‘Lean’ Ofcom PR team prepares for launch

Communications super-regulator Ofcom’s PR department is to be just one third of the size of the old media and telecommunications regulators’ combined PR teams.

Ofcom comms director Matt Peacock is finalising the line-up and has recruited 12 staff to what he described as a ‘lean’, 14-strong PR team, with the last hires to be made before Ofcom launches on 29 December.

Ofcom replaces the Independent Television Commission, the Radio Authority, the Broadcasting Standards Commission, the Radiocommunications Agency and Oftel, which, combined, had around 45 staff in comms jobs.

Peacock, who has split the Ofcom comms function into three teams – media, publications and events and internal comms – said the loss of PR jobs was ‘a natural consequence of a five-way merger’.

However, Ofcom’s overall headcount will fall by only 20 per cent to 880, compared to the 1,100 people employed in the existing regulators.

Peacock said some of those who had not got jobs in Ofcom’s PR team had been ‘distributed’ within the Civil Service, while others had secured non-PR jobs within Ofcom.

The existing regulators to-gether have 130 statutory duties, but Ofcom will have 263. Peacock said: ‘We are leaner but required to do more.’

Key figures in the Ofcom PR team include head of media Huw Rossiter and head of publications and events Andy Bailey. Both came from the ITC.

Peacock said he was ‘on the verge’ of hiring a head of internal communications.