ICE Creates have been awarded joint silver at the world’s first ever behaviour change awards.

The Nudge Awards were developed by Ogilvy Change, part of international advertising, marketing and PR agency Ogilvy & Mather, to recognise standards of excellence in the behavioural science community. North West based ICE were one of just two companies – and the only British organisation – recognised in the Health category.

ICE were awarded for GET MON£YSMART, a behavioural change programme developed and delivered on behalf of, and in partnership with, Rochdale Borough Council.

GET MON£YSMART aimed to positively influence the lifestyle choices and spending decisions of local people by engaging, educating and empowering them to make small, gradual changes to unhealthy lifestyle behaviours. These included spending on smoking, alcohol, takeaways, shisha and fixed-odds betting terminals.

The ICE team used both quantitative and qualitative research methods to help put themselves ‘in the shoes’ of the target audience and better understand why they were engaging in these unhealthy behaviours and spending habits. Innovative and emerging psychotherapy and projective interview techniques were used to draw out participants’ overriding and subconscious attitudes, beliefs, values, emotions and motivations. Participants also developed their own ideas or ‘nudges’ around better money management and healthy lifestyle choices, and shared these to benefit their peers.

22.9% of the audience targeted by GET MON£YSMART changed their behaviour as a direct result of the campaign – including changes to their spending habits, lifestyle choices and budgeting. The campaign also helped to raise awareness of community support services, such as stop smoking services, alcohol outreach, healthy weight support, financial inclusion champions and the Citizens Advice Bureau.

Helen Skidmore, Public Health Manager at Rochdale Borough Council said:

“I am delighted that GET MON£YSMART has won a Silver Nudge award for health related behaviour change. ICE created an innovative and eye catching campaign from our brief on linking small lifestyles changes to financial savings, which is really supporting local people in this tough economic climate.

“We have had a fantastic partnership approach to this campaign, with the Public Health Team, local lifestyles services and community partners working really hard to get the materials and messages out into communities across the borough.”

Benjamin Buckby, head of behavioural insight at ICE Creates said:

“We are thrilled to be recognised for our real-world application of behavioural economics and insight to achieve significant behaviour change. Being recognised at the world’s first behaviour change awards is an immensely proud and rewarding moment for our behavioural insight team and validates our ongoing innovative research into unhealthy lifestyle behaviours and money management.

“Putting ourselves ‘in the shoes’ of the most vulnerable and disadvantaged groups in society helps our clients, such as Rochdale Borough Council, to make smarter decisions, based on truths not assumptions.”

Following the success of GET MON£YSMART, ICE is rolling out the campaign with the Public Health team at Rochdale Council in a third phase in September 2015.