Services

Care Crisis PR & Communications

We are experts in crisis PR, communications and reputation management. We are specialists in working with care providers to protect their reputation, shield their brand and help successfully navigate whatever reputational challenge they may be facing.

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Effective crisis communications and reputation management are essential when looking to protect your care group's public profile in the eyes of your existing and prospective clients, residents and other stakeholders.

In the ever-vigilant public and media environment, firms in the UK are increasingly vulnerable to adverse media events. From allegations of neglect or abuse to regulatory breaches and outbreaks of infectious diseases, the potential for a crisis is ever present. Effective crisis communication is crucial to managing these situations and protecting your reputation as a care provider. Our comprehensive crisis communications service is designed to support care providers through every stage of a crisis, mitigate harm to your reputation, and help you recover from any crisis as quickly as possible. We have experience of dealing with a range of crises care providers face, including: 

● Allegations of neglect or abuse ● Regulatory breaches or non-compliance ● Outbreaks of infectious diseases ● Poor CQC inspection reports ● Financial instability or bankruptcy ● Change of ownership ● Legal issues involving residents or staff ● Data breaches or cyber attacks ● Staff disputes and industrial action

Our Service Offerings

We provide a comprehensive suite of crisis management support options that can be tailored to meet your needs. Our service offers crisis planning in advance of any incident, crisis management in case a negative event occurs, and post-crisis reputational management. 

Crisis Planning

  • Risk Assessment: Comprehensive evaluation of potential risks and vulnerabilities specific to your sector.

  • Crisis Communication Plan: Development of a tailored crisis communication plan, including key messaging, protocols, and contact lists.

  • Training Workshops: Conducting workshops to train your staff on effective crisis management and communication strategies.

  • Simulation Exercises: Organising crisis simulation exercises to test and refine your crisis response plans and ensure preparedness.

Crisis Management Services

  • 24/7 Crisis Hotline: Immediate, round the clock access to our crisis communication experts who can provide guidance and support at any time.

  • Rapid Response Team: Deployment of a dedicated crisis response team, led by our Managing Director, William Walter, to manage communications and media relations during the crisis.

  • Media Relations: Crafting and disseminating press releases, holding press conferences, and managing media inquiries to control the narrative.

  • Social Media Management: Real-time monitoring and management of social media channels to address concerns and misinformation.

  • Stakeholder Communication: Engaging with key stakeholders, including residents' families, staff, regulatory bodies, and the public, to maintain transparency and trust.

Post-Crisis Reputation Management

  • Reputation Recovery Plan: Development of a strategic plan to restore and enhance your organisation’s reputation post-crisis.

  • Positive Publicity Campaigns: Creating and promoting positive stories and achievements to overshadow negative coverage.

  • Online Reputation Management: Implementing strategies to improve online reviews and search engine results, ensuring positive content is more visible.

  • Stakeholder Engagement: Continuous engagement with stakeholders through newsletters, community events, and updates to rebuild trust.

  • Media Training: Providing ongoing media training for staff to handle future interactions with the press effectively.

Additional Support Services

  • Internal Communication: Ensuring clear and consistent communication within your organisation to keep staff informed and aligned.

  • Legal Liaison: Collaborating with legal advisors to ensure all communications are compliant with regulatory and legal requirements.

  • Crisis Documentation: Maintaining detailed records of all actions taken during the crisis for accountability and future learning.

  • Evaluation and Reporting: Conducting a thorough post-crisis evaluation to identify strengths and areas for improvement, and providing a comprehensive report.

Our team of experienced crisis communication professionals are dedicated to supporting care providers through challenging times, ensuring that your organisation can continue to provide high-quality care while maintaining public trust and confidence. Let us help you effectively prepare for, manage, and recover from crises.

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Further Reading

  • Financial Times - Crisis management: the last line of defence

    • Crisis management is crucial for protecting organisations from disaster and should be a fundamental element of risk management. Regular testing of crisis frameworks through war game exercises is essential to ensure readiness. The failures of Silicon Valley Bank and Credit Suisse highlight the importance of these measures and a well-prepared approach to managing crises. Read more.

  • Forbes - Taylor Swift’s Crisis Management Lessons For Business Leaders

    • Taylor Swift's crisis management strategies offer key lessons for corporate executives. During a concert, when her piano malfunctioned, Swift displayed flexibility and humor, ensuring the performance continued smoothly. Additionally, when Ticketmaster's ticket sales failed, she communicated directly with fans, explaining the situation. These actions underscore the importance of adaptability and transparent communication in handling crises. Read more.

