Leading West Midlands charity, Beacon Centre for the Blind, has teamed up with Connect PR to handle its press and publicity activities.
The charity – which provides advice and support for visually impaired people in Wolverhampton, Sandwell, Dudley and South Staffordshire – has instructed Connect to raise its profile in regional, national and third sector media.
The 20-strong team of former journalists, PR experts and digital specialists will provide PR and social media support to help the charity engage people across the West Midlands, support community fundraising efforts and raise awareness of sight loss, including how it impacts lives.
The agency will also deliver a programme of activity to encourage donations of stock and to increase footfall to Beacon’s seven charity shops.
Chief executive at the Beacon Centre for the Blind, Arwyn Jones, said: “More than 167,000 people in the West Midlands are affected by sight loss, and the charity is facing changes in local authority funding, a projected growth in eye health conditions, and the challenges of fundraising in a recession.
“Connect PR immediately demonstrated a grasp of the issues faced by Beacon, along with a professional and creative approach to helping the charity achieve its aims. We are confident that the partnership will raise our profile across the West Midlands so that people with sight problems know that we are here to help and support them.”
Heading up the account are former Shropshire Star journalist and communications manager for British Mensa, Caroline Garbett, and charity PR specialist Jenny Davies who previously worked for national organisations Alzheimer’s Society and PDSA.
Both women are local to the West Midlands and together bring more than 30 years’ experience in PR and marketing to the Beacon account.
Connect will hit the ground running supporting a busy diary of events for the Beacon Centre in the run up to Christmas, including a Volunteering Opportunities event in partnership with Guide Dogs, and the launch of the charity’s Forget Me Not tree.
The link-up completes a double success for Connect PR, based in the Chubb buildings in Wolverhampton, who earlier this month announced a new client win with Junction 21 Enterprise Area in North Somerset.
Hazel Crawford-Upton, managing director at Connect PR, said: “Based in the Midlands, our philosophy is to offer PR excellence and creativity from a very down-to-earth team. We’re looking forward to working with the Beacon Centre on a range of campaigns and activities to keep them in the spotlight and at the forefront of the news agenda.”