– What People Said –
About Comms Unplugged 2021
“Loved the sessions. Layne's forest bathing had a profound effect on me.”
“Great sessions - so much to take in!”
“The practical exercises to demonstrate key points really helped the learning stick in my mind.”
“Really thought-provoking and inspiring.”
“Always knock it out of the park with your key note speakers! Impressed.”
“An excellent selection of professional development content”
“The vent tent was a safe space for us to openly share frustrations/problems and work through some together.”
“It was so uplifting to enjoy live music with a group of people again! Really an absolute highlight - thank you.”
“Love love love it! Nothing more to say.”
“It's just so different in the best way possible.”
“Such a friendly, open atmosphere. It was an eye opener but it was the perfect way to make those initial connections”
“Spending time with like-minded people and sharing experiences and knowledge.”
“The whole atmosphere was relaxed, friendly, and welcoming. It's a wonderful community and something pretty special.”
“After having watched via Twitter for so many years it was wonderful to be part of it.”
“I got that feeling that all of us worked for the same organisation and were on a summer camp together.”
“I've come away feeling reset. I've learnt so many great practical things to take forward professionally as well as taking dedicated time to improve my wellbeing and relax.”
“So much humanity and warmth in the field.”
“Comms Unplugged was just what we needed - even if we didn't know it. I'm so grateful to be part of something amazing and be able to connect with colleagues. It is a very affirming event and probably the only event I come away from with ideas and renewed sense of motivation!”
“I'm so grateful for the CU community. I feel like I have a network of friends that I can call on for support, career advice and a good laugh.”
“I came looking for inspiration for my work and new ways to invest in my wellbeing. I left with that and a whole lot more. I am on a journey struggling with well over a decade of PTSD. #CU21 was a turning point for me. There was something magical about the field and my fellow unpluggers. I cried freely for the first time in 15 years and I am looking to the future with hope.”
“I felt quite emotional a few times after some pretty tough moments (that I know we've all had) this last 18 months. Being with like-minded people and taking time out for yourself really was so needed.”
“I really felt like I belonged and I honestly learned so much about workplace culture that I think will be very useful back at my local authority.”
“I honestly think this one was the best yet.”
“Another fantastic event. I love how it pulls comms and wellbeing into one place, such an important concept.”
– Keynote Speaker –
Bruce Daisley
Author, podcaster and workplace culture guru
What can we all do to rediscover the joy of work?
From prepping fries at McDonalds to running YouTube then Twitter in Europe - this man has been gathering all the observations, ideas and learning about workplace culture that you need to know
Bruce Daisley is one of the world's most influential voices on fixing work. His book The Joy of Work was the UK's top selling business hardback of 2019 and is an international bestseller - translated into 14 languages. Previously he spent over a decade running Twitter and YouTube (the latter at Google) for Europe, leaving Twitter as its most senior leader outside of the US.
Bruce runs the Apple #1 Business Chart topping podcast Eat Sleep Work Repeat on work culture. He now spends his time championing reforms to workplace culture and working to find solutions to climate change.
As communicators play such a vital role in helping to develop the culture of our organisations, Bruce's knowledge and insight will be invaluable. Gathered working for some of the world's most influential organisations and through interviews for his podcast, his observations will ring true not only for us in our comms roles but also as individuals finding our way in the modern workplace.
After a year of working differently, what next for our workplaces and how do we make sure we engender that sense of belonging and team, when maybe we won't see as much of each other in person?
So much of what Bruce talks about chimes with the ethos of Comms Unplugged which is why we're so delighted we've been able to persuade him to join us in the field for 2021.
Kate Mason
The Big Draw and Drawing Changes Lives
Drawing changes lives - find out how
Drawing changes lives - find out how, from Kate Mason, of international festival, The Big Draw
With a 2021 theme of Make the Change following last year's focus on the environment, we can't think of a better opening speaker for CU21 than Kate Mason, Director of The Big Draw. Kate not only believes in the power of art and immersing yourself in drawing to improve your wellbeing and creativity, she has also blogged for The Big Draw about living with her OCD.
We can't wait to welcome her to our field.
Kate Mason has worked consistently in a variety of roles across the arts, heritage, community, cultural and creative industries sectors for almost 25 years. A strategist, persuader and cultural broker, she is a passionate advocate for the value of the arts as one of the key pillars of a balanced education and supports the belief that we all - regardless of age or background - have an entitlement to quality cultural learning.
