BrainFuel

 In this episode of BrainFuel, Ruth is joined by Johanna Jefferies, Public Health Consultant and Associate Director at Hampshire County Council, and Jonathan Baker, Senior Insight Lead, to share how they’ve successfully embedded behavioural science into council and public health work in a way that’s practical, memorable, and genuinely usable. Jo and Jonathan unpack what it really takes to roll behavioural science out across an organisation iincluding what didn’t work at first, what they changed, and why training alone is never enough. You’ll hear how Hampshire redesigned its approach to focus on real-world application, post-training support, and building confidence (not overwhelm). We also dive into their personal behaviour change stories, the biggest myth they’d throw into Room 101, and the three ingredients they believe every council needs if they want behavioural science to stick.   🧠 What You’ll Learn In This Episode Why “good training” isn’t the same as behavioural science actually being used in day-to-day work Why councils need to apply behavioural science to how they embed behavioural science Why training should focus on mechanism and practice, not just theory The biggest blocker: behavioural science being seen as “for frontline behaviour change”, not strategic council work Why follow-up support matters more than templates Three ingredients councils can copy if they want behavioural science to scale internally. 🚪 Room 101: Training Without Support If Jo and Jonathan could throw one thing into Room 101 forever, it would be this: The idea that you can train people in behavioural science and then leave them to figure it out alone. Even great training doesn’t translate into real practice without follow-up support, confidence-building, and early case studies that show it working inside the organisation.   🎉 Free Event - Making Hidden Voices Heard -  26 March 2026 To celebrate five years of Hidden Voices Heard (and our much-loved Behaviour Change Marketing Bootcamp training), we’re hosting a free event dedicated to just that 'Making Hidden Voices Heard' on: 📅 26 March 2026➡️ Head to www.hiddenvoicesheard.com to save your spot.    

In this episode of BrainFuel, Ruth is joined by Dr Paul Chadwick Chief Executive of the Behavioural Science and Public Health Network (BSPHN), clinical psychologist, and former Co-Director at the UCL Centre for Behaviour Change. Paul shares what’s changing inside BSPHN, why the organisation is expanding beyond public health, and what it will take to embed behavioural science across the public sector in a way that’s practical, inclusive, and built for real-world complexity. We also dive into Paul’s personal behaviour change story, why applied behavioural science can be a lonely job, and the big myth he’d send straight to Room 101…   🧠 What You’ll Learn In This Episode Why BSPHN believes the question is no longer “Do we need behavioural science?” but “How do we make it happen?” Why behavioural science must expand beyond public health because everything connects back to public health The value of the applied behavioural science practitioner (and why their wisdom needs amplifying) The four strategic pillars shaping BSPHN’s next chapter: Community of practice Capacity building Advocacy Partnerships Why behavioural science should never be treated as something “only for PhDs” How BSPHN is redesigning its approach to be more useful to practitioners and academics Why we need to stop hunting for quick-win “magic fixes” and take complexity seriously   ⭐ Standout Moments 📌 Paul on moving from clinical settings into public health: “The origins of the behaviours I was trying to change had their roots in people’s childhoods… shaped by social and cultural circumstances.” 📌 Paul on community: “Being a behavioural scientist or applying behavioural science can be a lonely business.” 📌 The best Room 101 moment: The Behavioural Science Unicorn — the myth that tiny interventions must always create massive cost savings to be “worth it”.   🦄 Room 101: The Behavioural Science Unicorn Paul would send this idea into Room 101: The belief that behavioural science is only valuable when it produces simple, tiny, low-effort interventions with huge measurable impact and cost savings. Yes nudges can be powerful. But chasing mythical “unicorn wins” can stop teams from doing the deeper work of embedding behavioural science in systems, services, leadership, and culture.   📚 Mentioned in the Episode Paul’s book: Do I Drink Too Much?  A practical, psychologically-informed guide to reflecting on alcohol use and exploring a strategic break.     📅 BSPHN Conference 2026 (Don’t Miss This) Paul also shares details of the upcoming BSPHN conference: 🗓 8–9 March 2026 🎯 Theme: Complexity — using behavioural science to make complexity more manageable (without dumbing it down)   Don't forget to register to x

