London, England, United Kingdom
Experienced political communicator with over a decade working for and running media relations teams in Westminster
- Lead a team of 20+ skilled press officers to shape headlines and communicate the work of the Department to domestic and international audiences - Press Secretary to four Secretaries of State, advising on comms strategy, media interviews and international visits to over a dozen countries - Co-ordinating comms activity with digital, external affairs and marketing colleagues to ensure strategic objectives are met
- Lead a team of skilled reactive press officers responding to breaking stories across the globe. - Seek innovative ways to communicate stories about global Britain to new audiences, targeting consumer media channels in both the UK and abroad. - Provide strategic comms advice to the Foreign Secretary and FCDO ministerial team. - Project-led a team designing, consulting & implementing new structures and processes for the Comms Department that ensured a smooth, successful FCO/DFID merger.
- Led the NY Consulate's comms and digital team as a short-term posting, including advising HM Trade Commissioner Antony Phillipson & Dep Consul General Hannah Young - Devised a Communication Strategy for 2021 that included implementing process & culture changes that had an immediate impact to land proactive stories in US media outlets - Supported the British Embassy in Washington DC and the wider US Comms Network during the 2020 Presidential Election and other significant trade and climate-related media moments
- Led Number 10’s fast-paced and high-pressure newsdesk, managing a team of five to clear responses to media queries quickly and accurately. - Supported the PM’s Official Spokesperson and work with the Head of News to design press office processes for major events. - Briefed political editors, specialist correspondents and international media as a PM spokesperson on major stories, both during the day and out-of-hours. - Chaired cross-government comms calls, reviewing the morning’s headlines and day's events. - Advised the PM on media handling for major announcements. Draft various PM statements, op-eds and press conference speeches. - Lead the media operations for over a dozen PM visits, including Washington DC, Cape Town and the G20 Summit in Hamburg.
- Handled proactive communications strategies and reactive media queries on the key transport issues of the day, including aviation capacity, rail franchising, TFL funding and vehicle emissions. - Supported DfT’s campaign-focused approach by seeking innovative digital content, drafting press notices, and proactively selling stories into print, online and broadcast media. - Regularly handled complex and sensitive issues, distilling information from policy colleagues into clear and concise statements while also managing my workload to clear and issue responses to pressing queries. - Supported ministers by briefing ahead of interviews and accompanying on regional visits to manage media present on the day.
- Responsible for all Demos outgoing comms, including 24-hour press office duties, devising media strategies for reports, drafting press releases, pitching stories, media monitoring, social media, and crisis communications. - Increased Demos coverage by 15% year-on-year; highlights include Times and Telegraph front pages, Guardian and Sun leader columns, plus packages on Channel 4 News, ITV Daybreak and BBC News at One. - Regularly coordinated plans with stakeholders, including directors, funders and politicians. - Consistently sought innovative methods to promote Demos content, from infographics and social media to devising and running a ‘Fantasy Politics’ competition, which was shortlisted for a Public Affairs News award. - Acted as a public media spokesperson for the organisation, with interviews on ITV Daybreak, LBC and several BBC radio stations. - Briefed senior staff ahead of key interviews, such as Newsnight and Today; led media training for researchers to hone top-line messages and improve the quality of external communications.