CURRENT PLEDGES: 216890
Shared Learning 2025 – Children & Family
Organisation
UKHSA
Project title: Raising awareness of AMR in children and young people and those that care for them, a multi-method approach in Southend-on-Sea
Project Overview
Children experience a greater burden from AMR and infections compared with adults, antibiotic use in children is also associated with harmful long-term effects. In the East of England, Mid and South Essex ICB has the highest antibiotic use in children in primary care and Southend has the highest use of antibiotics (items per STAR-PU). Communication campaigns are effective in raising AMR awareness; however, we found no toolkits available for communications to raise awareness of AMR in children and young people (CYP). Our project aimed to: (1) Design and implement an AMR toolkit that collated communications resources for use by local authorities in different community settings to raise awareness of AMR in CYP. (2) To pilot the toolkit in Southend using a suite of multi-channel communication initiatives. To achieve this NHS East of England, UKHSA and Southend Council worked collaboratively to produce “Tools for Schools”. – a communications toolkit that for the first time collated a wide range of evidence-based public health resources, including those from e-Bug, antibiotic guardian, UK-PAS, TARGET, SPS and vaccination and sustainability resources for use in CYP settings including schools, healthcare and local authorities.
The Southend project built on local assets and used engagement and participation with local communities, to educate and inform people about AMR in CYP. These methods included: Multi-channel comms: social media posts, blog articles, letter to headteachers, newsletter article sent to schools to forward to parents, AMR Information page on Livewell Southend raising awareness of AMR and promoting antibiotic guardian and e-Bug resources. Hideous history of cringey cures – a face-to-face interactive workshop for home educated children, raising awareness of the history and importance of vaccinations, infection control and appropriate antibiotic use. School’s poster challenge and LA presentation and quiz, to raise awareness across public health teams.
Impact on tackling AMR
The project had an impact by raising awareness of AMR, Antibiotic Guardian, eBug, vaccination and other CYP relevant resources within several community settings. This included (1) Improved awareness in the local community: For example, 30, 256 primary and secondary school aged children in 60 state and private schools in Southend (including 6 SEND institutes) received the school newsletter. 47 elective home educated children and adults attended the face-to-face interactive workshop of hideous histories: cringey cures. 20 social media posts and 8 online articles were accessed by over 9,500 members of the Southend community. (2) Increased awareness in public health practitioners, health care professionals and parents. Parents said that they and their children were engaged and had learned some “better behaviours”. Local authorities said that the tool was excellent to help with AMR awareness raising. 100% of LA PH staff who attended the presentation said that the presentation had improved their awareness of AMR either significantly (62%) or slightly (37%), 75% said that they would pledge to become an Antibiotic Guardian. (3) Improved good practice in LA and ICBs: Local authorities and ICBs from outside the region requested copies of the toolkit to use with their local communities for future campaigns.
Future Development
Based on evaluation feedback, we plan to update the toolkit next year and roll it out it using AMR and LA networks to all ICBs and local authorities in England before November. We plan to work with other individual local authorities to roll out some of the communication interventions in other communities.
In January we plan to work with student health ambassadors in secondary schools in Southend, arranging a webinar to encourage them to promote and use antibiotic guardian and eBug resources with their peers and juniors in school. Finally, more sessions of the Hideous history: cringey cures face-to-face interactive workshop will be made available to CYP and adult communities.
Organisation
Shionogi BV
Project title: The Next Generation Responds to the Superbug Crisis
Project Overview
The short film “The Next Generation Responds to the Superbug Crisis” was produced to educate younger generations about the pressing global threat of AMR and to motivate action against “superbugs.” This impactful 3 minute film showcases children aged 6 to 18 from various Shionogi Europe affiliate office locations, who deliver crucial messages about the dangers of superbugs and how we can join forces to ensure a healthier future.
Framed in a news report style, the film is designed to make this complex issue both relatable and engaging for young audiences. The term “superbugs” was carefully selected to describe antibiotic-resistant bacteria in a way that resonates with everyone. Young reporters confronted four vital questions:
1. What is a superbug?
2. What does a superbug do?
3. How can we tackle superbugs?
4. What would you do to shape the future of healthcare?
The children’s heartfelt responses were filmed by their parents using mobile phones. Participants spoke in their native languages, with subtitles added for accessibility. The blend of ages, languages, and backgrounds, along with genuine, unscripted answers, crafted an authentic and relatable narrative.
Visually, the film places children against dynamic, superbug-themed backgrounds while highlighting their European locations, underscoring the global nature of this urgent issue. It closes with a powerful call to action: “Protecting our future starts today” This message is bolstered by striking statistics, including the alarming projection that AMR could lead to 8 million deaths annually by 2050.
