Forster Communications has been appointed to support the positioning and voice of HelpForce, a new organisation founded by Sir Thomas Hughes-Hallett to use the power of volunteering to improve the health and wellbeing of people across the UK.

The social change PR agency, which launched HelpForce at the end of 2017, will provide communications strategy and stakeholder engagement services over 2018, supporting HelpForce in its aim to see the number of volunteers working in the NHS double by 2021.

Forster will highlight the widespread benefits of volunteering, showing how it is good for the people being supported, health and social care services, charities, the volunteers themselves and the community as whole. Work will be conducted in partnership with the NHS Trusts who are running HelpForce pilot programmes, NHS England, Royal Voluntary Service, British Red Cross and other leading cross sector organisations.

Paddy Hanrahan, HelpForce’s managing director, says, “By enhancing perceptions of volunteering and ensuring that people can experience the benefits of volunteering as quickly as possible, we can make a substantial impact on the health and wellbeing of people across the UK. Forster has a strong track record in healthcare communications, and following their recent success in launching us to media, we are excited about what we can achieve together over the next year. We have every confidence that their insights will help us work in our aim of ensuring that volunteering is an integral part of everyone’s health and wellbeing.”

The contract is led by Forster CEO Amanda Powell-Smith, who adds, “With growing strain on the NHS, there is an urgent need to ensure the benefits of NHS staff-led volunteer teams are shared and scaled as fast as possible. HelpForce is an exciting combination of innovation and common sense that can make a significant contribution to vital healthcare challenges. We look forward to continuing our work with Sir Tom, Paddy and the wider team.”

As part of Forster’s focus on health, the agency recently committed to support Sustainable Development Goal 3 on Good Health & Wellbeing, and seek specifically to give people access to the products, information and services they need to support their health. 

Other examples of the agency’s clients include includes an ongoing partnership with Public Health England and Business in the Community to create a suite of health and wellbeing toolkits, communications for the Infection Prevention Society and award winning sustainability communications for Astellas Pharma Europe.