REFLECT- BRIGHTER DAYS – THE LEXICON – BRACKNELL
There Will Be Brighter Days. In January 2021, England, was placed into lockdown once more. With only essential retail open, footfall was low and communication Covid centric.
Wanting to positively engage with the local community during this tough period, The Lexicon launched the ‘There Will be Brighter Days’ campaign on February 1 2021. Children, adults, schools, care homes, community groups and budding artists were asked via social media to help The Lexicon grow a Brighter Days tree by downloading a handprint template that they could complete at home.
Over the eight-week campaign period, hundreds of handprints came flooding in filled with smiley faces, flowers, rainbows, bright, pretty colours. Every week, handprints were added to the Brighter Days tree, to create a physical colourful piece of community art, in the town centre.
The progress was shared on social media creating further engagement and positive comments. And, once retail doors were open once more, the local community shared their delight via social media in finding the handprints they had created to make the Brighter Days tree burst into life. It is perhaps difficult to measure, how giving a care home resident or a family at home, a community activity to participate in during lockdown, that would put a smile on their faces other than reading some of many social media comments in the supporting documentation.
Other campaign results included
- a 115% increase in social engagement during February and March
- local media entitling the campaign ‘hands of hope’
- a host of smiley faces and social media feedback as people discovered their handprint
- 83% of people that submitted handprints stated that the initiative had made them think more favourably about The Lexicon
- The campaign cost was £11,000.
