KIDS COMPANY PRESS RELEASE

Posted on: 28 Aug 09

Advertising Standards Ruling (Case#A08-79806)

Kids Company received an overwhelmingly positive response to its December 2008 advertising campaign, resulting in over 500 members of the public volunteering their time to help vulnerable young people as well as many messages of support and requests for further information. Three members of the public out of the hundreds of thousands that viewed the ads complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA).

Kids Company’s intention was to create a perception changing campaign that challenged the prejudice towards often vulnerable young people. All the adverts were viewed prior to publication by the young people of Kids Company who endorsed them. One of five of the poster ads was experienced as racist by one complainant; another poster ad was experienced as offensive by the other complainant. The third complainant misunderstood the well evidenced and clearly referenced point that Kids Company made about the effects of child abuse, maltreatment and neglect on the developing brain.

Kids Company does not accept that the advertising was racist or offensive however Kids Company apologises to the three complainants for any distress, offence or misunderstanding caused by these adverts. It was not Kids Company’s intention to do so. Kids Company will not be running this pro-bono campaign again and will be taking into account these three complaints when considering the future public presentation of the complex issues that were highlighted within the campaign.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

Kids Company provides practical, emotional and educational support to vulnerable inner-city children and young people. Many of the 13,500 children Kids Company reaches have experienced severe and multiple trauma. Often they are living in chronic deprivation, with little or no support, and face the daily anxieties of caring for their family as the role of parent and child is reversed. Kids Company gives them hope by providing a safe, nurturing environment where support is tailored to the needs of each child.