Aged nine, I announced to all my mum and dad’s friends I wanted to be a missionary and help people. Everyone cracked up. I wasn’t sure what they all thought was so funny. They then started calling me Sister Sarah (they still do).Around the same time, I created a magazine about the big issues affecting the small Lancashire mill town I grew up in. I remember taking a grim photo of a dead hedgehog to demonstrate the dangers of the local by-pass on wildlife. I imagine it was quite the read. It was in the shadow of Pendle Hill (likely in some mist and drizzle) that the seeds of storytelling and making a difference began to grow.Thirty-five-ish years later, via🏅Setting up an award-winning media group, which united refugees with local journalists🏅Honing my journalism, writing and production skills as a BBC broadcast journalist and producer🏅Getting to grips with the inner workings of Local Authorities, specifically in youth and children’s services, with a stint in commissioning and the press office🏅Transforming the communications and marketing of a mid/small charity supporting parents🏅Analysing, mapping and showing various charities how to connect better with their audiencesI now work in freelance communications, helping as many socially motivated organisations as I can harness their comms and marketing powers. ❤️I’ve been told plenty of times that people come away from talking with me feeling inspired and ready to take action. I can help in different ways:🔥Comms Mentoring (121 power hours or ongoing support)🔥Researching, analysing and recommending (comms audits, peer reviews, strategy and action plans)🔥Workshops (brand values, key messaging and goals so they can better connect with audiences)🔥Data-driven campaigns (creating audio/visual content for social media, e-marketing, blogs)🔥Copywriting ( website copy, impact reports and sales pages that drive people to take action)It can be hard to blow your own trumpet, so here is Natasha from Red Pencil doing it for me:“Sarah has a highly analytical approach to comms coupled with the experience to find solutions. She has a finely tuned understanding of audiences’ interests and needs, and knows how to produce communications to connect with them.“If you need to connect more people to your cause, raise funds, engage campaigners and make sure more people know about your products and services, then talk to Sarah.”I love to meet new people and connect with old friends and colleagues; I am always up for a 20-minute “coffee break” to help me re-energise.