Trentham

HITTING THE TV SCREEN FOR GOOD

THE BRIEF

In 2021 we were appointed by Trentham, a 725-acre estate, in Staffordshire to generate buzz around its landscaped gardens, events and shopping village.

Our brief was to raise awareness of Trentham and all it has to offer regionally, nationally and with specialist press, to drive footfall and ultimately, memberships.

We were also tasked with generating national TV coverage for three major events: the unveiling of a new sculpture in the gardens, the re-introduction of endangered water voles and the re-introduction of beavers.

THE PROCESS

A key part of Trentham’s offering is its famous Italianate gardens which feature 21 intricate wire fairy sculptures, created by local artist Robin Wight.

In 2022, the team at Trentham and Robin worked with Specialist nurses from NHS Blood and Transplant to create a special sculpture to provide a reflection point for families who have lost loved ones, as well as raising awareness of the difference organ donation can make.

Later in the year, Trentham announced another new addition to its gardens – water voles! With re-introduction a hot topic in the news, we set about pitching the story to key TV and production contacts offering them the chance to cover the story and follow the release which was being managed by acclaimed ecologist and author, Derek Gow.

Following the success of the water voles, we were also tasked with promoting the recent reintroduction of a family of beavers at Trentham, in collaboration with the Beaver Trust.

THE RESULTS

The organ donor sculpture story was picked up by BBC’s The One Show, who followed Robin’s progress creating the piece, as well as the official unveiling on the day which was attended by loved ones of organ donors and specialist NHS nurses and doctors.

The One Show feature included emotional interviews from family and friends on what the sculpture and having a place to remember their loved ones means to them, as well as the importance of organ donation.

The day after the episode aired, national organ donation registrations rose by nearly 65%, showcasing the power of harnessing national TV audiences to make a real difference for good.

Our next mission was to secure TV coverage for the water vole reintroduction and after calls with Blue Peter about the project they were keen to follow the story.

Blue Peter covered the staged release of water voles from pens into the bankside of the lake, which was carried out with help from Staffordshire Wildlife Trust and local primary school children.

Regional news outlet ITV Central also filmed on the day of the release and we secured coverage across a range of publications including local press, wildlife and gardening, and BBC News Online.

The reintroduction of beavers was also a huge success, with ITV Central, BBC Midlands and BBC Radio Stoke in attendance on the day, with a combined audience of over 7million viewers. The story was also featured on national TV on BBC Breakfast.

Not to mention we secured over 200 pieces of coverage in regional and national publications, including The Evening Standard, iPaper and Mail Online.

Ultimately, all stories helped to raise awareness of Trentham and its work to support the local community and re-introduce important native species to a huge, nationwide audience.

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