Powerful Prince’s Trust Campaign Uses LinkedIn to Urge Employers to Give Troubled Kids a Chance

CHI&Partners will today launch a new integrated campaign for youth charity The Prince’s Trust.

The new campaign, ‘Learn The Hard Way’, urges employers to look with fresh eyes at young people from troubled backgrounds and acknowledge the skills they have to offer.

The campaign will break today on LinkedIn, as a person listed as ‘homeless’ begins approaching employers to ask for online endorsements of her employable skills. The girl’s LinkedIn profile lists her workplace as “Homeless” and her skills as resourcefulness, problem-solving, independence, resilience and fast learning. 

A 60” online advert will also break this morning on The Prince’s Trust’s YouTube channel, allowing glimpses into the hardships some young people experience – from a teenage boy caring for his siblings and alcoholic mother, to a girl forced into homelessness and other young people suffering abuse. The script is written in the form of a personal statement from a CV, off-setting the harsh realities of these young people’s backgrounds against the attributes they have picked up along the way – from self-motivation and communication skills to the desire and determination to succeed.

Employers engaging with the ‘homeless’ profile on LinkedIn will be offered to view a ‘video CV’, taking them to the YouTube spot. The aim is to directly challenge negative perceptions about the employability of people from disadvantaged backgrounds.

The integrated campaign, which spans TV, cinema, radio, out-of-home, print and social media, breaks as new research from The Prince’s Trust shows that almost a million young people describe their childhoods as “traumatic” . The Trust’s research  also highlights how young people from traumatic childhoods are more likely to struggle in early adulthood with such things as their mental and physical health, finding employment, and relationships with friends and family. 

Jonathan Burley, ECD at CHI&Partners, said: “The strength, determination and resilience of young people able to overcome a difficult childhood or adolescence is so often woefully underestimated by potential employers. We wanted to show just how much these young people have to offer, how much potential they possess, and challenge businesses to think twice about how they view candidates from more disadvantaged backgrounds.”

Martina Milburn CBE, chief executive of youth charity The Prince’s Trust, said: “Although the economy is getting back on track, there are still hundreds of thousands of young people out there who are struggling on their own, from young people who are caring for parents and siblings, to those who are living on the streets. Getting a job is pivotal in making sure these young people get the chance to realise their potential.  

“The charity market is more competitive than ever, so we wanted to remind people that The Prince’s Trust helps the most disadvantaged young people, and that by working together, we can reach more young people to help them turn their lives around.”

The campaign will be unveiled this evening at The Prince’s Trust Leadership Dinner, attended by HRH The Prince of Wales and more than 500 industry leaders from across the technology, media, construction, retail and financial services sectors. The evening will raise vital funds for some of the UK’s most disadvantaged young people.

‘Learn the Hard Way’ was created by William Cottam and James Crosby of CHI&Partners. The 60” TV and online spot was directed by Seb Edwards through Academy, and is supported by Clearchannel, Bauer and Digital Cinema Media (DCM) alongside Barclays, the largest supporter of The Prince’s Trust Team programme.

CHI&Partners’ most recent campaigns for The Prince’s Trust, ‘Bad Press’ (2013) and ‘The Tomorrow Store’ (2014), have won multiple awards at ceremonies including Cannes Lions, D&AD, Film Advertising, Design Week, Kinsale Shark, Cresta International, Cristal, The A-List and One Show Awards.