Probation in Verse

Client: MoJ and HMPPS

Against the backdrop of a challenging Probation climate, Kindred was briefed to deliver a public sector recruitment PR burst that would reframe the rewards of probation roles. The objective was to raise awareness of the importance of roles in the Probation Service, and encourage people to consider them as a fulfilling career themselves.

Kindred’s focus was on finding authentic stories and telling them in a new and attention-grabbing way. This search led the team to Poet Laureate, Simon Armitage, who was a probation officer for eight years before becoming a full-time poet. Simon was central to the creation and the launch of this campaign as the team worked with him to write a compelling poem (A Life In The Day Of) which cleverly used letters of the alphabet to bring to life the impact probation staff have. The resulting PR campaign was authentic, well-timed and powerfully executed – showing the reality of life working in the Probation Service as well as the significance of the role on individuals and society.