Student Recruitment Campaign for Northumberland College
Northumberland College Offers Passport to Employment
Developing the skills level of young people is a key factor in ensuring the post-Brexit economic success of the UK economy. Northumberland College, serving a primary catchment area of a large part of Northumberland, England plays a key part in delivering the strategy.
‘Your Passport to Employment’ is the College’s campaign message aimed at encouraging student recruitment directly. But also their parents and advisors like teachers and community leaders. Young people aged 14 to 18 are a key target. So too, people 19+.
Highlighting the major offering of the College to employers is also a key factor. The College’s £2.5m Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM) Centre opens in Autumn 2017 enhancing and adding value to the overall education and training services on offer.
Blumilk has worked with the College for several years and was the natural choice to develop the campaign messaging of the ‘Passport’ campaign and its delivery to four specific target groups: 16-18-year-olds, parents of 14-18-year-olds, young people 19+ looking to study for higher education degrees and, local employers.
The message was to be consistently delivered across a range of advertising media including press ads, bus rears, and street liners, roadside banners, social media elements, and posters. It also had to be incorporated into a variety of publications such as course guides and prospectuses plus sub-campaigns for each specific target group.
The Blumilk Digital service was also commissioned to design and build two new websites, one for the STEM Centre and the other for Northumberland Career College. Look out for these. They go live soon.
The visual design of the campaign had to be in line with several brand guidelines including the College’s overall style and that of its Career College. A balanced approach was needed to ensure each one was met.
Katie, the College’s dedicated Account Manager at Blumilk said: “The complexity in this project was the balance of creating a recognisable campaign message that would inspire students to apply for a course, as well as being in line with different stakeholder’s brand guidelines.”
The College’s main campus is in Ashington, south east Northumberland. There’s also a campus at Kirkley Hall, Northumberland which offers a specialist land based curriculum. Local centres are also provided at Hexham and Berwick. The College has a student population of 6000 and is currently completing a £9.5m investment plan to enhance its education and training offer.
