Ellee Seymour

I was reading the latest story yesterday from the Campaign to  Protect Rural England and it reminded me of how I once applied for a job as their regional press officer, but didn’t get it.

It was a part-time job which paid peanuts. The interview involved writing a test press release and being grilled by three officers who had travelled from London to Cambridgeshire.

After having my two lovely sons, it was always important for me to be a mum first, to try and find work which fitted around school hours. Believe me, they are few and far between.

So I was really keen to get this job and in the end it was between me and one other person, and they chose the other applicant because they felt I lacked formal campaigning experience, while I have always worked intuitively. What I didn’t lack, however, was imagination and creativity.

I was naturally disappointed because I felt it would have been a great organisation to work with as I share their concerns and beliefs about preserving our countryside.

However, I wasn’t without a job for long as within a week or so I was offered a press officer’s post with Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Joint Waste Strategy to consult with the public and stakeholders on how the region’s household waste should be disposed of. This led to me later working as Press Officer for the Eastern Region Slim Your Bin campaign, which was hugely successful.

My boss on the Waste Strategy was a lovely man called Bernard. A month after I started working with him, I learnt that the CPRE and its then president, one of our greatest actresses Prunella Scales, would be visiting Ely, close to where I live. I was curious to know who had trumped me for the job, so I devised a plan to find out. I knew Prunella was keen on recycling and I called the CPRE to ask if Bernard and I could go to the Ely event and talk to Prunella about the region’s waste and recycling.

I dressed up to the nines in my new lilac suit and proudly took Bernard along where I met up with one of the women who had interviewed me. She was stunned to see me there. Their new press officer was a wimpy looking guy with a limp handshake and, from memory, it wasn’t long before the job was readvertised.

Bernard and Prunella got along like a house on fire and I took some press photos for our campaign, which Prunella endorsed. Bernard was so thrilled, being an ardent admirer of hers, and he kept telling me his wife wouldn’t believe him. I later confided in Bernard the reason why I had planned the meeting, and he said he felt he got the best deal. We had lots of big smiles that day.

But here is what happened next, it was so amazing for me. Also during that week, Prunella was also appearing at the Cambridge Arts Theatre with her husband Timothy West, a huge, towering figure of a man. I had already bought tickets and she invited me to join her and her husband in their changing room afterwards for drinks, which I did. They were wonderful, so very sweet - "darling this", and "darling that" - so lovey dovey together, I will never forget their kindness.

A couple of weeks later I had another brainwave and asked Prunella if she would launch one of our Slim Your Bin recycling roadshows which she agreed to do, in the very unglamorous location of Tesco’s car park, Bar Hill.  I have published a couple of the pics I took of her there, including one with a very chuffed Bernard. I had to liaise with the Tesco press office due to her advertising commitment with them, but they were very supportive and Prunella was magnificient. And all this cost us nothing, just a little imagination. And a bit of cheek!

I wonder if you have triumphed after losing a job you really wanted, if you turned it into something positive too.

My cloud certainly had a silver lining …..

Am I alone in having slept through last night’s earthquake, along with my two sons, while my husband who stayed over in Colchester was woken with an almighty jolt and a shaking bed, and my sister in Wisbech felt the tremors too, her wardrobe door flung open and everything around her shook and shuddered?

I was blissfully unaware of this chaos on my doorstep, said to be the biggest earthquake in 25 years. Did you sleep through it too, or were shaken to your very core and scared witless?

I was really surprised when I read the findings of a Facebook study conducted by the RAC Foundation on how almost half of Britain’s morotists txt + drv at the same time.

I’ve written the results in a press release for them which is published today and realise that I must be included in that figure, that I leave my mobile switched on when driving and will check any messages that ping through if I am waiting at traffic lights or a junction.

I now know better and shall not do it any more, but how many other drivers fall foul of this law too and do not realise it is an offence?

