The Advertising Association promotes the role and rights of responsible advertising and its value to people, society, businesses and the economy. We represent UK advertisers, agencies, media owners and tech companies on behalf of the entire industry, acting as the connection between industry professionals and the politicians and policy-makers.

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The Advertising Association focuses on major industry and policy areas that have huge ramifications on UK advertising. This section contains our work around Brexit, HFSS and gambling advertising, data and e-privacy, trust, the digital charter and our Industrial Strategy campaigns.

Credos is the advertising industry’s independent think tank. It produces research, evidence and reports into the impact and effectiveness of and public and political response to advertising on behalf of UK advertisers in order to enable the industry to make informed decisions.

Front Foot is our industry’s member network of over 50 businesses across UK advertising. It aims to promote the role of responsible advertising and its value to people, society and the economy through a coalition of senior leaders from advertisers, agencies and media owners.

We run a number of events throughout the year, from our annual LEAD summit to the Media Business Course and regular breakfast briefings for our members. We are also the official UK representative for the world’s biggest festival of creativity – Cannes Lions.

Case study: Locate Productions

/ October 4th 2020
Action 2 Resources Ad Net Zero Climate Action UK Advertising’s Climate Action Showcase

Locate Productions is aiming to reach net zero, and to do this felt that a working culture and business approach with sustainability at its core was key, rather than ‘business as usual’ with some elements of sustainability bolted on. The organisation’s approach seeks to reduce carbon emissions as far as possible, before using carbon removal schemes to sequester the rest.  

 Some of the initiatives Locate Productions have implemented to reduce direct and indirect CO2 emissions from productions include:  

  • Recycling on shoots (and in the office). 
  • Providing staff with carbon literacy training through the albert scheme and engaging with albert events and tools. 
  • Vegetarian menus on set, with each vegetarian meal emitting approximately 0.86kg of CO2, 14 times less CO2 than a beef-based meal, 2 times less CO2 than a pork-based meal, and 1.8 times less than a chicken-based meal.  
  • Lower emissions travel – earlier this year one of their producers travelled to Madrid via train rather than plane, emitting approximately 11kg of CO2e rather than 200kg CO2e. 
  • Sequestering carbon by adding an optional 1% For The Planet to invoices, which goes towards biodiversity projects – at present planting trees in Romania with Forests Without Frontiers. This has led to approximately 2531 trees being planted in the last 6 months alone, sequestering 101 tonnes CO2 (using European estimates per hectare).  
  • Switching energy through albert’s Creative Energy scheme. This saves the company about 3.205 tonnes of CO2e per year.  
  • Looking to launch a Re-use & Recycle Wardrobe Store, reducing the need for stylists to repeat buy new clothes for each shoot. 

A sustainability centred approach has been good for business by generating new contacts and helping to maintain existing clients. It has also created a positive working environment among core staff and freelancers by improving sense of purpose and meaning, and cementing a community of like-minded production personnel.