McDonald's tackles mental wellness for kids in Singapore

McDonald's Singapore has partnered with the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) and Families for Life (FFL) to launch the family mental wellness campaign, aimed at promoting greater awareness amongst parents on supporting their children’s mental wellness.

The campaign includes the launch of a short animated film. Titled Always Being There, the film shows a young boy feeling stressed out from negative comments made about him at school, but starts to feel better with the support of his mother. McDonald's said in a statement that the film aims to create greater awareness on the crucial role parents play as an anchor in their children’s lives – while taking a preventive approach – especially in the early years where children may begin to encounter stressors in school or home or in an unfamiliar environment.

The campaign also included a dialogue session on supporting children's mental wellness, which was held at McDonald's outlet at Northshore Plaza. This includes topics such as identifying early signs of mental
stress; creating a conducive environment at home, and parent-child communication tips.

Additionally, McDonald's will host a series of Positive Parenting Programme seminars at selected McDonald's outlets across Singapore. The seminar aims to aims to equip parents with the knowledge and techniques to promote the psychological, social and emotional competence of their children aged 16 and below. The seminar will kick off on 20 July at McDonald's Lot One Shoppers' Mall outlet.  

Benjamin Boh, managing director, McDonald's Singapore said that while parents always want the best for their children, they may not be consciously aware that mental well-being ought to be of great importance. “As a family restaurant, we want to bring a heartfelt message to parents during the Year of Celebrating SG Families that we are here to support them. We hope the parenting program at our restaurants conducted by FFL will provide some accessibility and support, and we are most grateful to FFL and MSF for their partnership,” he added.

The campaign comes on the back of findings from a joint study by National University of Singapore, Ministry of Education and the Institute of Mental Health (IMH), which showed that one in three youth in Singapore was found to have internalised mental health symptoms including sadness, anxiety and loneliness. 

McDonald's has already launched several family-focused initiatives this month, including a 3D OOH installation that gives consumers a chance to win a free family meal. Done in partnership with Stellar Ace, the installation located at Serangoon MRT featured McDonald's iconic arches filled with hashbrowns. People were encouraged to guess the number of hashbrowns inside the arches and submit their answers on McDonald's Facebook. The first 50 people with the right answer would win a free family meal. 

It also launched a campaign where customers can dance for free ice cream. Titled "Shake N’ Dip", the campaign was all about having fun together as a family, featuring its roasted sesame and seaweed McShaker fries and smoky nacho cheese sauce, a McDonald's Singapore spokesperson told MARKETING-INTERACTIVE then. McDonald's kicked off the campaign with a promotional video which showed a family dancing to a "Shake N’ Dip" song. McDonald's then shared photos and videos of what went on in the making of the ad, inviting people to try their latest products. 

Additionally, McDonald's hosted a family carnival at Jurong Point from 10 to 12 June, and at City Square Mall from 17 to 19 June. The carnival will feature a giant bouncy burger castle, ball pit, as well as games inspired its Shake 'N Dip treats, where customers can stand a chance to win limited-edition McDonald's merchandise. To enter the carnival, participants had to spend a minimum of SG$7 at McDonald's and show their receipt to the carnival staff. "Timed with the June school holidays, our activities also add for more engagement with our customers to foster family togetherness and bonding," the spokesperson said. 

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