It’s also interesting to see how major organisations are using Facebook to conduct surveys. It is one of the hot topics up for discussion at this year’s Social Media Influence conference which I shall attend on 4 June. Formerly known as Blogging4Businees, it’s a must for anyone who needs to understand how social media can work with - or against - businesses today, how online conversations are ignored at their peril.

Here is the press release, do you text + drv too?

Almost half of Britain’s motorists regularly flout the law by texting and driving, putting themselves and other road users at risk, according to figures published today by the RAC Foundation.

A survey of 2,000 Facebook users revealed alarmingly that 45% of UK drivers text whilst driving, with only 11% of motorists turning off their phone or switching it on mute – leaving 89% of drivers open to the distractions caused by mobile phones. Research has found that if you use a mobile phone whilst driving, you are four times more likely to have a crash.

This survey marks the year’s anniversary of the change in law which penalises motorists with a £60 fine and 3 penalty points for using their mobile phone whilst driving, which includes texting and driving. It discovered that the young and techno savvy were more likely to text and drive in congested parts of the country, and that texting whilst driving differs throughout the UK. It is highest in London (53%), and Manchester (50%), and lowest in Aberdeen (31%), Edinburgh (36%), Bristol (36%) and Glasgow (38%).

The RAC Foundation plans to continue its innovative research into texting drivers following its survey, which highlighted that five distinct groups of texting drivers can be found on UK roads. They are:

• Manic multi-tasking multimedia maniacs: 21% of this group found read and send texts in free flowing traffic. It is dominated by techno savvy men aged 18-24 who regard the phone as a personal extension, with texting an almost automatic reaction. The highest proportion of this group can be found in Manchester (26%), followed by London, Wales and Leeds (both 25% ?).

• Opportunistic time optimisers: 19% of those surveyed read and/or send text messages when they are stuck in a jam. This delay may cause people to text, for instance to let others know they are going to be late. Women are more likely than men to fit within this group and this activity decreases with age. This texting approach was by far most common in London (24%).

• Anti-action aware texters: This is the largest single group accounting for 44% of all those surveyed. This group will not text whilst driving, but will leave their phone audible. This may distract the driver or encourage them to alter their driving plan (i.e. stop to read the text) which could create road safety problems, especially if they stop to view a text at an inappropriate location. Women are most likely to be text aware, and this increases with age. Drivers in Glasgow (51%), the West Midlands (51%) and Bristol (51%) are most likely to fit within this category.

• Casual communication perusers: This group accounts for a mere 5% of those surveyed. These drivers read their texts in moving traffic, but would not consider responding or sending messages whilst driving. This activity is most common in Manchester (7%), Glasgow (7%) and Newcastle (6%).

• Virtuous vigilantes: 11% of those surveyed make up this final group of motorists. They responsibly switch off their phones or put them on mute to avoid distractions. Women are marginally more likely than men to fall into this category. Motorists in Aberdeen (19%), Edinburgh (16%) are particularly conscientious about these safety measures.

Elizabeth Dainton, Research Development Manager of the RAC Foundation, said the survey clearly demonstrated that a large proportion of UK drivers were breaking the law by texting and driving.

She said:

“Many young people may not be aware that it is illegal to text and drive and how it places them and other road users in potential danger. Urgent action is needed to address this increasing problem, especially as the ‘Y’ generation, who have grown up with technology and computers, begin to take to the road.

“It is really hard to do two things at once. The fact that using a mobile phone whilst driving means you are four times more likely to have a crash clearly shows how unwise it is. And if you have an accident whilst texting and driving, you can be prosecuted for not using due care and attention on the road.

“Our message is clear - do not text and drive. I strongly urge motorists to switch off their mobile phones when driving or put them on mute. Messages can easily be picked up once the journey has finished and it removes temptation to send or read messages. It also removes the mental distraction that can be caused by receiving a voicemail message.”

Update: We’ve had some excellent coverage from this, including coverage by the Daily Mail, ITN, the Press Association, Channel 4 News,  BBC, Glasgow Herald and motoring and cellular mags.