Introducing the new PRCA Creative Committee

After chairing the group for five years, the PRCA’s Creative Committee Chair Ottilie Ross (Halpern Creative Director) has handed the baton to newly appointed Chair Amy Jones, Creative Director at Hope and Glory – prompting a refreshed committee membership.

Ottilie said; “I’ve loved working with the committee to turn this PRCA group into a centre-point for more diverse, interesting and inclusive creative thought leadership over the past five years. What an incredible line up of talent, spearheaded by Amy, to evolve it and push it even further - I can’t wait to see what they do next.”

Amy added “I’ve loved the direction Ottilie took with the group, it’s clear where we need to go from here. We will continue to air the challenges, offer advice and provide a platform to enable those with a less clear route in a leg-up in the world of creative PR. You’ll be hearing from us in the form of monthly blog posts, as part of panels, and finding new ways to offer hands-on help, such as skills swapping and mentorship workshops.”

The PRCA Creative Committee members in detail:

Chair: Amy Jones, Board Creative Director, Hope and Glory PR

"Almost two decades into my career now, I took the traditional ‘account route’. Beginning in health PR, entertainment and leisure before moving on to a creative role in Hope and Glory PR. Here, I help a range of retailers, entertainment brands and charities find their audience alongside working with the team to keep creative at the heart of the agency.

"I am especially interested in helping more working-class people find PR and creative roles, something I write about and work to change with the Common People group.

"During my time in PR, the evolution into more ad-style creative set-ups in agencies has (according to a bias creative) seen the work get better and more impactful – critical as we see the media landscape grow ever more challenging. We have structured teams, external advice and strategists (luxury!). But. Those teams are not yet diverse enough. We need more women in top jobs, age diversity (both ways), working class people influencing ideas and we need – urgently - people of colour in these roles, in order for our ideas, work and impact to feel representative and authentic."

Daisy Phillips, Creative Director (UK) at Manifest Group.

"I spent over a decade shimmying up the PR pole before making the leap into a full-time creative role. I've worked on campaigns for some of the world's leading brands across sectors including food & drink, beauty, baby bottles & more. For the last two years I've been at a unified creative agency growing my creative muscle across the full marketing mix.

"I am passionate about the power of creativity to tackle taboos and drive real world positive change, particularly in relation to marketing and issues related to women. I talk and write about women and creativity both in terms of how they are represented in marketing and how they are represented in the industry."

Dan Lambden, Creative Director, Red Consultancy

"I’ve worked in PR for 15 years navigating agencies of all sizes, from industry giants like Freuds to nimble players like Cake. Nearly 10 years ago I moved away from account handling to become the inaugural hire in Red Consultancy’s Planning & Creative Department. As Creative Director, I steer a dynamic team, orchestrating global campaigns for clients like McDonald’s, PlayStation, and Avon.

"Comms people are storytellers, divergent thinkers and make excellent creatives due to these qualities – from early on in our careers we are taught how to effectively communicate complex ideas and earn attention. I will champion the unsung creativity that hums beneath advertising’s spotlight, urging our industry to recognize its brilliance. I am also keen to delve into what creativity means for clients. Beyond flashy stunts, it’s about measurable ideas driving impact and connections. Let’s cut through the measurement B.S. and help champion earned-first creative in the marketing mix."

Olivia Mushigo, Senior Creative, Good Relations

"I started off as an intern in tech (wild, I know) and worked my way up to Account Manager in consumer PR, before realising my true passion was in creative. I then dabbled in social media for a bit, got addicted to TikTok, started missing PR and now, she's back screaming 'no, not another photo exhibition', 'I had that idea last year' and 'the insight isn't insighting'.

"As a Black creative, diversity and inclusion are extremely important to me. My dream is to create and see more campaigns that raise awareness and celebrate diverse communities."

Rowan Adams, Creative Director, freelance

"From working in TV publicity for the biggest broadcasters, to running press offices during the rise of the UK start-up scene, and then on to starting an award-winning agency, I've worked in PR from when coverage only counted if you could roll it up and hit someone with it, to now, when TikTok is seen as essential ingredient.

"I am a staunch advocate of building diverse teams from all corners, so responses feel rounded and real. If we all have the same point of view, who is that really serving? Comms can take itself incredibly seriously, so I am also here for agitating things with humour and as someone who was told he had dyslexia at the end of his education, it never fails to amuse me that I now work in "communications". I will also mouth-off on the importance of respecting mental health in the workplace - I've had that breakdown many write about, and trust me, it ain't pretty."

Ruby Quince, Creative Director, Hill & Knowlton(Soon to be Burson)

"Alongside my day job, also sit on WPP’s UK creative council and host the CD Sounds radio show, where I get to talk shop – or not – with the good and great from our industry. I was fortune enough to duck out of industry for a year to relearn the creative discipline – as the oldest student at the School of Communication Arts. As the creative discipline matures in PR and we see continued overlap with other disciplines, I’m a keen champion of how we professionalise creative development in the industry and build on the unique dynamic of earned-first thinking to put it on a par with creatives in other disciplines.

"As a neurodivergent creative, I’m proud of our potential to make novel connections and create competitive advantage. Of course, this isn’t the exclusive domain of creatives, and we are often afforded greater leeway than others, but I feel that we can lead the way to genuinely liberating the potential of this diversity."

Sarah Firth, Creative Director, Speed Communications

"Thirty years in PR, 20 of them as a Creative Director, it’s been a long and delicious journey. Starting as an agency publicist for Disney Home Entertainment and then moving on to biscuits, banking, beauty and booze and other categories that don’t begin with ‘b’, landing in the South West, to fall in love with the creative energy of Bristol, the tranquility of Bath and the proximity to London.

"A passionate advocate of the belief that you can’t generate a good idea without understanding what the audience cares about, insight is now a core part of my creative role.

"Also, as one of the older people in comms, I recognise the importance in making sure that the work we create treats older people with the same care and nuance we give younger audiences. Last year I co-founded a consultancy offer called Anything But Grey – a more colourful approach to marketing to people over 50, to address that gap."