Sussex Police asked Claremont to help reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured due to drug driving over the festive period. The brief was ambitious and time-bound: deliver behavioural insight, strategy, creative and a costed media plan within three months, to ensure that the campaign was live for Christmas.

Claremont began by building a detailed picture of the problem, combining internal police intelligence with extensive desk research. This included analysis of local arrest data, national trends, academic literature on risk-taking behaviour and a review of comparable UK and international campaigns.

Alongside this, the project team conducted in-depth interviews with officers working in roads policing and, most crucially, ran qualitative focus groups with people at risk of drug driving and those close to them.

This research revealed a consistent and challenging insight: drug drivers don’t see risk. Many believe enforcement is rare, that “everyone does it” and that their own driving ability offsets any impairment. Christmas drug drivers, in particular, see themselves as controlled and responsible – not criminals.

Claremont’s response was Think Again: a campaign designed to stop people in their tracks and prompt a moment of doubt. The creative used relatable characters and scenarios, in-group language and visual cues to challenge myths about safety and control. The campaign also amplified the reality of policing activity during the period, pairing behaviour change messaging with tangible signals of enforcement.

Tim Parry, Director, Claremont

Tim Parry’s career has spanned 25 years in comms, brand, digital, marketing and public affairs in the public, private and voluntary sectors. A large part of his career was spent at Alzheimer’s Research UK as Director of comms, brand, digital and partnerships. 

At Claremont, Tim has led a raft of complex and high-profile projects, mainly in the health space, and public safety and harm reduction.