R&D and Place Pilots: Stevenage

Local partner discussion: Demonstrating the local and national benefits of Stevenage’s R&D

Discussion in Stevenage focused on local, national and international perceptions and recognition, and how R&D could fit into that. Participants referenced Stevenage’s history as a new town and emphasised the need to foster a sense of local identity in a new age of research, building on its pioneering status and place in the industrial and information ages.

There was a strong sense that, as well as reaching local audiences, R&D messaging would benefit the town by reaching a broader audience, including national decisionmakers, companies and other individuals, to help support further investment and growth in the area.

The fact Stevenage is home to many R&D organisations, with multiple large-scale development projects, meant that there was strong focus on planning and construction. The group noted a ‘vocal minority’ of people who spoke out against development projects compared with a larger number of potential advocates in the community who could be better served.

Participants wanted to engage local people who weren’t aware of Stevenage’s role in R&D or what goes on ‘behind closed doors’ at the town’s larger R&D sites, and to inspire local school children to support the local R&D talent pipeline. They felt it was important to foster a two-way relationship between Stevenage’s R&D sector and the community to encourage a greater sense of ownership among local residents, rather than simply telling the public about local achievements.

Creative brief and visual campaign concepts

• Increase advocacy and excitement around the R&D developments in the town by creating vocal supporters
• Invite people into the R&D bubble to encourage ownership and strengthen local pride, avoiding the feeling of a one-way ‘show and tell’ with little public dialogue
• Showcase Stevenage’s influence and importance beyond the local community, celebrating its status as a case study for success in combining purpose and place

Luna 9 created four concepts for the Stevenage group to consider:

Evaluation

All the concepts were well received by the group, and the variety of formats and scales of investment or effort required was welcomed.

In particular, the hoardings and railway station ideas were immediately recognised as having the potential to be effective in achieving the group’s aims, while also being fairly straightforward to implement. Concept 1 was seen to fit in with wider efforts to celebrate Stevenage’s heritage, and concept 3 was seen as a powerful way to connect to people outside Stevenage that could also be used in other locations.

Participants noted the intention in concept 2 to try and break down the ‘us and them’ perceptions about the types of people who work in R&D, which was seen as a message the group could promote. However, the group acknowledged that both concepts 2 and 4 would require long-term funding and resource from the organisations involved, alongside the use of physical spaces. As such, these concepts were not followed up.

As the developers of major sites across Stevenage, Reef and UBS formed a sub-group to discuss how they could implement R&D related messaging on the hoardings. These are due to be ready in late 2024 or 2025, and CaSE and Stevenage Borough Council are engaged in this process as an opportunity to bring the R&D ‘behind the hoardings’ to life for Stevenage residents and visitors.

The third concept was the most popular among the group and proceeded the furthest. A sub-group of Stevenage Borough Council, GSK and Airbus continued discussions around a collaborative campaign focused on the train station as a gateway to Stevenage, which led to a small scale out-of-home advertising campaign. This saw advertisements placed simultaneously at Stevenage and – at the other end of the train line – King’s Cross stations and ran in November and December 2024.