Kate early passion kick-started her career with an MA in Heritage & Museum Studies and a thesis around the Arts & Crafts Movement and the role and influence of William Morris and John Ruskin.
Kate currently works at the arts education charity The Big Draw in her role as Director, channelling her personal passions in neat alignment in support of their visual literacy agenda. She sees creativity as being crucial to her own health, balance and sense of wellbeing and has previously written about her own challenges with OCD and the creative tools and thinking she adopts to help combat this.
– Workshop / Leaders –
Jamie Sergeant
Digital entrepreneur, Crowd
Think BIG, and push your creative boundaries
Jamie is a leading British digital entrepreneur, creative industries influencer and respected university lecturer. He is founder and CEO of multi-award winning, digital transformation agency, Crowd (www.thisisicrowd.com). Jamie started Dorset-based agency Crowd back in 2012. He's grown the company to become a truly global success story, with offices and clients in 11 major cities across Europe, North America, Asia Pacific and the Middle East.
Being born in Dorset, here at CU we're incredibly proud of such amazing local talent. Jamie is a Bournemouth creative legend, winning the Dorset Business Leader of the Year 2019. He's also our kinda guy - with Crowd creating the brilliant wellbeing tool My Dorset Mind during lockdown.
Jamie's workshop will help you think big and be brave in your work. He'll help you push your creative boundaries, and share techniques to help you approach every campaign as if it's going global!
Becky Hodson and Kirsten Watson
Passionate improvers in healthcare
Small Steps to Greatness
Positive change can sometimes feel like a long and lonely quest. When you're feeling stuck, what can you draw on to help in your movement for improvement?
Let's paint a picture. You've noticed something about your work that could be better.
Maybe it's about the way your team collaborates, maybe it's how you manage workload, maybe it's specific to particular campaign outcomes. You have that nagging sense that something needs to improve and yet it feels like a mountain to climb, a mountain filled with obstacles like limited resources, ‘change resistant’ colleagues or a lack of direction. Sound familiar?
Improvement can feel like an upstream battle. It's often framed as something we get to if we find that elusive ‘extra time’ or it's set as an unrealistic mission to neatly get from A to B. We want to challenge that - and challenge you - to think of improvement as a mindset. Some habits and behaviours, supported by some handy tools and techniques, that we can all adopt. Critically, in the words of Don Berwick (more on him later), it's not about fixing everything at once, just the business of taking the next step.
Join us in this workshop where we'll explore how to get moving on your improvement journey and break the change stalemate. We'll offer you a tasting menu of resources that will help you move forward with your next goal. You might even pick up some tips on that couch to 5k you've been meaning to start, finally renovate that room, or try out a recipe from that cookbook someone bought you for Christmas…
Kirsten Watson works for NHSE/I and has held a range of clinical, regulatory and improvement roles in healthcare at local, regional and national levels. She's experienced in partnership working, driving change and improvement. She's always up for the opportunity to connect with others and look at doing things differently - which is why CU is right up her street!
Becky Hodson is a passionate improver with a communications and engagement background. She currently works at a national health body, leading on strategy development for improvement. She has experience in change management, agile project delivery and improvement science. She is a firm believer in the winning mix of creative collaboration and Dorset fresh air, so will be right at home in the field!
Alan Oram and Lauren Castle
Alive With Ideas
Breaking Down Barriers
Creating a culture where people, self-expression and creativity thrive.
Alan Oram and Lauren Castle from our lovely sponsors and creative gurus Alive With Ideas bring you an hour on creating a culture where people, self-expression and creativity thrive.
We'll be exploring the importance of building connections and friendships at work and how it helps people feel included and valued. What are the benefits of having pals at work to laugh with and lean on?
Creating an open, honest culture where people can be themselves and connect with each other beyond the work stuff leads to great things.
Alan Oram: For over 20 years Alan's been harnessing unique ideas and turning them into powerful campaigns, communicating stories inside and out, for global brands to local businesses and everything in between. Thinking deeply, shocking occasionally, laughing frequently (maybe too frequently) and delighting consistently.
Alongside delivering creative projects for clients he also shares what he's learned with others, helping them to think and act more creatively.
Lauren Castle is the Alive newbie, having joined the team just under four months ago. She's involved in all things comms and absolutely loves coming up with new ideas and exciting content for clients. She has a passion for projects with a positive impact and thanks to the team she's never felt more valued, creative and ALIVE.
