Uncommon highlights UK government water pollution policy with provocative outdoor photos

Last year, sewage spills into rivers and seas in the UK by water companies more than doubled. According to the Environment Agency, spills lasted 3.6 million hours, compared to 1.75 million hours in 2022. It’s a problem that is not getting any better.

In the run-up to the UK election, Uncommon created a powerful visualisation designed in the style of a typical seaside postcard, featuring a figure in a hazmat suit dropping an environmental testing flag on top of a child’s sandcastle. The image aims to show how our beaches have become a hazard since this sewage surge.

The visualisation will be displayed in outdoor locations across the UK, in coastal towns such as Brighton, Margate and Cornwall, including areas where people are most at risk from water quality issues.

Some outdoor areas have been designated specifically for areas where local MPs have voted to allow water companies to continue to discharge sewage into local waters, such as in Suffolk, Newquay and North Thanet in Margate.

Uncommon Creative Studio recently launched another politically charged billboard in response to Rishi Sunak’s D-Day disaster. The powerful message was simply “He left them on the beaches. Lest we forget, July 4th is coming.” Accompanied by an image of a silhouetted man in a suit running away, it reflected the actions of current British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on June 7th, when he was heavily criticised for leaving the 80th anniversary of D-Day in Normandy to return to the UK and record a TV interview – 24 other world leaders stayed behind to attend the ceremony.

The photo has been shared thousands of times across X, Facebook, Reddit, Instagram and LinkedIn – racking up millions of views, with the likes of politically-minded British TV personality Carol Vorderman sharing the photo and replying, “He did it”, while others said, “if it’s not an official @UKLabour poster, then f***ing well it should be.”

It’s amazing to find real outdoor venues from which to spread this message across London.