Universities and Higher Education
We are a strategic communication and PR agency that helps universities and higher education institutions to engage with key stakeholders, including students and alumni, businesses, funding bodies, academia and government.




How we can help


Communication strategies, public relations, audits and perception studies


Leverage expertise and research outputs to engage with the media, industry, policymakers and funding bodies


Communications team building and reorganisation
We’ve worked with


Case studies





Open University Business School



SOCIAM research programme



Wolverhampton University



Coventry University: REF 2014



FutureLearn



Jesus College Oxford



Coventry University: REF 2014



FutureLearn



Jesus College Oxford


Knowledge Transfer Network



Open University Business School



SOCIAM research programme



Wolverhampton University
Our universities team



Emma Thwaites
Emma has 30 years of strategic communications expertise and has delivered campaigns for higher education institutions, including the Open University, University of Southampton and Jesus College, Oxford. Prior to launching Allegory in 2012, Emma held senior communications roles at the centre of UK government where she led national campaigns for Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Deputy PM, Nick Clegg.



Richard Baker
Richard has more than a decade’s experience working with universities on projects ranging from knowledge transfer and research commercialisation to the creation of innovation destinations which support the wider efforts of academic institutions to enable broad economic impact from research. A former daily newsroom business editor and deputy editor, he has also accompanied university economic development missions to China and India.



Stuart Baird
Stuart has worked with the universities of Liverpool, Nottingham, Trent, Derby and Coventry to deliver research impact PR, including the global launch of two life saving devices in maternal care. Prior to agency work he worked in-house for Government including stints with No10 Downing Street and on campaigns for the Department for Education and the Education Skills Funding Agency.



Paul Smith
Paul is a specialist in higher education communications with more than 20 years’ experience. He has held several, senior, in-house communications roles in HE and has provided consultancy support to the sector for nearly a decade. Working at both a strategic and operational level, he has achieved outstanding results for 13 HE institutions across the UK, ranging from business schools to Russell Group, top-ten and metropolitan universities.



Emma Thwaites
Emma has 30 years of strategic communications expertise and has delivered campaigns for higher education institutions, including the Open University, University of Southampton and Jesus College, Oxford. Prior to launching Allegory in 2012, Emma held senior communications roles at the centre of UK government where she led national campaigns for Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Deputy PM, Nick Clegg.



Richard Baker
Richard has more than a decade’s experience working with universities on projects ranging from knowledge transfer and research commercialisation to the creation of innovation destinations which support the wider efforts of academic institutions to enable broad economic impact from research. A former daily newsroom business editor and deputy editor, he has also accompanied university economic development missions to China and India.



Stuart Baird
Stuart has worked with the universities of Liverpool, Nottingham, Trent, Derby and Coventry to deliver research impact PR, including the global launch of two life saving devices in maternal care. Prior to agency work he worked in-house for Government including stints with No10 Downing Street and on campaigns for the Department for Education and the Education Skills Funding Agency.



Paul Smith
Paul is a specialist in higher education communications with more than 20 years’ experience. He has held several, senior, in-house communications roles in HE and has provided consultancy support to the sector for nearly a decade. Working at both a strategic and operational level, he has achieved outstanding results for 13 HE institutions across the UK, ranging from business schools to Russell Group, top-ten and metropolitan universities.