NHS Greater Manchester
Branding and campaign to help reduce suicide across Greater Manchester
Created at
Glorious
Deliverables
Naming / Brand identity / Campaign / Art direction / Film direction
Project
Shining a light on suicide
Sector
Health & Social Care
Project information
Background
Shining a Light on Suicide is Greater Manchester's dedicated suicide prevention campaign, commissioned by NHS Greater Manchester and partner organisations. Its vision is simple but profoundly important: to reduce deaths by suicide, challenge the stigma surrounding mental health, encourage earlier conversations and ensure that anyone affected by suicide feels able to seek or offer support.
The creative challenge
Suicide is one of the leading causes of death among young people aged 20 to 34 and men under 50, yet it remains a subject many people find difficult to discuss. The challenge was to create a name, brand strategy, visual identity and campaign that could address an incredibly sensitive issue with honesty, compassion and confidence. It needed to encourage open conversations without causing fear, resonate with people from every community and establish a long-term identity capable of supporting suicide prevention across Greater Manchester for years to come.
Creativity with character
When a brand has the potential to influence lives, creativity has to begin with understanding.
Before developing any creative ideas, I immersed myself in the subject through workshops with healthcare professionals, charities and most importantly, people with lived experience of suicide and bereavement. Their honesty shaped every decision that followed.
Two insights stood out. First, the campaign needed to use the word suicide openly rather than avoiding it. Second, suicide often felt hidden in the shadows, making it harder for people to talk about or seek help. Together, these insights became the foundation of the brand strategy.
From this came the campaign name Shining a Light on Suicide and a visual identity built around the idea of bringing the conversation into the open. The concept influenced everything, from the logo, colour palette and campaign assets to striking photography of Greater Manchester landmarks at sunrise which became powerful local canvases, with campaign messages projected onto their façades, symbolising darkness giving way to light.
Beyond the identity, I created the supporting brand assets and website, giving the campaign a consistent and recognisable platform that continues to support suicide prevention across Greater Manchester.
