THREE Scotland-based PR professionals are among a group of just over 20 to have become the first people to receive the rank of ‘Chartered Practitioner’ by the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, the highest rank available from the organisation.
Jane Cumming, Jason Wassell and David Russell find themselves part of what the CIPR is describing as a “milestone” occasion. The inaugural award of Practitioner status has, says the CIPR, made the pair “pioneers”.
Cumming is the managing director of Platform PR, headquarterd in Beauly, near Inverness. Wassel, based in Edinburgh, is with business lawyers, DLA Piper, while Russell works at East Lothian Council.
Meanwhile, until the end of last year, Francoise Van Buuren was head of strategy and communications at the Cairngorms National Park Authority, having previously been corporate communications manager at the National Trust for Scotland. She is now working in Kuala Lumpur, in Malaysia.
Says the CIPR: “For the CIPR and the PR profession this is a milestone. This status delivers parity with other business disciplines and supports our Royal Charter obligation to promote, for the public benefit, high levels of skill, knowledge, competence, and standards of practice and professional conduct.
“Those receiving Chartered Practitioner status this year are all pioneers, setting the bar for future generations of PR leaders. They’ve had to successfully complete a rigorous assessment process to emerge as the profession’s first Chartered PR Practitioners.”
The full list of recipients reads:
Matt Appleby MCIPR, director, Golley Slater
Hilary Berg MCIPR, associate director, Corporate Culture Ltd
Paul Corry MCIPR, director of Public Affairs, Rethink
Jonathan Cross MCIPR, communications consultant, People, Words & Pictures Ltd
David Crundwell FCIPR, PR consultant
Jane Cumming FCIPR, managing director, Platform PR Group Limited
Tricia Defty MCIPR, managing director, Thinc PR
Susan Fox FCIPR, director of Communications & External Relations, Information Commissioner’s Office
Pat Gaudin FCIPR, PR consultant
Jane Howard FCIPR, chair, Mandate Communications
Emma Leech FCIPR, director of Communications & Marketing, University of Nottingham
Matthew McKay MCIPR, head of Public Relations, BioMed Central
Anne Moir MCIPR, director of Communications & Marketing, Institution of Civil Engineers
Paul Mylrea MCIPR, CIPR president-elect for 2010 and director of Communications, Department for International Development
Paul Noble FCIPR, partner, Noble Ink
Jay O’Connor MCIPR, CIPR president for 2010 and partner, Influence Crowd
David Russell FCIPR, Communications and Democratic Services manager, East Lothian Council
Alan Smith MCIPR, associate director Corporate Communications, Altium Limited
Paul Smyth MCIPR, donsultant, River PR
Matt Tee MCIPR, permanent secretary Government Communication, Cabinet Office
Martin Turner MCIPR, director of Communications, NHS Warwickshire
Francoise Van Buuren FCIPR
Peter Walker FCIPR, executive chair, Pielle Consulting Group
Jason Wassell FCIPR, director, Global Government Relations, DLA Piper UK LLP
Sue Wolstenholme FCIPR, founder, Ashley Public Relations