  • Business Continuity Institute - How to develop a crisis communication plan in 2024

    • Corporate crises often suffer from poor communication, unprepared spokespeople, and contrasting statements. Despite its importance, only 49 per cent of U.S. companies have crisis communication plans. Essential elements include defining target audiences, activation criteria, and roles. Consistent, real-time information is key to maintaining public trust during crises. Read more.

Bridgehead Social Care have transformed our online presence by securing extensive coverage across the local, national, and trade media. Unlike other agencies they quantify their achievements. They regularly track the number of articles secured, size of audience reached, as well as benchmarking the coverage they achieve for each of our homes to the coverage secured for each of our key competitors' homes. They also suggest ideas for activities and events and regularly visit our homes in person. I enjoy working with Will and his team and couldn’t recommend them highly enough.
Kat Clayton, Marketing and Sales Director, Berkley Care Group
Led by Will, the team at Bridgehead were brilliant. They generated media coverage at both a national and local level for our You Are Not Alone campaign. Having listened to our aims and objectives, they created and implemented a creative campaign to highlight the plight of unpaid carers across the UK as well as the launch of our free resource hub designed to offer advice and guidance to family carers. As part of their work they also recruited leading policymakers to lend their support to the campaign. I could not recommend Bridgehead highly enough. They have a unique understanding of the adult social care media and policy landscape.
Ben Ashton, Co-Founder & Director, GoodOaks Homecare
I’ve worked with Will and his team several times. Both he and his team are professional and deeply knowledgeable in their understanding of the media. They consistently delivered coverage for us in top-flight publications, including the Financial Times, Dow Jones, Barron’s, as well as in the US. I would have no hesitation in recommending them.
Luca Barrie, Marketing Director, Aquaa Partners
I first retained Will in 2019 and we continue to work together to this day. He has an excellent understanding of both politics and the media and has helped to promote my work surrounding Birmingham Pride, but also as a successful entrepreneur and businessman. While we continue to work together today, I also count Will as a friend and often seek his strategic advice. I can't recommend him highly enough.
Lawrence Barton DL, Chief Executive, UK Skills
The team at Bridgehead Education have an expert knowledge and understanding of the education and skills landscape. They have delivered significant success in promoting awareness of the UTC programme through the media, both within the sector and among university and employer partners. I would be happy to recommend them to anyone in the sector.
Simon Connell, Chief Executive, Baker Dearing Educational Trust
I’ve worked with Will and his team several times. Both he and his team are professional and deeply knowledgeable in their understanding of the media. They are creative in leveraging their media relationships. I would have no hesitation in recommending them.
Paul Cuatrecasas, Founder & Partner, Aquaa Partners
I have worked with Will and his team for over four years. I continue to be impressed by the innovative ideas and techniques they have deployed to promote the core principles that drive ViewsHub. Will is highly responsive and knowledgeable of both politics and the media. I would have no hesitancy in recommending Bridgehead.
Ab Banerjee, Founder and Chief Executive, ViewsHub
Bridgehead Communications have worked hard to raise awareness among policymakers in both England and Wales surrounding the key challenges our members face. Furthermore, their proactive approach in securing media and comment opportunities has also helped our message reach a broad audience within the sector. The culmination of their efforts was our 2024 manifesto launch in Parliament. Leveraging their personal Parliamentary connections to sponsor the reception, we were able to stage an event in the Terrace Pavilion in the Houses of Parliament. The event was attended by over 150 guests, including MPs, Lords, representatives from the Department for Education, key figures in the sector, college representatives, students, and journalists. As a result of their efforts, the event was attended by both the then Shadow Minister for Children and Early Years and the Shadow Minister for Skills.
Clare Howard OBE, Chief Executive Officer, National Association of Specialist Colleges (Natspec)

FAQs

Social care crisis communications involves managing and sharing information during a crisis situation for care providers to protect their reputation and ensure clear, accurate information is shared with stakeholders, including staff, residents' families and regulatory bodies.

Effective crisis communication helps to maintain trust, reduce panic, and ensure compliance with regulations. It ensures that all parties are informed, reducing the risk of misinformation and enhancing the organisation's ability to manage the crisis effectively.

You can prepare by conducting risk assessments, developing and regularly updating a crisis communication plan, training staff, and conducting regular crisis simulation exercises to ensure readiness.

A crisis communication plan should include predefined roles and responsibilities, key contact information, messaging templates, communication channels, and procedures for monitoring and evaluating the crisis response.

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Bridgehead Communications
Temple Chambers 3-7 Temple Avenue London EC4Y 0HP
4 Clifton Terrace Les Canichers St. Peter Port Guernsey GY1 2NE
+44 (0)203 4888 963
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