In 2023, Diabetes UK made the decision to set up stands at both the Conservative and Labour Conferences for the first time, aiming to engage with MPs and stakeholders and underscore the importance of prevention and health check-ups. The objective was to demonstrate to political figures how they could contribute to ensuring individuals with diabetes lead long and healthy lives.
My task was to devise a strategy to draw attendees to our stands while adhering to a tight budget. Additionally, I was responsible for designing all graphic assets, both online and offline. The challenge was to create two distinct stands for each conference within our limited budget.
I collaborated closely with the Policy Team to understand their audience and tailor my creative approach accordingly. For the stand design, I created a versatile setup that utilised three walls for the Conservative Conference and repurposed two of those walls for the Labour Conference. To accommodate the differing sizes of the stands, I left extra space in the design to ensure it remained visually cohesive. Together with the Policy Team, we devised a “steady hand” game to engage attendees, where participants competed against each other and drew cards depicting scenarios faced by individuals with diabetes. A leaderboard added an element of competition, attracting more participants. Additionally, we prepared a report to distribute to attendees.
Exhibiton stand concept
Examples of online materials
Exhibiton stand at the Conservative Party Conference
We were delighted to welcome Health Secretary Steve Barclay and Minister for Mental Health and Women’s Health Maria Caulfield to our exhibition stand. The Policy team discussed our Manifesto for Longer, Healthier Lives and advocated for funding hybrid closed loop systems. Numerous MPs participated in our steady hand game, with Jo Churchill, MP for Bury St Edmunds, emerging as the winner. Campaign Champions Lindsey and Paul joined us to share firsthand experiences of living with diabetes. Shadow Health Secretary Wes Streeting used his speech to reiterate Labour’s commitment to restricting junk food marketing to improve children’s diets, further highlighting our cause. On World Diabetes Day we sent a card to MPs in England in constituencies with a very high number of people living with diabetes. We asked them to stand up for everyone in their constituencies impacted by diabetes by supporting our Manifesto for Longer Healthier Lives..
People living with diabetes met with their MP, Wes Streeting, the Shadow Health Secretary, to discuss diabetes care in their local area, Ilford North
Thank you for reviewing my project! I look forward to hearing your feedback and am happy to answer any questions you might have. If you’d like to discuss it further, please don’t hesitate to contact me.
