01 Your Current Situation
Most organisations hope a crisis never comes. Some are already in one.
Either way, the first hours and days shape everything that follows. Start wherever you are.
02 The offering
Senior media and crisis counsel – shaped around what you actually need, from readiness to response to recovery.
03 What a crisis really feels like
Not all of it is a communications problem
No two situations are the same, but the pressures often are — and several arrive at once. How you're perceived afterwards is almost always shaped by how you communicated during it.
- Unexpected media attention, with little time to prepare.
- Internal uncertainty and misaligned messaging.
- Leaders under significant pressure, needing grounded advice fast.
- Reputational risk that threatens relationships built over years.
- Legal, regulatory or operational limits on what can be said.
- Decisions that have to be made before all the facts are in.
04 The approach
Calm under pressure
No panic-driven reactions, no overclaiming. Clear thinking, honest counsel and a steady hand — accounting for the full picture, not just what plays well in a press release.
-
Stabilise
A confidential call to grip the facts and agree what must happen now. -
Shape the response
Key messages that are honest, defensible and true to your values. -
Handle the media
What to say, when and to whom — with you, not just for you. -
Recover & learn
Rebuild trust and turn a hard moment into lasting resilience.
05 Why SSPR
Proof, in practice
Real work for growing businesses, innovators and organisations — where clarity, calm and strategy created measurable change.
Manufacturing · Precision Engineering
Translating complex engineering into clear, credible storytelling
Five illustrated explainers turned BEP’s highly technical processes into accessible visual stories for policymakers, investors and staff.
Strategic positioning and copywriting that reflected senior credibility – supporting funding, growth and visibility without sounding corporate.
Meet Sophie
Senior expertise, without the long-term overhead
A background spanning journalism, senior police communications and strategic PR consultancy — a rare combination of calm judgement, commercial understanding and human insight, exactly when getting it right really counts.
Experience
A senior background, not a junior agency
Journalism, senior police communications and strategic PR consultancy — calm judgement earned where the stakes were real.
Trust
A trusted advisor, not a supplier
One experienced person who knows your context deeply — honest counsel, including when the answer isn't what you hoped to hear.
PErsonal
Calm, ethical, and people-first
CIPR member and NCTJ qualified, working to professional standards — with the human touch that puts people at ease.
“Working with Sophie transformed how I approach public speaking. I came in feeling overwhelmed by my own content and left with the confidence and tools to communicate with clarity and purpose.”
“A genuine partner who brought calm authority to a genuinely complex subject — something our whole team could rally around.”
“Working with Sophie was a pleasure from start to finish. She saw through a complex brief to present clarity and authority — and made life easier at every step.”
“A genuine partner who brought calm authority to a genuinely complex subject. The illustrated explainers gave our whole team — and our stakeholders — something to rally around.”
06 What you may be wondering
Questions clients tend to ask
What is crisis communications, and when do organisations need it?
Crisis communications is how an organisation manages its voice during a high-pressure, sensitive or reputationally significant situation.
You may need it if you are facing unexpected media attention, a regulatory or legal matter, an internal incident affecting staff or the public, or any situation where what you say – and how – could affect how your organisation is trusted and perceived.
How quickly can you respond if we are already in a crisis?
Often the same day. If you are facing something live right now, the first step is a short, confidential call to understand the situation and agree on what needs to happen immediately.
Getting early, experienced input – even just a conversation – almost always improves the outcome.
What makes working with Sophie Seddon PR different from using a PR agency for crisis work?
Most agencies handle crises as one service among many. This work requires specific experience, seniority and the kind of judgement that only comes from having been in high-pressure situations before.
With a background advising police command teams through some of the most scrutinised communications environments in the public sector, I bring something that a general PR agency rarely can – firsthand experience of what real pressure looks and feels like, and how to communicate clearly through it.
Can you help us prepare before a crisis happens?
Yes, and this is often where the most valuable work happens.
Crisis preparedness includes reviewing your current protocols, developing holding statements and key messages, identifying likely risk scenarios and running scenario planning with your leadership team.
Organisations that have prepared communicate better, make fewer mistakes and recover faster.
Is everything completely confidential?
Yes, absolutely. Discretion is not an optional extra in this work. It is the foundation of it.
Every conversation, engagement and piece of work is handled with complete confidentiality.
A formal non-disclosure agreement can be put in place at the outset if preferred.
Are you based in Huddersfield? Do you work with organisations outside West Yorkshire?
Yes, based in Honley, Holmfirth, Huddersfield, and working with organisations across West Yorkshire and nationally.
Most engagements involve a mix of remote and in-person work, shaped around what the situation requires.
07 See also
Other ways I can support
