I’m Jenni, and I became a consultant by accident.  In 2009, I was between jobs for the BBC and the cultural sector and I was asked to do a few days marketing …  Then I was asked to give a training workshop… Avoncroft Museum of Historic Buildings commissioned an Audience Survey as preparation for the next phase of their HLF-funded development… and so it grew until I established the full-time consultancy in 2012!

In a nutshell…

I work with heritage, arts and community organisations to help them communicate better and to more people about the great stuff they have, make and do.

Basically, I love sharing how brilliant our cultural resources are with people who might not have realised the value these things could have for them.

I specialise in audience development, community engagement and organisational development for heritage and arts organisations, with a particular focus on work with older people, diverse communities and with children and adults with learning disabilities.

I have worked with a wide range of clients across the West Midlands as:

• Evaluator and researcher, researching cultural organisations’ contribution to wellbeing, learning and the regional economy
• Mentor and facilitator, encouraging teams of staff and volunteers to bring out their best and develop successful funding and accreditation applications
• Change agent, helping organisations to pinpoint and instigate cultural change
• Trainer and mentor, specialising in communication, digital media, archive management, community engagement, equality and diversity
• Match-maker, connecting cultural and community organisations to increase the sum of your parts
• Project manager, delivering activities of varying scale and complexity on time and in budget

My regular associates are Durnin Research, the Collett Consultancy and James Mcdonald Media Services.

I was appointed a member of the Arts Council England National Museum Accreditation Committee in December 2019.

Clients include: 

Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, University of Birmingham, Birmingham City Council, University of Leeds, Birmingham Museums Trust, Nottingham City Council, Newark & Sherwood District Council, Tamworth Castle, Royal Shakespeare Company, Catcher Media, Open Theatre Company, Alarum Theatre, WMMD: West Midlands Museum Development, Arts Connect West Midlands, The Marches Network, Warwickspace, University of Worcester, Wolverhampton Archives, Museums & Galleries, MLA and Renaissance West Midlands

Previous employment: 

World of Kays Project Manager, University of Worcester; Regional Learning Project Manager and Peoples War Outreach Officer (West Mids), BBC Learning; Access & Social Policy Officer, MLA West Mids; and Archivist, Surrey History Service.