In 2023, Baroness Casey’s review revealed that the culture in the Metropolitan Police was racist and misogynist, and the findings became front-page news. Penna conducted a survey which uncovered that only 7% of Black and Asian respondents would consider working as a Police Community Support Officer (PCSO) compared to 15% of white respondents). For this group, the main deterrent was ‘the reputation of the police’.

The challenge was to recruit PCSOs from an audience that had not necessarily heard of the role. The campaign targeted two personas: the customer-friendly face and the historically marginalised. The former loved working with and helping people and wanted to make an impact; the latter might have experienced societal oppression and wanted to feel a sense of belonging and purpose. The target candidates could be from a range of ages and backgrounds, but would be good at building relationships.

‘Word on the curb’ spoke directly to this audience asking whether they would consider the role, and if not why not. This research allowed them to create a solution that would target these concerns while also distancing the role from that of a PC. It showed that PCSOs have conversations at the heart of everything they do, and that their most important word was ‘Hello’. With this in mind, all of the ads began with ‘Hello’, and the research group felt this was more approachable. The campaign went out over a range of channels, including an on-demand commercial on ITVX. Overall applications for the role increased significantly, but most importantly in key audiences such as Black and minority ethnic groups and women.