3 Dads Walking
Petition campaign of the year 2023 winners
The Petition Campaign of the Year Award celebrates people who have used petitions to campaign for change.
For the 2023 Award, the Petitions Committee nominated three campaigns.
The winners are Mike, Andy and Tim – 3 Dads Walking.
To collect their Award, they came to the UK Parliament Week Awards ceremony in March 2024.
The campaign
The Campaign
3 Dads Walking, Mike, Andy and Tim, all lost a daughter to suicide. They have been campaigning to raise awareness of suicide prevention ever since.
Over 160,000 people signed their petition to make suicide prevention a compulsory part of the school curriculum. MPs debated it in Parliament in March 2023.
In 2021, they walked 300 miles between each of their homes to raise awareness of the issue. They then did a second walk of over 600 miles between the four parliaments of the UK in 2022, gathering signatures for their petition along the way.
In response to the petition, the Government said it would consider the issue as part of its review of the RSHE curriculum. The 3 Dads have since met with the Prime Minster, and had meetings with the Education Secretary. They were also invited to work with the Department of Education on its review of the RSHE curriculum.
They said:
"We were delighted to receive the Petition Campaign of the Year Award in recognition of the effort we’ve put in on getting suicide prevention added to the school curriculum.
"As part of our campaign we have visited the Palace of Westminster on many occasions for meetings but it was a very special experience to be invited into the Speaker’s House for the awards presentation. It was a privilege to meet Speaker Lindsay Hoyle and share our story with him.
"We are grateful to the team at the Petitions Committee for helping us along our way and would encourage others who are considering a government petition to get involved with this accessible democratic process."
3 Dads Walking
3 Dads Walking, Mike, Andy and Tim, all lost a daughter to suicide. They have been campaigning to raise awareness of suicide prevention ever since.
Over 160,000 people signed their petition to make suicide prevention a compulsory part of the school curriculum. MPs debated it in Parliament in March 2023.
In 2021, they walked 300 miles between each of their homes to raise awareness of the issue. They then did a second walk of over 600 miles between the four parliaments of the UK in 2022, gathering signatures for their petition along the way.
In response to the petition, the Government said it would consider the issue as part of its review of the RSHE curriculum. The 3 Dads have since met with the Prime Minster, and had meetings with the Education Secretary. They were also invited to work with the Department of Education on its review of the RSHE curriculum.
They said:
"We were delighted to receive the Petition Campaign of the Year Award in recognition of the effort we’ve put in on getting suicide prevention added to the school curriculum.
"As part of our campaign we have visited the Palace of Westminster on many occasions for meetings but it was a very special experience to be invited into the Speaker’s House for the awards presentation. It was a privilege to meet Speaker Lindsay Hoyle and share our story with him.
"We are grateful to the team at the Petitions Committee for helping us along our way and would encourage others who are considering a government petition to get involved with this accessible democratic process."
3 Dads Walking
The Awards Ceremony
© UK Parliament / Maria Unger
© UK Parliament / Maria Unger
In March 2024, 3 Dads Walking attended the UK Parliament Week Awards in the Speaker's Apartments at UK Parliament.
They were presented their Award for Petition Campaign of the Year 2023 by Cat Smith MP, the Chair of the Petitions Committee.
They were also congratulated by the Speaker of the House of Commons.
The Awards Ceremony
In March 2024, 3 Dads Walking attended the UK Parliament Week Awards in the Speaker's Apartments at UK Parliament.
Cat Smith MP, the Chair of the Petitions Committee presented them their Award for Petition Campaign of the Year 2023.
The Speaker of the House of Commons also congratulated Andy, Mike and Tim on their Award.
"Congratulations to the winners of the Petition Campaign of the Year Award, 3 Dads Walking.
"The Petitions Committee were impressed by their dedication, determination, and passion for securing tangible change to benefit young people.
"Their campaign is a testament to the power of the public to use petitions to raise awareness of issues that might otherwise struggle to be heard in Parliament.
"It helped start a national conversation about an issue that many would agree isn’t talked about enough and I’m sure they will have helped to save lives as result.
"I know that that their story will inspire others to campaign on issues that matter to them, start petitions and engage with Parliament in the future."
Cat Smith MP
Chair of the Petitions Committee
The other nominees
Jade's Law
Suspend parental rights when a parent is found guilty of murdering the other parent
Owen's Law
Change the law around allergy labelling in UK restaurants
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