Make the argument.
shape the conversation.
I help charities turn complex policy, evidence and expertise into clear, persuasive communications that influence decision-makers and strengthen their voice in public debate.
Strategic communications · Media relations · Thought leadership · Influencing
IMPORTANT WORK DOESN’T ALWAYS COME WITH A CLEAR STORY.
Your organisation may have the evidence, the expertise and a strong case for change.
But turning that into something people will understand, remember and act on is a different job.
I work with charities and social-impact organisations to find the argument inside complex material, sharpen the message and connect communications to the wider objective — whether that is influencing policy, building authority, launching research or responding when attention suddenly arrives.
It’s communication with a job to do.
What I do.
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Strategy, messaging and policy storytelling
I help organisations work out what they really need to say — and why anyone outside the building should care.
That might mean developing a communications strategy, sharpening a campaign narrative or turning a dense policy report into a clear, credible public argument without flattening the evidence along the way.
Communications strategy · Messaging · Policy translation · Campaign narratives
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Thought leadership, media and executive positioning
Being visible isn’t the same as having something worth saying.
I help organisations and their leaders develop authoritative ideas, commentary and media positions that contribute something useful to the debate — then find the right opportunities to put them in front of the people who matter.
Thought leadership · Op-eds · Media relations · Executive positioning · Reactive commentary
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Campaigns, influencing and strategic communications
Communications works best when it is connected to the change an organisation is trying to achieve.
I bring together media, messaging, thought leadership and campaigning to support influencing objectives — from major policy launches and public campaigns to moments when an organisation needs senior judgement quickly.
Campaign development · Influencing communications · Policy launches · Reputation support
SENIOR EXPERTISE. WITHOUT ANOTHER SENIOR HIRE.
Sometimes you need another experienced pair of hands. Sometimes you need an extra brain.
I work alongside communications, policy, public affairs and leadership teams when internal capacity is stretched, a particular challenge needs specialist judgement or it simply doesn’t make sense to recruit permanently.
That can mean a defined project, retained senior support or targeted advice at a critical moment.
I KNOW BOTH SIDES OF THE STORY.
I spent more than 10 years as a journalist before moving into the charity sector, where I spent 12 years in-house — including leading Barnardo’s national media team.
That means I understand how journalists decide what matters, but also what it takes to make good communications happen inside an organisation: policy complexity, approvals, competing priorities, safeguarding, reputational risk and all.
Today I bring that combination to consultancy work spanning strategic communications, media relations, policy communications, campaigning and thought leadership.
My work.
MAKING THE CASE FOR MANDATORY RSE.
Barnardo’s wanted government to make relationships and sex education compulsory in schools. I led media work that helped turn policy evidence into a clear public argument: children themselves were asking for better information to help keep them safe.
Polling commissioned by Barnardo’s found three-quarters of 11–15 year olds believed age-appropriate sex and relationships education would make them safer, generating national media coverage at a critical point in the policy debate.
Policy storytelling · Media relations · Influencing
PUTTING CHILDREN INTO THE PANDEMIC STORY.
From the start of Covid, I led sustained media positioning designed to stop children and young people disappearing from a news agenda dominated by health, business and older people.
Across the pandemic, I used research, polling, frontline evidence and reactive commentary to spotlight the impact of lockdown on mental health, education, inequality and family life — while also helping make the case for urgent support for the charity sector itself.
The work helped establish Barnardo’s as a prominent voice on the impact of Covid on vulnerable children and families.
Media strategy · Narrative positioning · Research communications · Influencing
TURNING POLICY INTO AN ARGUMENT.
Good thought leadership needs more than a senior name at the top of an article.
At Barnardo’s, I developed and ghostwrote commentary that turned research and policy positions into clear arguments for public and political audiences — from child poverty and the cost-of-living crisis to family support and children’s services.
The aim was not simply visibility. It was to give senior voices something useful, credible and distinctive to contribute to the debate.
Thought leadership · Ghostwriting Executive positioning
HELLO. I’M VICTORIA.
I’m a strategic communications consultant and former journalist specialising in the charity and social-impact sector.
I’m at my best where communications meets policy: complicated subjects, competing audiences, sensitive issues and organisations with something important to say but no interest in turning it into meaningless comms sludge.
I combine journalistic instinct with senior charity-sector experience and a fairly forensic approach to language.
The job is to find what matters, make it clear and help it land.
Work worth doing.
I’m particularly interested in work that tackles inequality, advances social justice and helps improve lives and strengthen communities.
I work best with organisations that care about evidence, fairness and the difference good communication can make — without pretending communication alone changes the world.
GOT SOMETHING IMPORTANT TO SAY?
If you’re facing a major communications moment, trying to make complex evidence cut through or simply need experienced senior judgement around the table, I’d like to hear about it.
