PRCA welcomes Bright One in new partnership to promote PR volunteering

London, 27 September 2010 - The PRCA is delighted to announce a partnership with Bright One, the volunteer-run communications agency for the third sector as it celebrates its second year anniversary.

As well as joining the PRCA, Bright One will be given a voice by becoming closely involved with the PRCA's not-for-profit working sectoral group.

The two organisations will work closely together to help raise awareness of the opportunities and need for PROs to volunteer their skills to the third sector. This partnership is another step in making Bright One the pre-eminent volunteering organisation for the PR industry.

Francis Ingham, PRCA chief executive said, “We're delighted to have Bright One on board as a member of the PRCA and look forward to working in partnership. Bright One is an initiative we're keen to support, as not only does it help charities with their communications needs, but also helps develop the next generation of PR professionals - the future of our industry. They couldn't get off to a better start than by volunteering with Bright One.”

Following its successful first year, Bright One has measured the social impact of the work carried out by its volunteers during its second year. The impact has been quantified by calculating the amount of resource that charities have been able to access as a result of Bright One's services. Its volunteers have collectively dedicated a whopping 2,700 hours of PR and communications support to helping small charities with their PR and communications efforts. This equals over £300,000 worth of consultancy services. Year on year, Bright One has donated an extra 1,200 hours of work organised through the agency, and generated a 54% increase in economic value.*

“We are thrilled with how our second year of life has gone.” Ben Matthews, Founder of Bright One, said. “We've turned in a fantastic contribution to the third sector's communications needs, thanks to a growing number of committed and competent volunteers. Charities often cannot afford to invest much in PR, and we are proud to have provided a huge amount of consultancy services, at the same time giving professionals in our industry the chance to volunteer and broaden their skills.”

“It seems fitting that our growth should be marked by the partnership with the PRCA; we are delighted and proud to become members of our professional trade body and to be recognised for our role in both the PR and the volunteering sectors.”

“We are stepping into our third year with continued enthusiasm, and we already have a number of high profile initiatives underway for the near future. We are hoping to continue to attract a high-calibre of volunteers who put themselves forward, and who deserve respect and recognition for their hard work. Without them we could not be where we are today.”

* This number is obtained by multiplying the number of volunteers by the number of hours they donate per week by number of weeks the account has been active with Bright One. This is then multiplied GBP 115, an average flat hourly fee a commercial agency would charge a client for a PR executive's work. This is a conservative estimate as it uses an indicative fee for a volunteer's contribution.

- Ends -

Notes to Editors:

About Bright One
Bright One is a volunteer-run communications agency for the third sector. Our team is on hand to offer charities, social enterprises and other not-for-profit organisations affordable yet effective PR and communications campaigns.

We help organisations get their messages heard and offer them resources so they can focus on core activities. Bright One solves two problems: third sector organisations get professional communication services at a low cost and inexperienced PR and communications people get the skills and mentoring they need from seasoned professionals.

Bright One's profits are reinvested, allowing us to grow and subsidise third sector organisations that otherwise might not benefit from professional PR and communications services.

For further information please visit www.brightone.org.uk

About the PRCA
Founded in 1969, the PRCA is the professional body that represents UK PR consultancies, in-house communications teams and PR freelancers.  The PRCA promotes all aspects of public relations and internal communications work, helping teams and individuals maximise the value they deliver to clients and organisations.

For further information please contact:

Richard Ellis
PRCA
020 7233 6026
Richard.ellis@prca.org.uk

Ben Matthews
Bright One
07842 764 205
ben@brightone.org.uk

Laura Vergani
Bright One
07870 607521
laura.vergani@brightone.org.uk

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