Kevin Craig
Founder and Managing Director
Member of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations
Kevin Craig is a public affairs, public relations and crisis management professional who started his communications career in 1993. Having enjoyed two successful years with his previous company, he founded PLMR in 2006. Kevin is a former Parliamentary Candidate (2005), a Member of Labour's 2001 General Election Team, a local councilor of 9 years standing in the London Borough of Lambeth, and has previously worked for Saatchi and Saatchi's PR Arm, and Global law firm DLA Piper where he was a founding member of its Lobbying and PR practice.
Kevin's PR and crisis management experience includes the aftermath of the Paddington Rail crash (Railtrack Plc Press Office), the Alder Hey child organ retention scandal (University of Liverpool) and other recent high profile political stories.
Kevin's experience includes many years operating at the highest levels of UK and EU Government and Civil Service. In 2005, a campaign for which Kevin devised the strategy and action plan culminated in new legislation as part of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act and was described by a senior UK Civil Servant as "one of the most effective campaigns I have ever seen."
In addition to his private sector work, Kevin has advised a host of not for profit and charitable organisations.
Chris Calland
Senior Account Manager - Public Affairs & PR
Chris joined PLMR shortly after our inception and is a key team member in providing our clients with PR and public affairs services. Chris is a key member of our lobbying and crisis management team where he has secured success for a number of our clients ranging from obtaining planning permission at a local level to lobbying Government Ministers at a national level on
Chris previously worked at a Yorkshire-based parliamentary and government relations consultancy in Leeds where his duties included liaising with and arranging meetings between clients, MPs, Peers and Civil Servants, writing political articles for a client’s in-house magazine, drafting briefing documents for an All-Party Parliamentary Group and, during the course of the British Government’s Energy Review, drafting the executive summary for a client’s policy paper that was presented to 300 key parliamentarians and civil servants and preparing a speech for a member of the House of Lords for use during a Parliamentary Debate the Government’s Energy Review.
In his own time Chris is an active member of the Labour Party, the Fabian Society and the pressure group Compass and was a Member of Preston Labour Party’s Campaign Team in the 2007 local council elections in the North West of England.Chris is a graduate of the University of Leeds where he read Political Studies.
Adam Fry
Senior Media Relations Executive
Adam joined PLMR shortly after its inception and is a member of our media relations and planning lobbying teams. Prior to joining us Adam graduated from the University of Exeter and is a former Policy Officer for the Home Office where he worked alongside senior Civil Servants and Press Officers on the delivery of several major projects. In addition to this, Adam frequently liaised with members of the public, advising them on Government Policy and co-ordinating national consultations.
As part of PLMR's media relations team Adam is often at the forefront of our campaigns, liaising with journalists - in particular in Health and Social Care sector media - and securing extensive media coverage for our clients whilst in the process developing a genuine passion for the sector . This specialisation has allowed him to develop an in-depth knowledge of the sector, building an extensive range of contacts throughout the trade and national media.
In his own time Adam is an active member of the London Liberal Democrats and will take a seat on his local party's Executive Committee later in 2008.
David Madden
Planning Director
David is a graduate of the University of London.
He has years of experience advising clients on how to successfully lobby planning committees and local communities in order to secure planning permission for new development.
David's experience includes working for a Liberal Democrat Member in the House of Lords in a researcher capacity, as a policy adviser to a London Borough Councillor and also as an Account Manager at GMX Communications – a respected industry leader.In the last year, David's work has taken him to all corners of
Valerie Burgess
PLMR Director & Lead Consultant on Consumer PR
Valerie is a senior PR professional with over ten years experience in both corporate and consumer PR. She has worked for many leading international companies including Procter & Gamble (Pantene, Iams, Pampers), Philips (domestic appliances), Nectar loyalty card and Speedo.
Valerie's particular strength is media relations - from major UK product launches (launch of Nectar in the UK, launch of Speedo Fastskin at the 2000 Sydney Olympics) to national and international crisis communications across a wide range of issues (Paddington rail disaster, racial abuse story for a major UK client).
Jonathan Ware
Account Executive - Public Affairs & PR
As Account Executive, Jonathan is responsible for working closely with our clients to ensure that PLMR's political affairs and media relations services can make a real impact on their performance in the public sphere.
Prior to joining PLMR Jonathan worked as a political researcher in the Westminster office of Diana Johnson, Labour Member of Parliament for Hull North. In this role he produced detailed briefings on key legislation such as the Mental Health and Offender Management Acts, as well as drafting Parliamentary Questions and Early Day Motions. He was also responsible for liaising with local government, businesses and the press when assisting in constituency matters.
Jonathan is a graduate of Keble College, Oxford, where he read Modern History. In his spare time he writes for a weekly online newsletter aimed at encouraging political participation amongst GCSE and A-Level students.
David Braham
Political & Media Monitoring Executive
Graduating in Economics and Politics at Manchester University, David is PLMR's Political and Media Monitoring Executive.
Providing detailed research and client-focused monitoring, David plays a key role in delivering timely and effective information services to PLMR's clients.
David previously worked at public affairs consultancy firm FD-LLM, where he was involved in monitoring and report writing for consultants and clients, working on major political events such as the transition of Prime Ministerial power from Tony Blair to Gordon Brown. David has also worked in Washington as an intern to US Senator Arlen Spector and is an active member of the London Conservative Party.
