Member Article

House of Commons visit for Cobb PR

Cobb PR’s crisis management team took centre stage at the House of Commons earlier this month to share knowledge and best practice around incidents that sparked global interest.

Director Chris Gape was joined by an expert panel of speakers to explore how challenging events were handled and what lessons could be learnt.

Alex Bailey, Chief Executive of Adur and Worthing Councils, spoke about his role managing the immediate response to the Shoreham air tragedy, which killed 11 people and injured 16.

He also shared personal reflections on how particular issues were dealt with and discussed learning points for the future.

Robert Cottrill, Chief Executive of Eastbourne Borough Council, explained to the 25-strong group of MPs, councillors and council officers how the town responded to the fire on Eastbourne Pier.

Rob said he received strong support and guidance from Cobb PR, which helped with the media handling and limiting the damage to the town’s all-important tourist industry.

And Rupert Clubb, a director at East Sussex County Council, spoke about his emergency planning role, with particular reference to floods, storms and dealing with the fall-out.

Chris Gape, from Cobb PR, said the half-day session was a great way of sharing the knowledge gained through very difficult events.

“Nobody wants to experience a terrible disaster first-hand, but sometimes fate intervenes,” Chris said. “Our speakers demonstrated that good planning and clear and authorative communications can make a major difference in how you emerge from a crisis. Their words of wisdom were very well received by all attendees and we are grateful to them for sharing their expertise.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Cobb PR .