police employer branding

The Staffordshire Police area covers one of the largest shire counties in England, ranging from the sparsely populated area of the Moorlands to urban and densely populated areas such as the city of Stoke-on-Trent. The force has over 3,200 employees, but it felt it felt it wasn’t the front of mind employment choice for all audiences, particularly within minority groups.

Our brief therefore was to create real differentiation within the sector and provide clarity about the range of staff roles within the force – external candidates do not immediately see how their experience could translate into police jobs – and to challenge a misconception that the police is male dominated.

From our EVP research, including external focus groups with minority communities, we determined that there’s a shared sense of pride across the teams – it comes from different people with different talents working together to better serve local communities. Every person, in every role, has a valued contribution to make at Staffordshire Police. They’re a force with an exceptionally proud heritage and an equally exciting journey ahead. We encapsulated this in the line ‘Serving our communities with pride.’

Our initial EVP expression was then tested via an online internal validation survey in which over 800 participants in total responded.

employer brand video for Staffordshire Police
police recruitment brochure

Our subsequent advertising and communication collateral we produced – based upon the chosen concept – was rooted in the sense of pride that comes with serving local communities and being part of a police service that is on the way up. It highlights that every single member of the team has a role in delivering, and improving, policing in Staffordshire. In turn, this provides a platform to showcase the many different roles and career opportunities available – and the many different types of people and skills that are welcome on the team.

By using the theme of ‘pride’ we aim to trigger an emotional response in their target audiences – drawing on real life stories and experiences to make the messaging feel authentic and engaging. The employer brand was launched in August and we look forward to learning about its impact and ROI.