HEALTH communications agency Pegasus is working with the Brighton Digital Media Academy to help upskill up some of the city’s rising creative stars.

Launched in 2015, BDMA is fast becoming the focal point for Brighton’s digital media education for 14-19 year olds, as well as providing creative and industry training for the wider sector.

BDMA is sited at both Brighton Aldridge Community Academy (BACA) and Portslade Aldridge Community Academy (PACA), which form part of Aldridge Education.

Working closely with the teaching team at BDMA, Pegasus developed a fictional brief on behalf of one of its nominated charities for 2018 – Mind.

The brief challenged the students to create a campaign name and visual identity that would resonate with young people aged 18 to 23, encouraging them to seek out mental health services and support.

Back in January, Pegasus’s head of design Neil Sparks and two other members of the design and digital team, Ellie Madgwick and Kat Thay, briefed the students.

They then invited them into the agency’s North Laines offices in February for a review and critique session as well as giving them a tour of its design and digital capabilities.

Then in March, Neil and Alison Perkins, head of studio, visited the BDMA at the PACA site to hear the students’ final pitches.

Neil said: “We were blown away by the creativity of the pitches.

“It is no easy task trying to talk to a young audience about mental health but the BDMA students we worked with had clearly taken the brief to heart.

“They developed their designs with care and sensitivity, but also considered how important it was for their design to have impact.

“It was an impressive selection of work.

“It’s been a real privilege to work closely with the teaching staff and the students at BDMA.

“The work of the academy is truly inspiring – it is clear there is a whole lot of fresh creative talent bubbling away in Brighton!

“We hope our work with BDMA has given these young people food for thought and will motivate them to build on their already remarkable talent.”

Fiona Adams, BDMA partnerships manager, welcomed Pegasus’s involvement.

She said:: “The BDMA thrives on collaborations with companies like Pegasus.

“There is nothing more motivating for them than to have a chance to see the inner workings of design and digital teams.

“The brief Pegasus set our young people was thought-provoking and purposeful, and I know they really enjoyed working on their pitches.”

Pegasus is an Ashfield company, part of UDG Healthcare plc. www.thisispegasus.co.uk or www.ashfieldhealthcare.com

It employs more than 130 staff at its offices in Church Street, Brighton.

A spokesman said: “We deliver big ideas and far-reaching campaigns.”