Simon Shave
Disability champions
Simon's snippets of genius
Equality, diversity and inclusion are important. How can we better understand the way others feel, particularly when we have no experience of their situation and their challenges?
Simon, supported by Emma, will tell us about his life in a wheelchair and the challenges he faces in day-to-day life. He'll describe what he does to stay positive, particularly in a year of huge family loss.
He'll highlight the importance of communication - how he supports his non-verbal housemate, how he advocates for himself and others and why he thinks people feel uncomfortable around disability.
There'll be some enlightening exercises in communicating without words, putting your trust in someone and understanding how it feels to help and be helped.
There'll also be a chance to ask Simon some questions in this important and eye-opening workshop.
Simon Shave is a fun-loving 45-year-old who was born with a physical and learning difficulty. The oldest of 6 children, his family is really important to him. He lives in Supported Living - a bungalow in the community - with his housemate and little dog Amber. He is supported by Dorset charity Diverse Abilities, which provides his care and support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Emma Wray leads the team that provides care and support for Simon. The aim of the team is to enable Simon and his housemate to live their lives to the full.
She has worked with Simon for the past 18 years and they've built a great relationship over that time.
Dominic Ridley-Moy
Behaviour Change and Comms Consultant
Behaviour change with Dominic Ridley-Moy
We're all people, right? We all have embedded motivators that cause us to act and think in a certain way. Nudge theory helps comms pros tap into the motivators of our audiences to better tailor our approaches and get results.
An expert in behavioural science, or ‘nudge theory’, Dominic's workshop will help bring the human insight to your campaigns
Explore behaviour change techniques and best practice. Behavioural insights (nudge approach) help us apply the science of human behaviour to our comms, and this workshop from Dominic will help you test how you can improve your campaigns by injecting some behavioural insight, leading to better campaign results and behaviour change.
Jill Spurr
Taming your imposter
Tackling imposter syndrome
We can be our own worst critics and 70% of us can suffer from imposter syndrome. So how can we deal with that negative inner voice?
A seasoned veteran of the imposter syndrome battle talks the science and the solutions
Hey you… yes, you. You who think you're making it up as you go along; that you aren't up to your day job and you're bound to be found out soon. You who shrugs off a compliment because hey, anyone could do it (and someone else would probably be better).
Stop listening to your inner critic for five minutes and come and sit down.
Estimates suggest that up to 70% of us experience Imposter Syndrome - the feeling of inadequacy, that you will be found out, that you are a fraud. At best, it makes us self-deprecating, and at worst it can inhibit career progression, stifle creativity and negatively impact our mental health.
This workshop will take a wry look at our biggest critic, our own internal voice, to understand why we believe our own fake news, and offer some insight in how you can change the narrative for the better.
Jill Spurr is an experienced senior communications practitioner in the housing sector and more recently in local government.
She's a CIPR Chartered Practitioner, an original #unplugger and occasional guest blogger on comms2point0. She's also the field's crazy dog lady, sharing her life with five Border Collies and a Chinese Crested dog (you'll probably meet them in the field)!
Russell Tarr and Rory Stamp
Marketing, Media and Creative Services, RNLI
Creative content planning aligned to strategic aims
Take a fresh look at your content strategy
Russ is Head of Marketing, Media and Supporter Experience at the RNLI - based here in Poole, Dorset. He leads the global charity's marketing strategy, brand amplification and behaviour change marketing work amongst at risk groups.
Rory Stamp, is the charity's Strategic Content Manager. After initially working as a newspaper reporter, Rory joined the RNLI as in-house journalist and speechwriter. Since then he has created content for all of the charity's channels, in roles including Social Media Content Officer and Senior Editor. He now leads the RNLI's content teams, works on marketing campaign concepts and looks after the charity's content strategy.
Russ and Rory will share how the RNLI's vision is woven into their content strategy demonstrating how this has been brought to life in key channels for key audiences. You'll be invited to get involved in practical work on your own organisation's content planning, peppered with RNLI tips and techniques.
Dan Holden
CIPR Chartered PR Practitioner, Horizon Comms
How internal comms can help improve wellbeing at work
Tips and tricks for sparkling, impactful internal comms campaigns
Dan will focus on the topic of wellbeing to help you plan a successful internal comms campaign
Dan will take you through the crucial role that communicators play in driving wellbeing at work.