Marketing & Psychology: Understanding Customer Behaviour with the ABC Approach In this episode, Ruth Dale is joined by Luan Wise and Dr Tom Bowden-Green to explore their new book, Marketing and Psychology: Understanding Customer Behaviour with the ABC Approach — a practical, evidence-led guide for anyone working in marketing, communications, public health, or behaviour change. This conversation bridges academic psychology and real-world practice, cutting through guesswork and pop psychology to show how behavioural science can be applied with confidence, clarity, and integrity. If you work in comms, health promotion, social marketing, B2B or B2C, this episode is for you — regardless of whether “marketing” is in your job title.   🧠 What you’ll learn in this episode Why this book needed to exist — and why now How the ABC framework (Audience, Brand, Choice) helps structure behavioural thinking Why behaviour change is about marginal gains, not silver bullets The danger of guessing behaviour based on demographics alone How to use personas properly (with evidence, not stereotypes) Why marketers often are using behavioural science — without realising it How academics and practitioners can (and should) work better together What it really takes to turn a huge academic field into a practical, usable book   💬 Standout quotes from the episode “There isn’t a silver bullet. Behaviour change is about marginal gains — lots of small shifts that add up to something meaningful.”— Tom “Most marketers are already doing behavioural science — they just don’t realise there’s evidence behind what they’re doing.”— Luann   🚫 Room 101 (what they’d happily bin) Over-simplified generational labels that flatten human behaviour Algorithm-chasing instead of focusing on real people and real decisions   📚 BrainFuel Book Club This book is officially on the reading list for the BrainFuel Book Club — a space for people who want smarter, evidence-led thinking without the academic fog or marketing gimmicks. If you like books that make you better at your job, not just better at sounding clever, this one’s for you.   🔗 Useful links 📖 Pre-order the book via Amazon  🌐 Learn more at marketingandpsychology.com 💬 Connect with Luan and Tom on LinkedIn and follow their ongoing work and newsletter BrainFuel Book Club - FREE FOR EVERYONE JOIN US HERE    If this episode sparked a new way of thinking, share it with a colleague or friend — and don’t forget to hit subscribe. It really helps 💛🔥

Final Episode of 2025 Guest: Stephanie Snow, Chair of CIPR HealthTheme: The future of health communications, behaviour change, and reputation as we head into 2026 Episode overview We’re closing out 2025 with a thoughtful, energising conversation about where health communications is heading next. Recorded earlier this year but released now to harness the fresh start effect, this episode looks squarely at the realities communicators face as we plan for 2026. Steph brings over 20 years’ experience across agency and in-house roles, and shares sharp insight on leadership, professional standards, and why communications has never been more critical—or more misunderstood. A quote from Steph “Reputations are long and hard to build, and very easily broken. Organisations that treat communications as a ‘nice to have’ rather than a strategic function are making themselves extremely vulnerable.” Steph’s top challenges for health communications in 2026 1. Fragmented information ecosystemsAudiences now live in highly personalised, often invisible digital spaces. Conversations are happening in places communicators can’t easily see, track, or respond to—raising both reputational and ethical challenges. 2. Communications being undervalued in tough economic timesWhen budgets tighten, comms roles are often the first to go. Steph argues this is a false economy: organisations that cut strategic communications weaken their ability to manage trust, credibility, and long-term impact. 3. Behaviour change in an environment stacked against healthFrom junk food saturation to commercial determinants of health, communicators are trying to influence behaviour in contexts that actively undermine healthy choices—making strategy, not just messaging, essential. 4. The shift from strategic leadership to tactical deliveryDespite rising complexity, communications is still too often reduced to outputs rather than influence. Steph makes a strong case for reclaiming comms as a core leadership and decision-making function. 5. Skills, confidence, and professional development gapsAs roles evolve, so must capability. Ongoing CPD, ethical reflection, and peer learning are no longer optional extras—they’re how the profession stays credible and resilient. Stand-out moments from the conversation Why eye contact still matters—even in a Zoom-dominated world How being a “well-hidden introvert” can make you a better communicator What health communicators can learn from aviation, failure, and pre-mortems Why learning should feel energising, not like another item on the to-do list How community, connection, and shared thinking protect against burnout Book recommendation 📘 Black Box Thinking by Matthew SyedA powerful reminder that progress comes from learning rigorously from what goes wrong—and applying that thinking to campaign planning, misinformation, and reputation management. Why this episode matters now As we step into 2026, this conversation is a call to take communications seriously again: as a profession, a strategic discipline, and a force for better health outcomes. It’s thoughtful, honest, and quietly galvanising. If this episode sparked something for you, share it with a colleague and hit subscribe—it helps keep these conversations going 💛

