BACKGROUND
The UK government’s ‘Levelling Up’ initiative is aimed at reducing regional inequalities and empowering local communities. As part of this, seven North East councils (County Durham, Gateshead, Newcastle, North Tyneside, Northumberland, South Tyneside, and Sunderland) joined forces to sign a devolution deal and form a combined authority, taking control of key decisions that used to be made in Westminster, and bringing them closer to home.
By teaming up, these councils believe they can achieve more together than they ever could alone. Their mission? To create exciting opportunities, attract game-changing investment, and deliver sustainable growth that transforms lives and communities in the region.
In December 2023, after a competitive pitch process, Drummond Central won the business and was appointed as the strategic and creative agency to craft a bold new voice, look and feel for the new combined authority.
Having previously worked with a number of large, complex public sector organisations including the local councils, Drummond Central were able to communicate to the client that we understood the complexities of how such organisations would be working together.
TARGET AUDIENCE
NECA united multiple local authorities while integrating private and public organisations from business, health, and education. Spanning seven diverse regions, it serves a wide variety of audiences that we simplified into two key groups:
Everyday Interactors
These include local authorities, stakeholders, businesses, and partners working closely with NECA on initiatives or receiving funding, deeply invested in its role as a driver of growth and innovation.
Light-Touch Audiences
Residents, the general public, and some businesses benefitting indirectly from NECA’s efforts, such as job creation and improved infrastructure.
What unites all audiences is their shared love for the North East and a desire to see it flourish.
AGENCY SOLUTION
Having conducted preliminary research themselves, the client understood that creating a brand identity for a new entity with multiple target audiences, all while needing approval from seven opposing Leaders within fixed timings, was no small task.
It was vital that we understood the client’s situation, so we consulted with them to explore and define the recommended strategic approach to make sense of the tangled web of conflicting opinions, stakeholders, and priorities.
We then organised and led multiple stakeholder workshops so we could truly understand what the CA meant to everyone it would interact with. We tailored the content for each group and used the five territories as stimulus to feel out views and opinions on language, personality and creative approaches. By collating and analysing the research, we identified the ‘golden thread’ that brought clarity and alignment to the creative brief: Leading the North East into a limitless future.
We learned the new CA would be the catalyst for improvement, but it’d be unrealistic to think it could do everything on its own. We worked closely with the CEO of the CA who had outlined the Vision and 5 x Commitments the body was aiming to deliver. Armed with findings from the stakeholder engagement, we set about refining these further, alongside naming, logo and brand development.
Drummond Central’s research revealed that the new combined authority's brand needed to be uncomplicated, inclusive, and easily understood, while standing out from others. To achieve this, we focused on creating a clear name and building meaning around it.
We needed to craft a brand that could be flexed to a number of situations, whilst shouting with one consistent voice. To do this, the brand needed to be free from political jargon, approachable, and bold enough to stand apart from other combined authorities. It also had to balance conflicting political agendas while uniting the region under a shared identity that resonated with all.
We distilled the findings, adapted the existing vision and commitments to refine them and bring in line with the new TOV. Something that kept coming up was the North East’s heritage, so the brand we created weaves in nods to the regional pride, while pushing toward bigger, better outcomes. The logo perfectly depicts this, showing an upward (North East facing) arrow, ownable only by NECA.
THE RESULTS
We crafted a cohesive brand for the new combined authority that is bold and reflects the organisation’s vision and commitments. We produced clear and detailed brand guidelines to give the client the tools to flex the brand’s tone of voice, dialling different elements up or down, to suit any situation.
Drummond Central’s thorough consultation meant every viewpoint or perspective helped shape the brand development, ensuring the brand was ownable and resonated with everyone in the region, no matter who they were or where they lived.
This positioned the brand to achieve better awareness and understanding from the public, reducing confusion and ensuring the services offered by the combined authority are easily understood by the public.
Key stakeholders, including political Leaders, and heads of businesses now involved with NECA were involved throughout the process. Gaining buy-in from those who’d be driving the brand and making sure they could see we’d listened to them was key to its success.
The brand we created positioned NECA for growth on an international platform and primed them to form strategic partnerships with other public and government bodies, such as Homes England.
NECA has already seen the effects of their new, distinctive look - they have successfully competed for and secured more than £100 million in funding for workforce development, entrepreneurial enterprises, rural and coastal development and green industry creation.
Whilst still in the initial stages, this remarkable early success underscores the brand’s transformative impact in driving innovation, economic growth, and sustainable development for the North East, so it’s seen as the go-to place to live, work, visit and invest.
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