Trending PR Campaigns
Sutton Homelessness Support Heat Map
University of Roehampton researchers partnered with Voice for Locals to launch a Sutton scheme offering homeless people vouchers for support from local businesses, including meals and haircuts. The unusual hook is that anonymised voucher data will create heat maps of where people access help, giving researchers and councils a fresh picture of local needs while prompting questions about privacy and what the data can show.
Why it worked: It fused a tangible benefit (QR vouchers) with a live policy dataset (anonymised heat maps), creating timely, actionable evidence and ethical tension.
The lesson: Consider offering a real-world giveaway that doubles as opt‑in data collection, then pitch the first-week dashboard revealing an unexpected pattern.
Coverage over time
How this story spread across the media
| Publication | Headline | Date |
|---|---|---|
| big-knowledge.co.uk | Roehampton study tracks movement of Sutton’s homeless community to improve access to support - Big Knowledge | Wednesday 31st July, 2024 |
| bigissue.com | An academic put trackers on homeless people to see what they could learn. Here’s what they did next | Friday 16th October, 2026 |