Kathryn Stillman

COMMUNICATIONS PORTFOLIO

Email kathryn.stillman@btinternet.com Phone 07824 429117 Twitter @KStillmanComms

As a freelance communications and engagement specialist, I provide senior interim support to in-house communications and programme teams.

Kathryn Stillman

A highly experienced and versatile freelance communications, stakeholder engagement and campaigns professional with a successful track record of over 20 years in senior positions. Kathryn provides senior strategic and operational interim support to in-house communications and programme teams in the health sector, predominantly in the NHS, and is currently working at a Royal Medical College. Kathryn is able to pick up and run with complex programmes at speed, and quickly delivers tangible results as well as setting work within an overall strategic context. Within the health sector, she has provided communications support to a Royal Medical College, a Hospital Trust, a Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), a Commissioning Support Unit (CSU), a PCT, a health charity, NHS England and the Department of Health. Experienced in all elements of the communications mix, Kathryn is a freelancer member of the professional body PRCA and part of the PRCAHealthGroup. Her specialities include:

• Leadership and influencing • Strategic communications planning and implementation • Stakeholder engagement & development of key relationships • Service transfer and reconfiguration • Campaign planning and implementation • Public engagement and behaviour change • Event planning and management • Developing and growing a communications consultancy • Corporate identity and branding • Working as a communications lead within a programme management team.

Service reconfiguration, staff & stakeholder communications – the Barts Heart Centre

Organisation: Barts Health NHS Trust. February – October 2015

Role: Communications Lead for the Barts Heart Centre – the UK’s largest heart centre. Multi-stakeholder reconfiguration project involving the transfer of services and staff from two hospitals – Barts Trust’s London Chest Hospital, and UCLH’s The Heart Hospital into the new Centre at St Bartholomew's Hospital.

Scope of role and achievements:

• Blend of strategic and operational

communications around service and hospital

reconfiguration, including liaison with

UCLPartners, UCLH, NWLCSU, CCGs and Trusts.

• Implementation of Barts Heart Centre branding

• Internal communications to all 1000+

cardiovascular staff and Trust staff

• External communications to patients, public

and the media

•Development of marketing and communications

collateral, including photography, brochures,

branded templates, newsletters, merchandise,

exhibition stands, and recruitment brochures

• Successful media coverage of the opening of

the new Barts Heart Centre in May '15 achieved

on BBC London and Evening Standard, with over

9million reach

.

Multi-stakeholder programme communications – the Prime Minister’s Dementia Challenge Organisation: Department of Health. January – October 2014

Role: Account Director for the Prime Minister’s Dementia Challenge – a complex, multi-stakeholder communications programme

Achievements:

- Created the communications strategy for 14/15,

devising and delivering an integrated programme

of activity bringing together media relations,

stakeholder relations, digital comms and events.

- Communications evaluation dashboard created

with agreed performance metrics, in line with the

GCSs evaluation performance framework.

- Oversight of the launch of Public Health

England’s Dementia Friends campaign.

- Communications for the global legacy dementia

event, with Prime Minister speaking. National &

international media coverage, over 50million

reach, consistent key message penetration, live

streaming & blogging to over 2000.

- Launch of the World Dementia Council and World Dementia Envoy.

- Programme communications had an overall

positive effect on public sentiment and

confidence in government policy on dementia.

Strategic communications & launch for transformation programmes Organisation: NHS England (London). July-December 2013

Aim: I led on the strategic communications for launch of both London – A Call to Action and Improving General Practice – A Call to Action, to help stimulate both a health and public sector facing debate about the difficult and often unique challenges of health and primary care in London.

Methodology: Integrated communications & marketing for both launches. Produced both publications. Online (and print) documents & questionnaires, emailed to over 2000 stakeholders and meetings and events organised. Engagement was promoted on Twitter with its own hashtag (#NHScalltoaction), on the home page of myhealthlondon website and the NHS England website. Launch events with live tweeting and storify. Supported by public-facing media coverage in London – Evening Standard, BBC News London.

Outcome: The feedback from London – A Call to Action was shared with London CCGs to help support their 5-year strategic plans. The report was submitted as evidence to the independent review commissioned by the Mayor of London, ‘Better Health for London’. General Practice – A Call to Action was launched at the primary care conference ‘Futures Summit’. Post launch engagement was led by freelancer Una Carney

Stakeholder Engagement & Behavioural Change – ‘Get the best from your medicines’ campaign Organisation: The Medicines Cabinet for NHS South East London. Nov ‘12 – Feb ‘13

Aim of campaign: To reduce the amount/cost of wasted medicines. To ensure that patients’ health is helped and improved through medicines management.

Methodology: The campaign comprised a schedule of engagement meetings with patients groups and community groups, accompanied by a pharmacist, external advertising, digital, print media, and distribution of leaflets and posters to pharmacies, GP practices, specialist hospital units, libraries, and patients’ organisations. A community roadshow was also organised across a number of locations across South East London, including shopping centres, health centres and libraries.

Outcome: There was buy-in and support from the Local Pharmaceutical Committees and health groups. Evaluation gave further insight into patients’ behaviour and showed the positive effect that the engagement work had.

Agency or in-house? I devised, ran and managed the campaign for this period, working in-house with Catherine Nestor, an associate from Verve Communications, who then led the campaign subsequently. Rehab was used for the design and JCDecaux for the outdoor advertising.

