Experience

• 

  Bedford Borough Council

  • Bedford, England, United Kingdom

  • Senior Communications Officer

    • Sep 2023 - Present
    • Bedford, England, United Kingdom

    Communications officer for a unitary authority in the town I have called home for nearly 20 years.

• 

  Newsquest

  • Basildon, England, United Kingdom

  • Content Editor

    • Nov 2021 - Sep 2023
    • Basildon, England, United Kingdom

    Responsible for the print publication of two daily titles - the Southend and Basildon Echo - as well as weekly titles the Thurrock Gazette, Watford Observer, Herts Advertiser, Royston Crow, Welwyn Hatfield Times, and three editions of The Comet.I had responsibility for ensuring a smooth flow of c...

• 

  Brent Cross Cricklewood

  • Hybrid

  • Senior Communications Officer

    • Oct 2020 - Nov 2021
    • Hybrid

    Responsible for media relations on the Brent Cross Cricklewood Transformation Project, an £8billion scheme to build a new park town in north London, including 7,300 new homes, a new railway station, and a 3m sq ft commercial area creating infrastructure for an estimated 30,000 new jobs.I led on i...

• 

  Freelance, self-employed

  • Freelance Journalist

    • Nov 2019 - Oct 2020

    Freelancing for a variety of organisations throughout the three counties, across print, online and broadcast media.

• 

  Johnston Press

  • Hemel Hempstead, England, United Kingdom

  • Content editor

    • May 2015 - Nov 2019
    • Hemel Hempstead, England, United Kingdom

    Led the production of four weekly newspapers across three counties, providing day-to-day professional guidance and mentoring to the journalistic team operating from the office. Managed the BBC-funded Local Democracy Reporters for Milton Keynes, Bedford Borough and Hertfordshire, including proofre...

• 

  BBC

  • United Kingdom
  • Broadcast Media Production and Distribution
  • 700 & Above Employee

  • Panellist on the Friday night showbusiness show

    • Sep 2017 - Nov 2018

    Occasionally guest on Roberto Perrone's Friday evening show on BBC 3 Counties Radio.

  • Guest expert

    • May 2018 - May 2018

    Guests expert on environmental issues on the Jeremy Vine Show

• 

  Sky

  • Newspaper review contributor to Sunrise breakfast show

    • Feb 2017 - Jul 2017

    Occasional contributor to morning breakfast show

• 

  Milton Keynes Citizen

  • Milton Keynes, England, United Kingdom

  • Deputy Editor

    • Jun 2014 - May 2015
    • Milton Keynes, England, United Kingdom

    Deputy editor for what was one of the top ten weekly titles in Johnston Press, the largest local newspaper publisher in the UK.I joined the company at a time of radical change, which saw photographers moved to working on a freelance basis, a range of technology changes, and a major culture shift ...

• 

  Bedford Hospital NHS Trust

  • Bedford, Bedfordshire

  • Senior Communications Officer

    • Jan 2013 - Jun 2014
    • Bedford, Bedfordshire

    I was headhunted for this role by the newly-appointed secretary to the trust board.My role included responding to media enquiries, leading on internal communications, overseeing the company internet and intranet sites, and liaising with other regional health bodies and communication teams.During ...

• 

  Bedfordshire Times & Citizen

  • Bedford, United Kingdom

  • Reporter; Senior Reporter; News editor; Content editor;

    • Feb 2004 - Jan 2013
    • Bedford, United Kingdom

    Over the course of nine years I rose from a pup reporter to running the newsroom of Bedford's leading newspaper on a daily basis.I was named Newcomer Of The Year for Bedfordshire Newspapers in 2005, and won other awards for featuring writing and leading the group's Team Of The Year.While ...

• 

  BMP Broken Music Publishing

  • Intern

    • Jul 2003 - Aug 2003

    A two-month paid internship working on media relations and writing biographies of music acts for compilation DVDs.

• 

  JustComm

  • London, United Kingdom

  • Intern

    • May 2003 - Jul 2003
    • London, United Kingdom

    Internship working on magazines, writing for a range of B2B and public-facing products.

• 

  90 Minutes

  • Intern

    • Apr 1995 - May 1995

    My first work experience within journalism on a weekly football magazine, which saw me writing articles and carrying out research for senior staff.It's no exaggeration to say that I enjoyed it so much that it set the course for the rest of my career.