He'll be sharing his top tips and practical solutions on how internal communicators can plan, deliver and evaluate wellbeing initiatives in the workplace and many of these tips you'll be able to apply to other campaigns. Whether it's how you go about communicating a new wellbeing strategy, helping line managers understand their role in supporting wellbeing at work or simply making your communication campaign messaging clear, you'll go away with a few extra tricks up your sleeve.
If there's a particular challenge you're facing you can send it through to commsunplugged@gmail.com in advance so we can explore and share possible solutions and ideas together during the session.
Dan Holden is a CIPR Chartered PR practitioner with a dedication to internal communications. An active member of CIPR Inside, he's also the founder of Horizon Comms, which shares helpful content and resources and signposts to other sources of information for those new or returning to the profession.
Victoria Ford
Perago Wales
Communicating Digital
Join Victoria Ford, Ross Gregory and Chris Elias for a session on ‘Communicating Digital’ (delivered fully analogue, of course!)
To really deliver better public services, organisations need to communicate effectively both internally and externally. More than ever comms professionals have a role to play in supporting organisations to transform and embrace digital. Communicating digital change can be difficult, with different terminology, roles and ways of working that are new to some organisations. In this workshop. Perago will help you to demystify digital and think about what we need to do differently as comms professionals to help our organisations deliver change.
– Activities –
Mindful Drawing
Kate Mason, The Big Draw and Drawing Changes Lives
Our opening speaker, Kate Mason, takes us through a relaxing hour of drawing. Taking inspiration and subject matter from the Comms Unplugged field, Kate, from The Big Draw, will take you through a mindful hour in which she shares tips and techniques to help you maybe not master but certainly enjoy the art of drawing. If you’re a novice, we promise you'll be surprised how good you can be!
Forest Bathing
Layne Hamerston, Natural Health Network
Head into the glorious woods around our CU field for some wonderful sensory stimulation
Enjoy the immersive pleasure of taking notice of nature.
Layne is Community Partnership Manager for Bournemouth University. A strong advocate of the impact of nature on wellbeing, he is co-founder of the Nature Health Network, a Director of Resurface Therapy community interest company and speaks regularly on the importance of wellbeing.
Like all Unpluggers, Layne loves the outdoors. In this amazingly immersive forest bathing session, head off into the glorious woods around our CU field, for some wonderful sensory stimulation that will truly bring you closer to nature, physically, mentally and spiritually.
Craft Beer Tasting
Jennifer Tingay, Head Brewer and founder of Southbourne Ales
Take notice of the colours, scents and tastes of these delicious locally-brewed craft ales.
Join Jennifer Tingay, head brewer at Poole Hill Brewery and founder of Southbourne Ales for a guided tasting
Southbourne Ales is a wonderful success story and a labour of love. And a super cool brand as well!
The range is designed as a complete offer of traditional ales with something for everyone's taste. Quality beer that is just what you expect ranging from a light ale to an oatmeal stout, Jennifer's beers are multi-award winning.
Join this fabulous and fun tasting session to hear the inspiring story of Southbourne Ales and sample the best Dorset has to offer.
Hatha Yoga
Irena Beniston, Awesome Yoga Guru
No-pressure yoga from our fave yogi
After her two months practising new techniques in an ashram abroad, just before the pandemic hit the world, Irena is back in the field and ready to guide you through an hour of beautifully relaxing and restorative yoga. Her warm style of teaching is perfect for beginners and seasoned practitioners alike. She's a firm favourite with our Unpluggers - and newbies will love her too. Namaste.
A Walk in the Woods
Saranne Postans, Nature lover and walk leader
According to Mind, spending time in green space or bringing nature into your everyday life can benefit both your mental and physical wellbeing. It can:
- improve your mood
- reduce feelings of stress or anger
- help you take time out and feel more relaxed
- improve your physical health
- improve your confidence and self-esteem
- help you be more active
- help you make new connections
- provide peer support.
In fact, time in nature ticks all the five steps to wellbeing and it wouldn't be Comms Unplugged without a peaceful walk in the woods. We'll invite you to connect with your fellow unpluggers as you stroll along, taking notice of the beautiful Dorset countryside, learning from and giving to each other.
Saranne Postans has been passionate about nature since childhood, when her happiest days were spent playing in the stream in the village she grew up in or building dens in the fields with her friends. Over the last decade she has explored the positive impact of nature on the mental health and wellbeing of herself and others, training as a coach who takes people outside to walk and talk, because it can provide an opportunity for far broader and deeper conversations. She's also worked in communications for more than 20 years, currently working on a programme to make nuclear fusion a reality in the UK.
