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The advertising launched by the Home Office to attract police

recruits is the first national campaign for the police force. Police

recruitment ads have previously been handled by individual forces, but

the work created by M&C Saatchi using a range of celebrities, heralds a

broader campaign.

One of ads in the campaign, featuring Coronation Street actor Chris

Bisson, has entered Adwatch this week at number ten with 46% recall.

Each execution uses a famous personality talking about a topic close to

their professional hearts. The celebrities relate how they don't think

they could deal with the type of incidents faced by police officers.

For example, Bisson talks about how he's used to following a script, but

doesn't know how he'd deal with a violent situation without

direction.

In another ad, boxer Lennox Lewis talks about how it's important to stay

in control; but if he were faced with a man who beat his wife, he's not

sure he could keep his composure.

The other famous faces in the ads include Joan Bakewell talking about

interviewing a suspected rapist, John Barnes on dealing with football

hooligans, Simon Weston on being brave and Patsy Palmer wondering how

the police would talk a girl into informing on her drug-dealer

boyfriend. After they explain that it's not a job they could do, the

endline simply reads 'Could you?'.

However, Graham Hooper, head of marketing communications at the Home

Office says it's more than a celebrity-led campaign. "It's not simply a

personality campaign, because the celebrities are actually saying why

they couldn't do something. We used people with whom you identify a

talent or skill, but who explain they are not capable of doing the job

of a police officer."

There were no specific recruitment targets set for the campaign because

it was the first of its kind and the aim was to be more selective in the

recruitment of officers.

"We wanted to maximise the high- quality applications. It's not just

about raw numbers, but about attracting the right sort of people," says

Hooper. "The campaign was about dramatising the challenge officers face

every day, showing how difficult it is and how good the police have to

be to deal with that."

Indeed, the advertising is as much about putting off the wrong sort of

candidates as attracting the right ones. It was also created with the

aim of increasing the level of respect for police officers in the

force.

The campaign initially broke in August 2000. In total, £7m was

spent on the marketing campaign, which includes fulfilment packs and a

web site.

Interested viewers respond to a central point and their details are then

passed on to their local force. The campaign should continue for another

year.