Northern Gas Networks (NGN) is the North of England’s gas distributor, transporting gas to over 2.7 million customers across the area.
We delivered a series of targeted public awareness campaigns for Northern Gas Networks, each designed to support vulnerable audiences, improve safety knowledge, and drive uptake of essential services across the network.
Taking place during winter and at the height of the cost of living crisis, one strand of activity focused on raising awareness of the dangers of cutting corners when it comes to gas safety. Built around the message “the cost of gas is rising, but it’s not worth your life”, the campaign educated the public on the risks of unsafe behaviours and the potentially fatal consequences of carbon monoxide (CO) exposure.
Alongside this, we delivered a dedicated carbon monoxide awareness campaign aimed at those most at risk. This activity focused on increasing understanding of the signs and symptoms of CO poisoning, while encouraging individuals to become ‘CO Heroes’ by sharing life-saving information with friends, family, and their wider communities.
In parallel, we ran a targeted campaign to drive sign-ups to the Priority Services Register (PSR), which provides additional support to vulnerable customers in the event of a gas supply interruption. Activity was focused across the NGN network, ensuring eligible audiences were aware of the service and motivated to register.
Together, these campaigns formed a cohesive programme of activity, combining public safety education with practical support, and reinforcing Northern Gas Networks’ commitment to protecting and supporting the communities it serves.
A key objective across the campaign was to measure and improve public understanding of carbon monoxide (CO) safety, including awareness of symptoms, risks, and how to respond in an emergency.
To support this, we developed an interactive survey hosted on the NGN website. Designed as both a measurement and education tool, the survey tested users’ knowledge through a series of questions. Those who did not achieve full marks were directed to a tailored learning experience, before being encouraged to retake the survey and improve their score.
To incentivise participation and extend reach, users who completed the survey were offered a free carbon monoxide alarm and encouraged to share their ‘CO Hero’ status via social media, helping to amplify the campaign message organically.
This approach was reinforced through additional campaign activity, including press outreach and targeted distribution of toolkits to organisations working with harder-to-reach audiences, such as parent groups, student letting agents, and BAME community organisations. These toolkits included campaign videos and ready-to-use social content, enabling partners to share key messages directly within their communities.
Together, this created a joined-up approach that combined education, engagement, and community-led amplification to drive both awareness and behavioural change.
We launched the campaign with a targeted press release introducing the ‘CO Heroes’ concept, positioning it as a community-led initiative to help spread life-saving gas safety messages.
To bring the story to life and add local relevance, we partnered with estate agent Venture Properties as one of the first official CO Heroes. By highlighting its commitment to sharing guidance with landlords and tenants, one of NGN’s key at-risk groups, we were able to ground the campaign in real-world action and demonstrate how businesses could play a role in protecting their communities.
The release was distributed across regional media within NGN’s network, combining a strong public safety message with a clear call to action for both the media and the public to amplify the campaign. This approach helped extend reach beyond traditional channels, encouraging wider community engagement and reinforcing the importance of carbon monoxide awareness.
Social media played a central role across all three campaigns, combining organic content and targeted advertising to reach vulnerable audiences with clear, accessible safety messaging.
For the CO Heroes campaign, we delivered a mix of organic posts and paid social across Facebook and Twitter/X, promoting both the campaign and supporting survey. Paid activity focused on audiences with lower awareness of carbon monoxide risks, including pregnant women and non-native English speakers, with translated content to ensure messages were clearly understood. Supporting graphics were developed to highlight key information such as symptoms of CO poisoning and emergency contact details.
For the Priority Services Register (PSR), activity was led by a targeted social advertising campaign across Facebook and Instagram. Audiences were segmented into seven key groups eligible for the register, including older people, carers, and those with health conditions. Multiple ad variations were deployed across demographics, locations and interests to maximise reach and drive sign-ups.
Alongside this, an eight-week cost of living campaign ran across Facebook and Twitter/X, combining organic content with paid advertising. Messaging focused on the dangers of cutting corners with gas safety, supported by case study-led content. This included a series of adverts, the majority translated to reach non-English speaking audiences, as well as social graphics using real-life quotes to reinforce the campaign message.
Across three targeted campaigns, we delivered high-impact results, exceeding reach and engagement targets while successfully driving awareness and action among vulnerable audiences.
Social media activity alone reached over 2 million people, generating more than 1 million engagements and 65,000+ link clicks, directly supporting Priority Services Register sign-ups.
Campaign activity across all channels extended reach even further, with radio advertising connecting with 1.4 million people, while press coverage delivered over 30 pieces of media coverage and a combined audience of 10 million+ across regional and broadcast outlets.
The CO Heroes campaign also drove strong engagement with its interactive survey, generating 14,500+ views and supporting increased public understanding of carbon monoxide risks and safety behaviours.
Overall, the campaigns not only exceeded performance targets, but successfully delivered critical safety messaging to those most at risk, driving both awareness and meaningful behavioural change.
“It’s a brilliant result and we’re delighted! Really well done!”
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