This August, Citadel Policy & Communications turned 18 years old. We spoke with the organisation’s founder and director, Jonathan Hopkins, to tell us a little bit about the company and the impact it has made in its 18 year existence.
A consultancy for strategic communications in policy, research and public affairs; with an experienced team in government, media, marketing and campaigns, this company has achieved a great deal in the last 18 years.
Jonathan started the consultancy at a turning point in his career. After working in politics, marketing and campaigning and serving as a board director for PR-agencies, he felt he had become too distant from the causes he passionately believed in.
“At home, we had a growing family and young daughters that the macho-world of agency life kept me from. With all the great experience I’d gained, setting up a bespoke consultancy enabled us to specialise and create a family-friendly work environment.”
“Citadel grounded me back in public policy, affecting change for the better, working across government and media, for charities and businesses and community interests. We’ve gained a reputation and depth of work supporting education and skills, youth policies, justice and social inclusion.”
Starting off as a small company, Jonathan and co-founder, Jane Enticott, worked closely with others’ clients, providing specialist support for them including the likes of Matthew Moth at Madano and Rob Metcalfe at Richmond Towers, and with the encouragement of former colleagues Joe Brice, Stuart Thomson and Kevin Craig, to name but a few.
“As a company, we have been able to stay small but remain beautifully formed by keeping overheads low, and are quick to respond to whatever needs and issues are facing our clients.”
“There’s been a host of freelance associates who’ve come together on projects we’ve led, large and small. Anne Pinneydeserves special mention for adding research expertise to the team, and Graham Beech for joint projects together and as a client.”
Citadel Policy & Communications have an important year ahead, with both regional and general elections being held in 2024. This will signify a period of change, whoever is in power.
The team is consistently working closely with clients to continue to inform and support their business plans, with political insight, policy trends and positioning across public and political audiences.
At the same time, Citadel is continuing to develop bespoke approaches, supported by research, analysis and stakeholder engagement, most notably in education, future skills and with young adults (16-25). This is because these ages are the ones who all too often fall between the gaps in services and policies for children and adults.
Citadel’s work includes navigating the challenges to mental health, working with organisations like Brook, and exploring the employment sector with their newest client Youth Employment UK.
“There’s more to be achieved with leading youth charities too, with the likes of DofE and Scouts, and in an exciting development we’ve teamed up with Anne Longfield to secure legacy work for her Commission On Young Lives.”
“Our direct work, supporting young people has been a high point.”
“We are embarking on our 14th consecutive party conference season organising and hosting the Youth Zone for charity-partners and over 1,000 young people in that time taking part. Breaking down barriers and demystifying politics, providing a platform for youth voices on intergenerational challenges.”
This autumn Citadel has also added a dedicated Skills Hub backed by City & Guilds. So, between the Youth Zone and Skills Hub, Citadel will be hosting a remarkable 80+ events, across the 5 days at Conservative and Labour Party conferences.
This work surely stands out from all the other accomplishments, supporting a collective response that can demonstrate and provide many with a vast change for good.
Another key moment to mention would be the work done with the National Youth Agency throughout the pandemic. This included growing the collaboration of the national advisory board, building alliances and securing funding for youth services, charities and young people.
“We had a tremendous run rate of policy reports and recommendations on the national news.”
“If I can divulge some other favourites, they’d include consulting and designing victims’ services, girls’ rights campaigns on street harassment and civic leadership roles for school academy trusts.”
“A new campaign includes the British Youth Council in a young-people-led call for Votes at 16 and a summit in support of young migrants and refugees with the Positive Youth Foundation.”
“But if others will forgive me, Seyi Obakin and Centrepointhave been outstanding, with Citadel from day one and throughout our 18 years.”
So, what can we expect from another 18 years of Citadel Policy & Communications?
In short, more of the same we hope!
As Jonathan says, “the challenges remain great and the opportunities to help make a real difference are endless.”
Citadel 