Quite simply, the truth… told well.

Last week, in advance of the launch of our summer fundraising campaign, we hosted an internal pre-launch to share with staff and volunteers the first play of our radio advert; a major part of our campaign.

I’ll admit I was a little nervous as to how the campaign might be received. The guiding principal of all our communication is ‘is this the truth well told?’ The radio ad talks directly about dying children. Was it, and indeed all the campaign materials, the truth well told? Although in its recording and editing I must have listened to it a thousand times, hearing it for the first time live on air on launch day (Monday 20 July) made me feel incredibly proud to work for CHAS and assured that this was indeed the truth told well.

Joining over 70 colleagues on the Zoom Call was also Lynn, mum to Jayden. Together Lynn and Jayden feature across many elements of the campaign. It was the first time I’d seen and experienced everything as part of the one overall campaign in reality. A wholehearted thanks to all those across CHAS involved in bringing this magic together.

Lynn spoke towards the end of the first airing of the radio campaign to express her thanks to everyone at CHAS for the support she, Jayden and the family and others like them receive from CHAS. Lynn remarked during the many conversations the team had with her that it was important people understood that knowing that your child will die young feels harsh, yet is the reality she and many others live with daily.

Right from the outset when keep the joy alive was developed, there were some words that ended that sentence, which perhaps we have been a little too reticent to use. Those words are ‘even in the face of death’ and this campaign moves us to where our communications was always meant to be. If we are to tell the truth, and tell it well, we must communicate clearly that CHAS helps to keep the joy alive – even in the face of death.

To guide us, we have developed a framework to ask that vital questions when we are planning fundraising communications… ‘Is this the truth and are we telling it as well as we possibly can?’ This is the framework that we will use to assess performance and ask ‘does our creative execution stand up to the scrutiny of it being the truth told well?’ Feedback so far indicates it does, but myself and the team would love to know your views too.

Thanks for everything you do every day and for supporting CHAS to keep the joy alive – even in the face of death.

To support our urgent appeal, visit here.