Sewing with Sarah
Sarah Dakin, Sewist extraordinaire
Sewing's had a resurgence over recent years with shows like The Great British Sewing Bee on telly, and people wanting to make something more unique and personalised. Explore and express your creativity by learning how to customise any piece of fabric with some designs inspired by nature!
Sarah is a two-time Unplugger, who's sewn and embroidered ever since she was old enough for her mum to trust her with a needle.
Sarah now regularly makes her own clothes, as well as completing embroidery and cross stitch projects. There's a big sewing community on Instagram, where people regularly talk about how mindful they find sewing and how it helps their creativity and general mental health!
As sewing machines aren't very Unplugged, Sarah will teach you how to use embroidery to decorate clothes or soft furnishings or make decorations. You'll learn some basic stitches, and how to start and finish embroidering, so you can make a design inspired by nature, or just whatever you'd like!
Materials will be provided, including threads, snips, needles and scraps of fabric. But if you're feeling confident, bring along a pair of jeans or other item of clothing that you want to customise.
If there's a well-loved item of clothing but has seen better days, then feel free to bring that along too. Sarah can teach you how to do some patching and ‘visible mending’ to reduce waste!
Singing in Sweet Harmony
Tom Clements and Sally Northeast
It's well documented that singing can have huge benefits for your health and wellbeing.
It helps increase the happy hormone dopamine and releases endorphins which can reduce pain and uplift mood.
Singing supports your mental health by reducing stress and anxiety and helping you to connect with others when you sing together. It's also great for physical health, toning the lungs, increasing heart function and controlling breathing which reduces stress.
Sally and Tom first met at CU17 and have since collaborated (with fellow original unplugger Helena Hornby) on the spoof pandemic-themed cover Lockdown Monday. They'll take you through a chilled vocal workout, teaching you to sing a well-known tune in harmony as a group and hopefully perform it for your fellow unpluggers in the field.
Tom Clements is a Dorset singer-songwriter who performs both solo and with his group the Clementynes. He's a firm favourite at Comms Unplugged where his mixture of covers and originals never fails to delight the unpluggers.
Sally Northeast is 1/3 of teamunplugged and has been singing from an early age. Her dad and grandad set up the first Barbershop chorus in Dorset in the 1970s so she grew up singing in harmony. She sang in a uni band and is a member of Dorset Rock Choir.
The Vent Tent
Join other Unpluggers for some self-guided release!
Join fellow comms colleagues who feel your pain! Who doesn't feel better after a good rant, offloading our problems, and sharing our pet hates.
The Vent Tent offers a calm and relaxing zone to do just that. Whether it's common issues, or unique aversions, there’s no better place to get it all out. You’ll already be Unplugged from the distractions of email and gadgets, and be amongst friends. A guaranteed cathartic experience that might even lead to solutions, acceptance, avoidance, analysis and more. Failing that, just have a good scream.
A Walk in the Woods with Joe
Joe Crossland, Nature lover and walk leader
According to Mind, spending time in green space or bringing nature into your everyday life can benefit both your mental and physical wellbeing. It can:
- improve your mood
- reduce feelings of stress or anger
- help you take time out and feel more relaxed
- improve your physical health
- improve your confidence and self-esteem
- help you be more active
- help you make new connections
- provide peer support.
In fact, time in nature ticks all the five steps to wellbeing and it wouldn't be Comms Unplugged without a peaceful walk in the woods. We'll invite you to connect with your fellow unpluggers as you stroll along, taking notice of the beautiful Dorset countryside, learning from and giving to each other.
Joe Crossland is a nature enthusiast and a 2019 Unplugger. His binoculars are always within reach along with a notebook, pen and curious mindset. Joe is an RSPB volunteer and enjoys encouraging others to get out into green space for the multiple benefits it brings. He is unofficially known as the Comms Unplugged ‘birdman’ due to the number of enquiries he receives on identification - and occasional calls for assistance - from his fellow unpluggers. Joe has a background in publishing and comms and is currently on secondment to Public Health Scotland as part of the pandemic response.
