Changes benefit communities thanks to Award winners

MEDIA RELEASE

26 May 2017

Changes benefit communities thanks to PRINZ Supreme Award winners

Two campaigns demonstrating the real impact public relations can have on social change share the Supreme Award in the 2017 Public Relations Institute of New Zealand (PRINZ) Awards.

Developing a programme to reconnect Te Wairoa whānau with their iwi saw one of the largest Treaty settlements to date signed with support of a significant number of engaged stakeholders. Angela Campbell, Scott Campbell and Rebecca Savory of Campbell Squared Communications, Tauranga, ran a campaign that their clients said was a major factor in its overwhelming success, “…teaching us to move beyond our cultural constraints.” The campaign also won the new Awards category “Communicating in Diversity”.

Chelsea Halliwell of Resolve Communications, Christchurch also received the Supreme Award for ‘Nothing but the facts – how Redcliffs won its school back’. This campaign, to reverse the Ministry of Education’s decision to close Redcliffs School post-earthquake, harnessed support beyond the immediate community. Its effective lobbying resulted in the desired change. The campaign also won the ‘Not for Profit/Pro Bono’ Award category.

PRINZ Awards Chief Judge, Lisa Finucane, FPRINZ, said that while presenting two winners is unusual and was last done in 2012, the outcomes of both campaigns indicated a real social shift and it was impossible to separate the two.

“These were two excellent campaigns and certainly demonstrate the way ethical public relations can be used to engage communities and decision makers. They both demonstrate a clear two-way flow of information, reaching people and groups that may have been missed in the past, and helped achieve an outcome with real benefits to stakeholders,” she said.

“It was interesting to see the standouts this year had a social agenda, while last year the Supreme Award went to a marketing communications campaign. There is a huge amount of variety in the work done by PRINZ members and no two years of Awards are the same.”

The Supreme Awards were among those presented at the PRINZ Awards Gala Dinner in Christchurch on Thursday 25 May. New recipients of the Professional Accreditation (APR) and new Fellows were also recognised.

In another first, this year PRINZ introduced a PR Consultancy of the Year category. Winners of these were Wright Communications, Auckland (Small/Medium), and Campbell Squared Communications, Tauranga (Medium/ Large). Nikki Wright, principal of Wright Communications was voted a Fellow this year, while Campbell Squared won Supreme Award.

The PRINZ Awards are now in their 43rd year, recognising excellence in New Zealand’s public relations and communications industry, promoting continuous improvement, and celebrating best practice. This year’s awards attracted a record 98 entries from around the country.

The Awards are judged by Fellows and senior practitioners of the Institute with the assistance of international colleagues.

All PRINZ Award winners considered for the Supreme Award and are eligible to enter the global COMM PRIX Awards organised by the Global Alliance for Public Relations and Communication Management.

ENDS

© Scoop Media