Dementia UK’s biggest brand awareness campaign to date

In January 2024, we helped Dementia UK launch the third phase of their multi-channel national brand awareness campaign – the largest ever for the charity.

This five-year project is aimed at helping the thousands of families who are living with dementia. The charity’s amazing nurses support the whole family, not just the person with the diagnosis. Our goal was to show them they’re not alone.

The campaign has evolved from 2023’s ‘I live with dementia’ into ‘We live with dementia’.

This meant we could highlight the shared experiences of the dementia community across the UK, rather than focusing on individual stories.

Year 3: We live with dementia

We stripped the hero video right back to basics to feature a series of real people talking direct to camera. As each person tells their story, their words are cut mid-sentence before the next person continues. 

Individually, each one is telling their unique truth about being affected by dementia. But together, their sentences flow into each other’s, making one composite story – and showing they’re not alone. 

We used real families in the video; every person featured cares for someone with dementia. Before shooting, we spoke to them to understand their experiences and craft the script around them. On the day, some of their stories were so emotional many of the crew were left in tears. 

Our amazing storytellers also featured in the DOOH and OOH adverts, and in a series of ‘at home’ videos where they talked about their lives in more depth.

Building on the success of the Living with dementia guide from Phase 2, Lark also produced a series of free, bite-size information guides. These focused on specific topics such as young onset dementia, planning for the future and getting a diagnosis. 

The campaign is live until March 2024.

Years 1 and 2: I live with dementia

In January 2022, we launched the first phase of the ‘I live with dementia’ campaign. This was a series of adverts showing people in everyday moments, like working from home or going to school, while a loved one’s diagnosis weighs on their mind. 

For Phase 2, we brought these characters to life in three hero videos and supporting campaign materials. We saw them talking to the charity’s dementia specialist nurses about their situation, being offered help and support. 

We also created an innovative new guide for Dementia UK; a magazine-style downloadable guide, packed with practical information and advice from the charity’s nurses, and real-life stories from people living with dementia.

The result

The Living with dementia guide was downloaded more than 39,000 times in 2023. 

The ‘I live with dementia’ campaign was also shortlisted for Best Health Cause Campaign in the 2023 Purpose Awards. 

“It’s wonderful to work on a campaign where you can just say that line [and] people understand what the campaign is about. It’s the simplicity of it that we’re really proud of.”

Claire Sandham, Marketing Lead, Dementia UK