More Than a Label, Hear Me Out

Young or old, resident or refugee, 28,000 people every year are locked in UK immigration detention centres—waiting to find out if they will be deported. Hear Me Out is a small UK-based charity that takes music-making into these centres and asylum hotels—sharing the words, music and the life stories of the people held inside.

The Brief

Hear Me Out wanted to co-create a fundraising campaign with a group of people who had lived experience of asylum hotels or immigration detention centres.

The Process

We started off with an in-person session, talking about the story that the group wanted to share as a story. The theme of ‘more than just a label’ came through fairly quickly and we worked on how to bring this to life. Following several more skills sharing sessions, including one on how to capture content, the team put together film briefs. Jonathan and Kwaku filmed their own content and sent over images to supplement their stories. Our team of editors cut the films together, with the fundraising teams input.

Once the films were ready, the charity released them as part of a campaign that was designed by the fundraising team.

The Results

The campaign raised more than the target set, including 9 new regular donors.

This experience was unique, it felt like a therapeutic situation where I could express the essence of those who are victims trying to overcome the difficulties of life. I hope that this campaign reaches everyone’s heart, bringing a more sensitive way to look at anybody without prejudices.”