Safe Routes: A messaging guide

After 27 people drowned in the Channel in November 2021, it became apparent that public knowledge of safe routes (or the lack of them) was hugely limited. In 2022, Channel crossings increased further, and the government responded by threatening to deport those who crossed irregularly rather than introducing any safe routes. Better public awareness about the lack of options available to people seeking safety is therefore urgently needed.

This messaging is based on in-depth workshops held in June and July 2022 with policy and communications specialists from the refugee sector and people with lived experience of crossing the Channel. It was then tested by More In Common with two focus groups of ‘Loyal National’ swing voters based in the Red Wall constituencies of Wolverhampton and Middlesbrough. It also draws on existing messaging guides such as Freedom from Torture’s Changing the Conversation (2021) and IMIX’s Struggle for Safety (2021).