The Comms Unplugged 2021 Charity Raffle
All £££ to Dorset Wildlife Trust and Dorset Mind
“Give” is step five of the five steps to wellbeing. What better reason to dig deep and grab yourself some raffle tickets? Top prizes include:
- Dorset tea hamper
- Tea India hamper
- Magazine subscription giftcard from iSubscribe
- £30 voucher for Lounge Cafe and bars
- £50 Experience Days voucher
- upcycled denim jacket from Op Shop Top
- Three course meal for two voucher at Canal House, Birmingham
- Copy of the Joy of Work signed by Bruce Daisley
- Copy of internal comms book signed by the author
- Swim safe secure dry bag to keep your stuff safe when open water swimming
- RSPB bird box
- Hand-forged metal marshmallow toasting fork Created by Andrew Fielding's blacksmith brother in Dorset
- BuJo bullet journal starter kit from Sally Northeast
CU on the beach
Studland Beach
Enjoy a relaxing beach walk to the sound of the waves, or join in a session making sand art of Dorset sea creatures. Or even take a dip! Whatever you choose to do at CUontheBeach, we promise a stunning setting, fresh air and plenty of downtime – and that's nothing but good for the soul.
– Entertainment –
Tom Clements
Live and unplugged in the main marquee
Musical magic for a Friday evening from our fabulous Tom
Part of the CU family since our first event in 2017, Tom's set features a brilliant combo of crowd pleasers, both covers and originals. There's even a song inspired by Comms Unplugged - One Night in September - which is bound to be on the set list. Jump up and have a dance, sing along and lose yourself in the music.
If you're really lucky, Darren Caveney might even hit the dance floor….
Tom Clements
Chilled out, piano-led vibes from our new songbird
Lauren is a Bristol-based singer-songwriter who has performed at various festivals across the UK and Nashville.
Since jetting off to university and throwing herself into all things comms, her live performances have taken a bit of a back seat.
So, she's really looking forward to getting behind the piano again and sharing a few songs with the unpluggers.
– 2021 Sponsors –
– 2021 Charities –
In 2021 we supported Dorset Mind and Dorset Wildlife Trust again as they fit so well into the ethos of Comms Unplugged.
– 2021 Organisers –
Sally Northeast
Deputy Director for OD, Communication and Participation at Dorset HealthCare University NHS Foundation Trust.
After a degree in languages I trained to be a journo at the local paper in my home town. A few years later I hopped the fence into local gov comms, with a stint as a freelance and finally a move to the NHS.
Love the variety and the challenges of public sector comms and engagement, and the great people you get to work with. Value great writing, good humour, funky ideas and positive relationships.
Outside work it's two girls, one dog, one guinea pig, baking, singing (Rock Choir), movies, books, drawing, codeword puzzles and travel.
Georgia Turner
I am Director of Communication and Marketing, for England's newest urban local authority, BCP Council, serving the 400,000 residents of the city-region of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole on the glorious south coast. We’re in the midst of a huge and genuine transformation involving culture change, organisation design and service harmonisation not to mention our major placemaking agenda that is set to see Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole emerge as a bold, confident, proud southern powerhouse.
I studied a PR degree in my hometown of Bournemouth, which included a placement at the council. I loved it so much I went back after the obligatory post-graduation travelling and haven't left since!
After a dabble in the glamping business for a couple of seasons just two years ago (alongside my full time job at Bournemouth - what was I thinking?), I realised that the grass really wasn't greener, even in a glamping field, and embraced my job with newfound enthusiasm & appreciation. Why wouldn't I? I love the unending change, the requisite drive for creativity, and the innovation & commitment I see each day… oh, and I get to live by the sea.
Out of work passions - travel, conservation, food, wine, and my cat Marble.
Darren Caveney
My son claims I “work on The Twitter”. But really, I am a communications consultant, creator of comms2point0, and owner of Creative Communicators Ltd.
My 23-year career in communications, marketing and PR spans 10 years as Head of Communications within local government, a director level role in the NHS and five years in private sector marketing, winning some awards with my teams along the way and I have worked with over 100 communications teams in my consultancy role.
I have hosted and spoken at more than 150 events across the UK, Europe and the Middle East, on integrating social media for business, building communications and engagement strategies, and communicating in a digital world.
And amongst many, many projects I am most proud to deliver the unique annual UnAwards, now in their sixth year.
I love the communications community and my mission is to fly a flag for it wherever possible.
I'm also passionate about all things Birmingham, including our very average football team, and in between trying to be a decent dad I love music, film & TV, cooking, trips to the seaside and the occasional visit to the gym.
Say hello to me at @darrencaveney and @comms2point0
– 2019 Gallery –
