Interview with our Place Board Chair

Hannah is the Director of Staffordshire based Valentine Clays and is also a board member of Staffordshire Chamber of Commerce and Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire Local Enterprise Partnership.

• What attracted you to the role of Chair of the We Are Staffordshire Board?

I’m passionate about Staffordshire. I’ve lived and worked in other cities and countries but there’s nowhere quite like this county. I’m proud of what we have to offer – not just the big names but also small creative businesses. I’m proud of our distinctiveness and our character. I feel that we really can put Staffordshire firmly on the map through the work of We Are Staffordshire.

The mix of skills I have as a marketeer combined with a tourism specific background lend themselves well to my role as Chair. I’ve worked for several established brands, including Emma Bridgewater before joining my family’s firm, Valentine Clays, where I initially was responsible for marketing before becoming Director.

It’s wonderful to sit on the Place board alongside other passionate people who can make a difference.

• What do you feel We Are Staffordshire has achieved during this first year?

Collaboration has been key to our initial success; we’ve worked closely with our partners: Keele University and Staffordshire University, Staffordshire Chambers of Commerce and Staffordshire County Council (along with our passionate board members!) to enable us to tell our story and theirs too!

This past year, we have set up the foundations that will move us forward. We’ve accomplished a huge amount through the ambassador events we’ve held, other national events we’ve attended to showcase Staffordshire, and the engagement level across the county has been wonderful. We’ve been able to showcase some unique stories and businesses as a result.

• What do you hope to achieve going forward for We Are Staffordshire?

We still have lots of untold stories to shout about. We want to engage even more ambassadors to join us on this journey to provide a powerful network of voices that can help us promote Staffordshire to both national and international audiences.

We’ll also continue to work collaboratively to promote and market our county beyond our borders – nationally and internationally – so that we can attract other businesses and investors and encourage visitors into our county. We’re a county of huge significance in so many ways and we want to shout about it.

Our newly launched delivery groups will enable us to reach even more people to share the Staffordshire Story with them.

• Finally, how do you feel our Ambassadors can help to promote We Are Staffordshire?

Our Ambassadors are our county champions. They’re the ones who are driving our agenda to put Staffordshire on the map. I would encourage people to get on-board and involved. Please get in touch with us, attend our events and most importantly, sign up to be an ambassador. If there is any way your business can contribute, we want to hear from you!

Find out more about how to become a We Are Staffordshire Ambassador.