Making food waste fun

Maidstone Borough Council is the local authority responsible for delivering a wide range of public services for Kent’s county town.

Achievements

LARAC Awards
Best Waste Minimisation Project Finalist

The challenge

With a strong commitment to sustainability, waste reduction and increasing recycling rates, the council plays a key role in helping residents adopt more environmentally responsible behaviours.

Maidstone Borough Council needed to educate primary school children about the introduction of a new food waste collection service – and do it in a way that was engaging, memorable and age‑appropriate.

The challenge was to simplify a complex sustainability message and make it resonate with a young audience, while supporting the council’s wider environmental objectives.

Cartoon kitchen scene with anthropomorphic food characters cooking inside a green house

How we helped

We developed a bespoke animated children’s cartoon, introducing The Caddy Family – a set of friendly, relatable characters designed to explain food waste recycling through storytelling rather than instruction.

The animation became the centrepiece of a wider education programme, forming part of a series of in‑school workshops delivered across the borough.

By combining character‑led animation with clear, accessible messaging, we helped turn a practical service change into an engaging learning experience – encouraging positive behaviour change both in the classroom and at home.

Cartoon characters wearing party crowns gathered around a table in a festive room

Watch this interview with Maidstone Borough Council’s Communications Manager, Georgie Grassom.

What the client said

“I believe we had about 12,500 people who watched the video and it’s still going strong now because we can roll that message out repeatedly.

“It was one of our most successful campaigns to date.”

Georgie Grassom

Communications Manager

Maidstone Borough Council

The outcome

Maidstone Borough Council chose Digitom because we understand how to translate public‑sector objectives into creative content that drives real‑world outcomes.

The campaign’s effectiveness was recognised by the industry, earning Finalist status at the LARAC Awards for Best Waste Minimisation or Prevention Project, validating the impact of creative, audience‑led communication within the public sector.

Cartoon character viewing recycling bins on smartphone screen in indoor setting

Our approach balances strategic clarity with creative execution, ensuring content is built around the needs of the audience while delivering against organisational goals. By aligning insight, storytelling and delivery, we helped the council communicate sustainability in a way that was engaging, effective and award‑recognised.