Communications support for Birmingham Community Matters

Between 2018 and 2025 I worked as a marketing and communications specialist for Birmingham Community Matters (BCM) - a charity that supports people to set up, run and grow small community organisations in Birmingham. It was in abeyance back then, while BCM’s trustees considered how to take the organisation forward. My role was to post occasional social media updates to retain people’s interest.

It was then that I started the BCM newsletter, which grew to have more than 1200 subscribers. I also created a style guide to ensure consistency and clarity in everything BCM shares.

When I left in early 2025, BCM was on its second round of Reaching Communities funding from the National Lottery, with a staff team of four - as well as several more associates to bolster its capacity. I feel very proud to have helped this small but hugely impactful charity in its infancy and to have shaped its warm and trustworthy communication style.

Many community groups across Birmingham say they feel better able to get going, grow or get un-stuck thanks to the support and knowledge of BCM’s team and volunteers.

I made my one day a week at BCM stretch a long way, writing the monthly newsletter, the annual report, internal documents, resource pages, case studies and blog posts - many of which made their way into BCM’s social media feeds, which I also managed. I’m a huge fan of Canva and loved using BCM’s colourful palette to create attention-grabbing banners and infographics to accompany our messages.

BCM currently has a presence on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn. When the trustees decided BCM should stop posting on Twitter/X for ethical reasons, I wrote this blog post to explain the rationale, ensuring BCM left X graciously and in a way that reaffirmed its values.

“Marie has played a key role in shaping BCM's marketing and communications strategy. Her personable, warm, and friendly nature makes her a pleasure to work with, and she effortlessly adapts to the needs of our organisation”
- Becky Coley, Birmingham Community Matters
Read Becky’s full testimonial.