Event management & digital dissemination – the CSO Annual Conference

Organisation:

Department of Health, Chief Scientific Officer’s division. March 2010

Objectives:

To professionally programme and produce the Chief Scientific Officer’s conference. To make the talks as widely available and accessible as possible. To highlight the achievements of scientists speaking at the conference to the public via national media.

Methodology:

Audio and video recording of all talks, then edited and made available through digital platforms. Media work highlighting achievements of scientific speakers.

Outcome:

National media coverage in Independent on Sunday and Daily Express. Over 2000 healthcare scientists accessed the conference videos, expanding the audience from the 300 attending the actual conference

Agency or In-house?

Managed by me as Communications Lead for CSO team. Commissioned WRG to produce conference and subsequent videos for digital platforms.

Creating professional cohesion & raising profile of healthcare scientists - Downing Street launch of ‘Extraordinary You’ book

Organisation: Department of Health, Chief Scientific Officer’s division. February 2010.

Aim: To raise the profile of Healthcare Scientists within the NHS, and to encourage them to think of themselves as a cohesive professional group.

Methodology: Managed production of a ‘coffee table’ book telling the extraordinary stories of the many scientists working within the NHS. Managed the book launch at 11 Downing St with Health Minister, hosted by wife of Chancellor. Top scientists, influencers, and those featured in book invited. Also ran national, local and trade media campaign around the launch.

Outcome: Good coverage in national, regional and trade media. Created ‘feel-good’ factor amongst healthcare science community, and raised awareness of their work within the NHS.

Agency or In-house? I managed the launch project, and commissioned COI’s Events team to do the set up and administration, and DH’s media team to support the event.

From The Times February 24, 2010 Healthcare is embracing the appliance of science Fay Schopen

Matt Rutter now works in the hospital where he was treated for leukaemia

BMA News – 27 Feb 2010

Brand development for the launch of the Practice Management Network

Organisation:

Department of Health, Primary Care Division, GP Access team. 2009.

Aim:

To create a visual identity for the new Practice Management Network and produce a range of collateral to support its launch, and new publication ‘Improving Access Responding to Patients’.

Methodology:

Working within the NHS brand guidelines, created highly visual branding, using illustrations across all collateral – publications, ads, event stands, direct mail, banners.

Outcome:

Branding established & communication work to support Practice Managers in GP surgeries. Production and marketing of publication ‘Improving Access, Responding to Patients’. Used by 76% of all GP Practice Managers. Over 3500 GP Practice Managers signed up to the Network.

Agency or In-house?

I managed the project, and commissioned COI’s Design team to do the set up and administration, and DH’s media team supported the event

Increasing Patient Participation – the Growing PPGs campaign & multi-stakeholder work

Organisation/Client: Department of Health, for the National Association of Patient Participation, with the NHS Alliance, BMA and RCGP. 2008-2009

Aim: Patient Participation Groups (PPGs) empower practices to engage more with their patients and enable patients to have engagement with their healthcare. At the time of the campaign, 40% of practices were already working with a PPG. The aims of the campaign were to increase the number of PPGs and encourage wider representation on existing PPGs.

Methodology: Resources included a campaign website, with regular e-newsletters, a ‘step by step’ guide to starting a PPG, a PPG Communications Toolkit, a workshop for GPs and Practice Managers, launch of a PPG Project fund ‘Making a Difference’, and a media campaign in women's’ magazines and regional media.

Outcome: • 1,000 GP practices attended workshops • 1 million people reached via media & print • Launch event at the RCGP • 400 stakeholders signed up to campaign • 3,000 ‘Getting started’ packs distributed to

GPs

Agency or In-house? I worked in-house for DH leading on the comms work. The campaign was fronted by National Association for Patient Participation (NAPP). COI led on branding and Fishburn Hedges on the PR.

Public Engagement – the Choice Roadshow

Organisation:

Department of Health, Primary Care division, Choice and GP Access teams. 2009.

Aim:

To communicate the choices available now within the NHS to the public. ‘GP services when and where you need it, giving you more choice and more convenience’.

Methodology:

Three large units complete with video screens, Wi-Fi connection and laptops visited large retail sites concurrently. Three smaller units visiting libraries, community centres and smaller community venues.

Outcome:

Over a eight week period across southern England, 180,000 people engaged with the roadshow, with roadshow staff talking with 60,000 individuals.

Agency or In-house?

Led in-house by the Choices Communications Lead Lynn Plant, with myself as GP Access Communications Lead being one of six policy areas inputting. The Choices Communications Lead commissioned agencies Bell Pottinger and Good Relations to run the roadshow, with trailers provided by Mobex Ltd.

Charity sector - ‘Get on Board’ Trustee recruitment campaign

Organisation:

Led by the Governance Hub (part of NCVO), with campaign partners Charity Commission and Volunteering England. 2007.

Issue & Aim:

93% of charity boards had trustee vacancies, in key skills areas such as fundraising, HR, communications & finance. Also, there was a low number of people aged 25-44, or from BME backgrounds on trustee boards

Aim was to increase number of young trustees.

Methodology:

Printed and viral campaign targeting young professionals aged 25-44, especially those from BME backgrounds. Used two hooks of ‘Be Important’ – developing your CV by becoming a trustee, and giving back to the community.

Outcome:

Media reach over 14 million. Over 3000 people registered their interest to become a trustee.

Agency or In-house?

I was Communications Manager at the Governance Hub, and commissioned the agency Timebank to do the PR element.