Emergency Episode! World Social Marketing Conference: Hot Takes & Game-Changing Ideas Host: Ruth Dale  Guests: Ed Gyde, Katherine Knight, Ian Fannon We rushed home from sunny Spain with too much excitement not to podcast about it. This episode unpacks the World Social Marketing Conference, its biggest sparks, freshest ideas, and the vibe shift happening across global behaviour change.   🔥 Theme of the Conference Social marketing isn’t social media. It’s a discipline that improves lives - at scale. The event was bursting with: Planet-saving ideas 🌍 New ways to boost agency + confidence 💪 Serious ✨community power✨ Big questions about equity + systems change 🏛️   💡 Guest Highlights & Key Takeaways 🟦 Ed Joy – Audience, Social Marketing (UK) KEY TAKEAWAY: Stop peppering teens with single-issue campaigns. Build spaces and confidence instead. Ed shared the Sky Girls campaign — an empowering pan-African platform helping girls say no to pressure and yes to themselves. His energy: 👟 Less “don’t smoke” 🎮 More DJ booths, gaming, and real talk 💬 Real empowerment > behaviour nagging Ed’s Big Thought: “Create places and platforms where young people want to be - then the learning sticks.”   🟩 Katherine Knight – Intelligent Health KEY TAKEAWAY: Boosting > Nudging. Joy is a public health tool. Her Beat the Streets programme has already inspired 2 million people to get active, connect, and build community agency. 🔥 Massive shift at the conference: Climate change + inequality + health? ➡️ One and the same mission. Catherine’s favourite learning: Boosting builds people's capacity to choose change — together, not alone. Bonus: we want a whole episode on Catherine’s disaster-prep flannel story. 🚿🧽 Pure gold.   🟥 Ian Fannon – Claremont Communications KEY TAKEAWAY: Behaviour change takes time. Build, boost, bond and evaluate rigorously. Ian’s 3 B’s of brilliant behaviour change: 1️⃣ Building — long-term investment beats short campaigns 2️⃣ Boosting — focus on strengths + capabilities 3️⃣ Bonding — community + connection = magic ✨ His favourite takeaway: “We strengthen the good already in communities - we don’t fix broken humans.”     🧠 Big Ideas We’re Taking Forward ✔ Elevate agency over persuasion ✔ Build movements, not one-off messages ✔ Climate + health + equity are intertwined ✔ We need practitioners and academics working side-by-side ✔ Behaviour change isn’t instant -invest in longevity   🤫 Room 101 — What We’re Banning We nearly confiscated all bad PowerPoint slides forever… … but the official Room 101 winner is: 🚫 Harm-reduction messaging that shifts responsibility onto individuals and deepens inequality. 👉 Behaviour change must tackle systems, not shame people.   ❤️ Conference Vibes Sunshine + tapas 🌞🍷 Inspiration + brilliant humans A real sense of movement and momentum A tribe found (but everyone’s invited) Next stop? Montpellier 2026 🇫🇷 (We’ll race you to the plenary hall.)   🔗 Connect on LinkedIn Find Ed Gyde, Katherine Knight, and Ian Fannon over on LinkedIn    🌟 Final Thought This episode is your postcard from Spain - minus the sangria. The spark is real. The movement is growing. Health change is joy-change. Let’s boost a better world. 💥\   To stay up to date on behaviour change in health comms, and public health join BrainFuel over on Substack!  

  Ruth is joined by Caroline Latta, communications and engagement specialist and founder of OLOVUS, for a powerful conversation about what real co-design looks like when it moves beyond surveys, hypotheticals and “tell us what service you want.” This episode tells the story of a short break service for people with learning disabilities—re-imagined from the ground up. Instead of asking families to imagine a different service, Caroline and her team showed them what was possible. They took families and people with learning disabilities on visits to alternative short break providers: outdoor activity centres, community-based supports, spaces full of independence and joy rather than hospital-style care. The visits revealed moments of trust, connection and delight that completely reshaped the service design—and shifted the focus from “safe respite” to aspirational, joyful breaks that feel like holidays. We also explore Caroline’s deeply personal experience with weight loss medication, what it taught her about shame and biology, and how it strengthened her commitment to non-judgemental, inclusive design. A rich, emotional and practical episode - full of behaviour change thinking for anyone working across health, care or commissioning. 💬 Caroline's Quotes On co-design done properly “You don’t realise how limited your imagination is until someone shows you what’s possible.”     On why surveys fall short “You can fill in as many questionnaires as you like, but you don’t see the smile on someone’s face in a survey.” On shifting the frame “We weren’t trying to fix a ‘respite problem.’ We were asking, ‘What does a joyful break look like?’”       📚 Book Recommendation Invisible Women – Caroline Criado Perez A sharp, essential read that reveals how system design often defaults to men—and how invisible data gaps create very visible barriers. Perfect for anyone designing public health, social care or behaviour change programmes.   🔍 What You’ll Learn How to run co-design that produces real insight Why showing beats asking people to imagine The shift from “respite” to aspirational breaks How field visits surface truths workshops never will How robust involvement frees commissioners to lead boldly Desired vs problem behaviours in behaviour change Why paying people matters—practically and ethically How privilege, hormones and biology shape health behaviour   🎧 Links Connect with Caroline on LinkedIn  Check out Olovus   Training update  🔗 Behaviour Change Marketing Bootcamp – 10 December Misinformation, AI and behavioural science for health communicators.

