Winner – Collingwood Learning Solutions
Collingwood Learning Solutions developed ‘Smashed’, with sponsorship from Diageo, to tackle underage drinking via positive thinking, aiming to equip young people all over the world to make informed, responsible choices around alcohol.
The mission of the initiative is to educate 10m students globally, in partnership with international delivery partners and education ministries, designed to ensure that the programme would be culturally and linguistically suited to different countries.
As a result, ‘Smashed’ is now delivered in 38 countries, reaching 1.9m young people in the 2024-25 academic year across six continents, including projects in Indonesia, Ghana, Kenya, Greece, Italy, Brazil, Mexico, Australia and more.
The programme is rooted in prevention through education, not only presenting the facts, risks and real-life consequences of alcohol misuse, but also offering techniques on how to resist peer pressure and make healthy, informed choices. Through consultation with young people and educators, it aims to ensure emotional resonance through realistic and relatable characters and their stories.
One strand of the initiative is ‘Smashed Live’ – a theatre presentation and interactive workshop, delivered to 11- to 15-year-olds and supported by pre- and post-evaluation, plus teaching resources. Meanwhile, ‘Smashed Online’ is an e-learning course that tells the same story with interactive learning modules – youth-driven, culturally adapted and available via smartphones, tablets and desktop platforms.
The global reach of the programme exceeded 7.5m students, with strong and continuing year-on-year growth. Requests have subsequently come in from industry associations and drinks manufacturers to extend the reach of the programme in countries such as Chile, New Zealand, Nigeria and the US.
According to evaluation results audited by PwC, 87% of learners now say they’re less likely to drink underage, with 88% knowing where to seek help, and 90% supporting the learning format. Some 90% of teachers feel more confident discussing alcohol, and 98% believe that ‘Smashed’ should be offered in all schools. The data also shows that 79% of students gain critical knowledge, with 86% feeling more confident about making safe choices.
Our judges said: “This is a world-class, evidence-based programme that prevents harm before it starts and fosters a generation more open to alcohol-free norms – helping to drive long-term culture change.”
Gold Medal – Drinkaware
At the start of this year, Drinkaware partnered with Pernod Ricard’s Jameson Irish whiskey brand to deliver a campaign called ‘Know your Score’ – encouraging football fans in the UK to better understand their drinking, encourage moderation and break the stigma of having conversations about alcohol.
The campaign launch coincided with Jameson’s responsible drinking month in January and promoted Drinkaware’s Drinking Check – an online quiz designed to help people to assess their drinking habits. Former professional footballer Jay Bothroyd was enlisted to draw people into the campaign through a spoof transfer film.
More than 13,000 people completed the Drinking Check, with the campaign reaching a much higher proportion of increasing and high-risk drinkers compared to Drinking Check’s overall completions.
