Over 200 young people from Bristol have taken part in the 2025 ‘What Would You Do?’ (WWYD?) programme, which culminates this week in a special 10th Anniversary performance at The Lantern Hall in the Bristol Beacon. This landmark year for the programme, led by Crimestoppers in the West Country, celebrates a decade of empowering young people to make informed choices and contribute to safer communities. The performance will be held on Wednesday 5th March from 6.30pm-8pm.

Since its inception in 2015, WWYD? has engaged over 3,400 young people and 63 schools across the South West, using drama-based workshops to explore critical issues such as grooming for gang crime, online safety, healthy relationships, mob mentality, and exploitation. This year, the programme has been delivered in partnership with May Park Primary School, Filton Avenue Primary School and Oasis Academy Connaught, working with approximately 200 Year 5 students (aged 8-9 years old).

Expertly facilitated by Bristol-based community interest company Unique Voice, this year’s programme has continued to provide creative and engaging workshops, using child-appropriate language, characters, stories and music, all designed by Unique Voice to tackle serious social issues sensitively. Through weekly interactive sessions, children have gained confidence and resilience, learning how to make informed decisions when faced with challenges in their communities.

The grand finale will see 34 young performers take to the stage to showcase what they have learned; each school championing a key theme that they will perform a creative interpretation of, to empower their community with their knowledge.

The main message remains clear: Speak Up, Stop Crime, Stay Safe and remain 100% anonymous when reporting crime via Crimestoppers’ freephone number (0800 555 111) or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.

This milestone event will be attended by prominent figures, including:

● Mark Hallas OBE, CEO of Crimestoppers Trust
● Pete Anderson, Regional Volunteer Chair of Crimestoppers in the West Country
● Clare Moody, Police Crime Commissioner
● Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant Mrs Peaches Golding OBE CStJ, Lord-Lieutenant of the County and City of Bristol

Delivering 10 Years of Impact
Since 2015, WWYD? has made a significant impact:

● 16 WWYD? programmes delivered
● 63 schools involved
● 3,409 young people empowered
● 115 teachers trained
● 16 premiere events held
● Over 5,143 audience members engaged
● Annual averages: 378 young people and 571 audience members positively engaged with and impacted

Over the last 10 years this programme has directly contributed to a rise in reports to Crimestoppers – nationally, just last year alone (2023/2024) 721,162 people anonymously contacted Crimestoppers and there were 209,380 anonymous reports sent direct to police forces. This is an increase of 9% on the previous year, resulting in 1,543 arrests and charges from Crimestoppers information, £1,420,210 worth of property recovered and £15,212,859 ‘street’ value drugs seized.

This 10th anniversary performance is not just a celebration of the programme’s success but a testament to its ongoing importance in shaping safer communities across the region – and nationally.

Karen MacDonald, Regional Manager for Crimestoppers in the West Country, comments:
“I’m honoured to have been part of this programme since its inception 10 years ago and proud that Crimestoppers’ collaboration with Unique Voice has gone from strength to strength. The ‘What Would You Do?’ programme gives children a powerful voice to express what they can do about crime in their communities. Through drama, the children explore healthy relationships, online safety, anti-social behaviour and diversity and how to speak up about crime and how Crimestoppers can help communities speak up with 100% anonymity. This programme only happens because of generous funding from partners and sponsors – this year, for our 10th anniversary we are grateful for support from Bristol Water, Arcadis, The Arts Council, The Nisbet Foundation, Avon and Somerset Police and our wonderful Crimestoppers in the West Country Volunteer Committee.”

Krystal Keeley, Development Lead and Director of Unique Voice, comments:
“Reaching this milestone is an incredible achievement. Over the past decade, ‘What Would You Do?’ has grown into a vital programme that equips young people with the knowledge and confidence to navigate difficult issues. We are immensely proud of the impact we have made in Bristol and the South West as we truly believe that raising awareness of these issues is imperative to protecting our children and strengthening resilience in our communities. The stories shared by children, families and schools reaffirms the importance of creative early intervention and highlights the lasting positive impact that ‘What Would You Do?’ is having. This 10th anniversary event is not just a celebration – it is a call to continue empowering our communities for years to come.”

The 2025 ‘What Would You Do?’ programme has been made possible thanks to the generous support of:

● Arts Council England
● Avon and Somerset Police
● Arcadis
● Bristol Beacon
● Bristol Water
● Crimestoppers in the West Country
● The Nisbet Trust

ENDS