Bournemouth University’s communications team are celebrating two award wins at the PRCA DARE Awards 2016.
The University won the Media Relations award and the Event, Launch or Stunt of the Year award at the ceremony, which took place in Bristol to celebrate the best PR activity in the South West and Wales region, they were also shortlisted in the Low-Budget campaign category.
The Media Relations award was given to the team for their work on the Durotriges Big Dig – an archaeological dig conducted by students in Winterborne Kingston, Dorset. The communications team worked with academics and students to secure national coverage in outlets such as The Independent, The Guardian and the Mail Online, as well as regional coverage on ITV Meridian and in the Bournemouth Echo.
The Event, Launch or Stunt of the Year was awarded to the BU team for their work on the BU Big Match, where the University conducted activity around the AFC Bournemouth vs Tottenham Hotspur game that took place last year. The BU Big Match took place as a part of the University’s official partnership with AFC Bournemouth, with a range of pre- and during-match activities at the game to add value for fans at the ground and showcase some of the University’s work.
The PRCA DARE Awards take place across five regions in the UK to highlight the best in PR and communications work, and the Bournemouth University team were the only in-house team recognised at the South West and Wales ceremony.
BU's Chief Operating Officer, Jim Andrews, said, "We are all immensely proud of the activities we undertaken at BU and these two project give a small insight into the range of activities we are involved with. Ensuring that staff, students and the wider community hear about, and are able to engage in, these activities is important and I am delighted that the work of our Marketing and Communications team has been recognised. The work they do throughout the year to support all the activity across BU plays a significant role in making us the successful university we are today."
Speaking of the award wins, Ann Fernandez, Director of Marketing and Communications at Bournemouth University, said, “A fantastic achievement for the communications team at BU – two wins for two very different projects. This recognition coming from the PRCA, an association that exists to raise standards and promote PR and communication in the UK, is especially important to us, as BU was up against PR teams and agencies from all industry sectors; very well-deserved wins.”
The awards were presented by long-serving BBC radio presenter Liz Kershaw and BU’s accolades were accepted on the night by Nathaniel Hobby and Emma Matthews from the communications team. On the win, Nathaniel Hobby, PR and Corporate Communications Manager at Bournemouth University said, “We were so delighted just to be shortlisted, but to win these awards is really special, and recognition of the hard work put in by the whole team across the last 12 months, we are very proud of what we have achieved.”
More information about the BU Big Match can be found by watching the video about it, and the Durotriges Big Dig project can be read about on BU’s website. The Durotriges Big Dig is an annual archaeological excavation, with the 2016 Dig commencing on 6 June 2016.
