231 sites donated by First Group, digital screens at Euston station and on-board Avanti trains.

Results:

Despite only 14% of consumers being aware of the issue pre-campaign, ‘Your Presence Is Presents Enough’ cut through inattention, with 91% of passengers now being more likely to look up and recognise the signs of a vulnerable child on the railway.

The call to action of contacting staff or texting the British Transport Police (61016) gave passengers a clear, low-barrier way to act and as result, 83% now feel more confident reporting an at-risk child.

From a brand perspective, 96% of consumers now see Avanti West Coast as champions of creating a safe and supportive space for some of the most vulnerable young people in our society.

In a season defined by noise and distraction, ‘Your Presence Is Presents Enough’ demonstrates how a campaign can truly change what people notice - and what they do. Showing that a simple act of looking up can truly have the power to change a vulnerable child’s journey.