How the Marmot Principles Shape Claremont’s Purpose

I’ve got one of those jobs that sometimes struggles to pass the ‘pub test’. Running a company that does ‘behaviour change insight and communications’ can sound a bit abstract. 

But if I get past the first sentence and still hold my fellow drinker’s attention, it’s not so hard to explain. At its core, our work is about helping people live healthier, safer, fairer lives – and helping our clients create the conditions to make that possible. 

That clarity crystallised for me after seeing an inspiring speech from Professor Sir Michael Marmot last year, and I’ve reflected a lot on his challenge: “Why treat people and send them back to the conditions that made them sick?” 

As we’ve redefined Claremont’s purpose, strategy and proposition over the past year, the Marmot Principles have been our guide. 

Getting upstream 

The influential Marmot Review, first published in 2010, taught us that wellbeing isn’t just about healthcare. It’s shaped by the conditions in which we’re born, grow, live, work and age – education, housing, income, discrimination, environment. These factors profoundly impact our life chances. 

That idea – that behaviour is shaped by context – sits at the heart of behavioural science. And it’s the foundation of our new purpose: 

To change behaviour for a healthier, safer, fairer society. 

It’s tighter and clearer. And importantly, it pushes us – and our clients – upstream. We want to tackle root causes, not just symptoms. To create the conditions for better choices, not just nudge people in the moment. 

Strategy with purpose 

Our strategy now focuses on three themes that reflect Marmot’s social determinants of health and wellbeing: 

• Preventing ill health – equitable medical research, public health, cancer, long-term and chronic conditions 

• Building safer communities – harm reduction, crime, roads and streets safety, water safety, discrimination, community cohesion 

• Enabling a fairer society – ensuring an equitable start in life (childcare, parenting, education) and tackling the drivers of poverty (welfare, housing, employment, financial support)  

In all three, we combine behavioural insight, systems thinking and co-design to help organisations solve complex challenges – not just through mass communication, but through practical, community-level interventions. 

Our comfort with discomfort 

We’re also doubling down on what makes us different: our comfort with discomfort. We get deep into communities, have honest conversations, and bring empathy and rigour to thorny, sensitive challenges. 

We mean it when we say we help solve society’s hardest problems. The problems that are ambiguous, high-stakes, full of complexity. They demand humility, patience and partnership to plot a path forward. 

And the urgency is real. The ‘Marmot Review 10 Years On’ in 2020 showed that life expectancy in the UK had stalled – even declined for the poorest women – and health inequalities had widened. Then Covid hit, exposing how deeply inequality undermines not just public health, but safety, financial security, education and the chance to live well.  

Marmot’s further report later that year outlined the enormous challenge to ‘Build Back Fairer’. We want to work with clients who are genuinely committed to this goal. 

A reputation for impact 

So the type of work we do won’t change a lot, but we do want to be pickier about the projects we commit our time to. We’d like to be known not just as one of the best behaviour change agencies in the UK, but the one making the biggest dent in inequality and injustice. 

While every client brief deserves a tailored approach, behind them is a bigger mission – inspired by Marmot – to reshape systems so people aren’t set up to fail. 

Because behaviour change isn’t about manipulating people. It’s about making it easier for everyone to live healthier, safer, fairer lives. 

Still not passing the pub test? See examples of our work or get in touch for a chat.