This project has successfully raised awareness among young people, peers, family members, and the general public empowering them to champion responsible antibiotic use, promote hygiene, and advocate for scientific research. By engaging and educating the next generation, Shionogi Europe has highlighted our collective responsibility to protect the future of antibiotics and, ultimately, human health.
Impact on tackling AMR
The film has made a positive impact in raising awareness and engaging people in the fight against AMR. Here are three outcomes that highlight the project’s effectiveness:
1. Boosting Public Awareness on External Platforms
The film was strategically showcased on Shionogi’s dedicated AMR page and LinkedIn, effectively reaching an audience that includes healthcare professionals, policymakers, and the general public. On LinkedIn, its ability to generate significant engagement through shares and likes hopefully sparked important conversations about the global implications of AMR and our individual roles in combating it. By conveying the complex issue of superbugs through the perspectives of young voices, the film made AMR understandable and relatable to a wide range of viewers, including those unfamiliar with scientific concepts. The film has been watched on LinkedIn 1,724 times and had an impressive engagement rate of over 11% against the industry average of 2%.
2. Enhancing Internal Engagement During WAAW
During World AMR Awareness Week, the film was shared across Shionogi Europe’s network of 300 employees and 6 affiliate offices across Europe, serving as a powerful tool to deepen employees’ understanding of AMR. It reinforced the company’s dedication to tackling this pressing issue and empowered staff to continue to be passionate advocates for change.
3. Inspiring Action Among Younger Generations
By featuring children as messengers, the project effectively engaged younger generations—an essential factor in the ongoing battle against AMR. The natural and diverse responses emphasised actionable steps, such as promoting hygiene and responsible antibiotic use, that resonate with young people and their families. The film’s emotional narrative and strong call to action fostered proactive attitudes and cultivated a sense of shared responsibility for the future.
Overall, these outcomes showcase the film’s success in raising awareness, igniting discussions, and inspiring meaningful action—crucial steps in the fight to save antibiotics.
Future Development
1. Presence at Events
The film will be used at Shionogi Europe’s internal and external events over the next two years. By using the film within conferences, workshops, and campaigns, Shionogi aims to significantly elevate its impact on both professionals and the general public. This strategy ensures that the film remains a wide reaching tool for advancing understanding and advocacy around AMR, no matter your level of knowledge.
2. Creation of Engaging Educational Resources
Building on the success of the film, Shionogi intends to develop additional educational materials specifically aimed at younger audiences. These resources will enhance the film’s message by offering deeper insights into the critical importance of preserving antibiotics and the global battle against superbugs.
3. Broadening Reach and Impact
Future initiatives will focus on expanding the film’s reach by translating the subtitles into multiple languages. These efforts are designed to ensure that the message exceeds cultural and linguistic barriers, thereby enhancing its global influence.
By committing to these initiatives, Shionogi Europe will evolve the project into a sustainable and effective force in the urgent fight to preserve antibiotics.
Organisation
Torbay Council
Project title: Supporting Torbay Residents to be AMR Aware
Project Overview
This year we have worked with our education settings and health colleagues to deliver a programme of activity. We have worked with early years settings to create a resource pack of ideas; explaining AMR and a range of ideas to use with children e.g. handwashing songs. We have also bought a hand washing training kit to loan out to early years settings so they can show children how effective their handwashing skills are and areas to improve. This has included additional resources to carry out e-bug activities to help children think about respiratory health. We worked with one pre-school to build a communications campaign to reach out to the public and businesses, this included a short film for social media. This was additionally supported by an event at one of our hospitals aimed at visitors and again used the handwashing kit to support conversations on AMR awareness and the antibiotic guardian campaign (including resources from the website). We have worked with primary schools to offer two presentations to key stage 1 (developed by UKHSA colleague) and 2 (developed in-house) to explore AMR with the children and to consider hand and respiratory hygiene as well as the importance of vaccinations to keep antibiotics safe for future use. We have also trialled a presentation with a secondary school working with their year 8 children.
Impact on tackling AMR
- We have found promoting AMR through the work with children more positively responded to than previous social media campaigns focused on using antibiotics wisely.
- Trialling the hand washing kit and instructions with the local Forest School enabled a wider group of local residents to access the resource including childminders and children attending with their parents or grandparents.
- Practical resource has helped to engage members of the public in conversations around AMR/ antibiotic guardianship and create an opportunity for behaviour change.
Future Development
We are keen to develop a three year rolling programme of education activities so our local children have a different activity each year so they can continue to promote these messages at home. We will also be attending our main hospital next year to talk to visitors in the main foyer (Torbay Hospital). We will also be working with our peninsula colleagues on wider antibiotic guardian messages for local businesses.
