Activate with Joe Wicks

Client: Department of Health and Social Care

Half of UK children aren’t meeting recommended daily activity levels, harming physical and mental health. But this issue was too deep-rooted to tackle alone. We needed to make movement joyful, inclusive and built for the way children consume content - especially on social platforms where families spend their time.

Activate delivered exactly that. Created by Joe Wicks, this first of its kind animated series provides fun, accessible five minute bursts of movement, brought to life by Studio AKA and featuring tracks from Universal Music UK – amplified by YouTube Kids. A pioneering partnership was brokered between Joe and the Department of Health and Social Care. This turned Activate into a full scale behaviour change campaign over the summer – powered by social media. Partners combined networks to build a full ‘Activate’ ecosystem across platforms, talent, brands and schools, through tailored social toolkits. A dynamic social rollout by Freuds brought Activate to life through high energy content and UGC with real families, supported by Joe’s shout outs to deepen connection. Collaborative posts with government signalled credibility, while content was boosted into lower activity communities. Social didn’t just promote the series - it mobilised families. The results were extraordinary: 2.6m YouTube views, 32m impressions in deprived areas, 250+ earned pieces, and thousands of families sharing their own ‘Activate’ moments - driving 58,900 hours of movement. Activate stands out in this category for proving how social can tackle a national health challenge, turning screen time into active time at scale.