"Must Listen for Everyone Working in or On Individual Change projects or Campaigns" Is blaming “individual willpower”  one of the industry’s most successful PR tactics.Why do our environments make the healthy choice so hard? And who profits when they do? In this powerful episode of the Behaviour Change Marketing Bootcamp Podcast, Ruth Dale sits down with Louis Bird, Principal in Public Health and national obstacle-course racer, to unpack the commercial determinants of health and what they mean for the everyday choices we think we’re making freely. Louis explains how industries like food, alcohol, tobacco, and fossil fuels shape our behaviour, our environments, and ultimately our health; often without us realising. And what you can do it about it at Local Authority level. This conversation shines a light on how power, profit and public health collide. But all is not lost. Louis shares his work in Swindon with tips on what you can do too. If you work in public health, health marketing, or behavioural science, this episode will change how you see your town, your life and the choices you make.    Quote from Lewis “When profit depends on harm, it’s not personal choice -  it’s structural design.”   Useful Links Transport for London - Food Advertising Regulations - NIHR Impact Study  - Easy Read  

Welcome to another episode of Brain Fuel! I’m so excited to share my conversation with Dr. Heather McKee, one of Europe’s leading lifestyle behaviour change specialists. Heather brings a wealth of experience in health psychology and digital health, and her insights are both practical and inspiring. In this episode, we explore the science of sustainable behaviour change, the promise and pitfalls of digital health, and how to make real, lasting improvements in our lives and organisations. Top 3 Takeaways: Intrinsic Motivation is Key: Real, lasting behaviour change comes from understanding and tapping into our intrinsic motivations—not just relying on external rewards or pressure. Implementation Over Information: Most of us know what we “should” do for our health; the real challenge is turning that knowledge into action. It’s not an information gap, it’s an implementation gap. Find Joy in Healthy Habits: Sustainable change is easier when we focus on the healthy habits we actually enjoy, rather than punishing ourselves or chasing short-term goals. Quote from Heather:“What we feed the mind is ultimately what becomes our behaviours. Be careful of what your media diet is, because what you consume, consumes you.” Book Recommendation:Heather recommends “Good Habits, Bad Habits” by Wendy Wood for a deep dive into the science of habits, and also gives a shoutout to “Atomic Habits” by James Clear for accessible, actionable advice. If you’re interested in behaviour change, digital health, or just want some inspiration for making positive changes in your own life, this episode is packed with insights and practical tips. As always, if you enjoyed the show, please like, share, or leave a review. And if you have a project or story to share, get in touch at brainfuel@hiddenvoicesheard.com I’d love to hear from you!

A very different episode with Sabine De-Ville Instead of talking about health Let's embody it. In all our behavioural insights work, there is one common theme - despite the subject. It also appeared again and again in our training. Your tired brain. Breathwork can be a game-changer.  Especially if you live meeting to meeting - Zoom call to Zoom call. The air is free, you can do it anytime, anywhere. Sabine has over 20 years of experience delivering breath work, mindfulness, and cognitive resets for tired brains.   Enjoy x

In this episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Eleanor Stanley, a coach and communication specialist, about her inspiring work with Guy’s and St. Thomas’ NHS and the British Association of Retinal Screeners. Eleanor shared a powerful case study on using co-production and storytelling to increase attendance for diabetic eye screenings, especially among groups that are often harder to reach. We discussed the importance of authentic communication, the value of patient voices, and how even small-scale projects can drive real behavior change. Top 3 Takeaways: Co-production with clear roles is key: Involving patients directly in the creation of communication materials leads to more authentic and effective messaging, but it’s crucial to define everyone’s role and manage expectations, especially with limited resources. Storytelling drives behaviour change: Crafting a compelling narrative, rather than just sharing facts creates emotional engagement and helps audiences connect with the message on a deeper level. Measurable impact matters: Adding a patient story video to appointment reminders led to a 25% higher rebooking rate for diabetic eye screenings, demonstrating the real-world value of thoughtful communication interventions. Eleanor's Quote “You need to be very clear on your outcomes. You need to be measuring for results and all of that, but it’s so much nicer for you if you are doing it from a place of authenticity and also it’s so much more effective in what you can produce. It’s just people, and it can sound scary…but actually just one really good conversation with someone can just completely change everything.” Book Recommendation Eleanor recommends “The Advice Trap” by Michael Bungay Stanier. She highlights its focus on humility, curiosity, and changing the way you lead through better listening. Resonance Programme Resonance Programme is a bespoke journey for leaders and communicators ready to rethink how they show up at work and beyond. It is professional development - led by Eleanor - for mid-career senior leaders and communicators working in health social impact. Click here for more info.  Come on the show If you enjoyed this episode or have a case study to share, reach out at brainfuel@hiddenvoicesheard.com!