We are delighted to have won PR Team of the Year at the Charity Times Awards 2026 with Keep Britain Tidy for our Fight Fly-tipping Fortnight campaign.
The award recognises our work together on #RubbishDeal, a national behaviour change campaign designed to tackle one of the root causes of fly-tipping: householders unknowingly using unlicensed waste operators advertising cheap rubbish removal online.
Working with Keep Britain Tidy, we turned a complex legal ‘duty of care’ into three simple actions people could take when getting rid of waste: ask for a waste carrier licence, check it on the Environment Agency register and always get a receipt.
The integrated campaign combined audience insight, creative development, media relations, social media, paid advertising and local activation. Seventy local authorities and partner organisations adopted the campaign toolkit, helping take the message into communities across the country.
And, most importantly, it worked. Fight Fly-tipping Fortnight secured 164 pieces of media coverage and 944 million opportunities to see or hear the campaign. Independent YouGov research found 74% of people who saw the campaign video said they were less likely to hire cheap waste operators advertising on social media, while 55% said they would follow all three recommended steps. On launch day, new users of the Environment Agency’s licensed waste carrier register increased by 159%.
Read more about the campaign here.
The Charity Times Award is the latest recognition for Fight Fly-tipping Fortnight, which also won Marketing/Advertising Campaign of the Year at the UK Green Business Awards earlier this year.
Charity communications have been part of Barley from the beginning. In fact, our first environmental campaign ten years ago was for Hubbub, then a new charity itself. Since then, we have continued to work alongside charities tackling some of the biggest social, environmental and health challenges.
That work feels more important than ever. Charities are being asked to respond to complex and growing needs, often while operating with stretched resources. Good communications cannot solve those pressures, but they can help organisations make their case, build trust, reach the people who need them and turn evidence and ideas into action.
This year alone, alongside Keep Britain Tidy, we have worked with Hubbub, Nordoff and Robbins, Oceana UK, The Scar Free Foundation and Borough Market. Our work across the sector spans brand development and positioning through to integrated communications campaigns that raise the profile of charities and the issues they champion, inspire behaviour change and support fundraising. What unites it all is the chance to work with organisations tackling issues that matter, and to help them reach and resonate with more people.
Winning PR Team of the Year is recognition not just of a successful campaign, but of the strength of our partnership with Keep Britain Tidy and what focused, evidence-led charity communications can achieve.
And there is more to come. Fight Fly-tipping Fortnight returns this autumn, with refreshed creative and plans to involve even more councils and partners.