PR Expert Up for Award. Swindon public relations specialist and journalist Fiona Scott is in the running for a top award for entrepreneurship. Fiona, managing director and founder of Scott Media, has reached the finals of the Solopreneur of the Year award. All part of the Great British Business Awards. She’s already taken the title of Solopreneur of the Year for the South West 2025.
This hotly-contested category recognises and celebrates the achievements of individuals who operate their businesses on their own. It highlights the tenacity, resilience and drive it takes to build and maintain a successful business as a solopreneur.
‘It’s a real honour to get this nomination for the Great British Business Awards and to have reached the finals,’ said Fiona.
‘Small businesses are often overlooked. So this recognition is so rewarding. Running your own business is hard work, with lots of late nights and challenging decisions to make. And this nomination is testament to the dedication and passion that I and the team I have around me put in.’
PR Expert Up for Award – Fiona receiving the SW regional award from Paul Day, of Filestream in Berkshire.
Scott Media
Fiona founded Scott Media more than 17 years ago. She uses her skills as a former TV and newspaper journalist to tell her clients’ good news stories and get them significant media coverage. She places PR front and centre of their marketing strategy.
In the last 18 months, Fiona’s launched Scott Media Speakers, after spotting a gap in the market for a speakers’ agency aimed at those relatively new to speaking and wanting more opportunities. Scott Media Speakers now has 50 speakers on the books, many of whom have regular bookings.
Fiona runs a successful podcast – The PR Not BS Podcast. It’s approaching 100 episodes aired and more than 4,000 downloads across the world.
And Fiona is also a champion of other small businesses and entrepreneurs. She once again sponsored this year’s Best Solopreneur category at the Best Businesswomen Awards.
For more about Scott Media, which supports local SMEs and entrepreneurs with their public relations strategy and activity, visit https://scottmedia.uk/.
The announcement of winners of the Great British Business Awards will take place at a ceremony in Marlow, Buckinghamshire, on September 26.
Take a Genealogy Road Trip. Family Wise, genealogy specialists based in Wiltshire, are calling for this summer and summers to come to be a great time for discovering family history through genealogy tourism.
Genealogy tourism, or ancestral tourism, refers to when someone travels to places connected with their family history. This could be visiting a town where a great grandmother was born. Or standing in a church that witnessed the baptism of ancestors. Or exploring the streets of a place generations of families once walked.
Family Wise is a Calne-based business in Wiltshire. They’ve been operating for over ten years in the field of heir tracing, people finding and genealogy.
Start locally
Kirsty Gray, managing director, thinks genealogy tourism is best when it starts at a local level.
Take a Genealogy Road Trip – Family WIse Kirsty Gray
‘When looking for family history in the British Isles, it’s best to start with:
local archives and record offices
churches and churchyards
local libraries
historical homes
newspaper archives, and talking to people in the community,’ commented Kirsty.
‘Summer is the perfect time to go digging for family adventures. The sun is out for longer and the weather is generally better. Plus, record offices and local museums have summer hours. So, you can seek the help you need to for longer and with more local knowledge.’
Where to start
Popular places to start among those who’ve already embraced this type of tourism, are:
In agricultural hubs in rural Cornwall and Yorkshire villages
And industrial heritage in Manchester, Birmingham or Sheffield
You’ll also find genealogy tourists visiting the Scottish Highlands and islands exploring clan heritage. Or exploring Northern Ireland’s wealth of records of those who crossed the Irish sea.
‘You’ll need to prepare for your historical adventures. Make sure you bring:
research notes
photographs of ancestors
lists of questions you want answered
a camera, a notebook, an address book and maps.
You’ll need to be ready for emotional moments and also for unsuccessful searches,’ Kirsty continued.
Beyond visiting ancestral homes or local archives, tourists can join a guided family history walking tour, visit local county record offices or archives or a local living history museum.
One example of this in Wiltshire is the Athelstan Museum in Malmesbury, located within the town hall. Run by volunteers, there is often someone who knows someone who remembers someone leading to a treasure trail of clues. Ditto with Swindon Local Studies.
‘Doing a genealogy trip is about making your trip meaningful by visiting places with your family’s name stamped on it and knowing the places you’re walking are where your ancestors once walked or where they lived,’ Kirsty concluded.
Family Wise
Working since 2012, Family Wise is a professional family history and people finding company. They’re dedicated to uncovering family trees and assisting with people-finding needs. They specialise in locating beneficiaries in estates, solving family mysteries and working as professional people finders.
Kirsty researched her own family history from a very young age. In 2013, she published a book entitled ‘Tracing Your West Country Ancestors’ to help others to research their own heritage in the South West.
Family Wise has a team of expert genealogists to help connect you to ancestors. To get a free, no obligation quote to start a genealogical journey, visit: https://family-wise.co.uk/
Christ Church Gets Eco Award. Christ Church Swindon is the proud recipient of the A Rocha UK Eco Church Gold Award. It recognises the church as a national leader in Christian creation care. The award follows a detailed and rigorous assessment process. During it, evaluators described Christ Church as ‘as beacon Christian community, inspiring other churches to make a similar journey in their own context.’
The gold award is the highest level in A Rocha UK’s Eco Church scheme. The scheme encourages and supports churches in caring for God’s earth through worship, buildings, land, community engagement, and lifestyle. Christ Church is now one of only 109 churches in the UK to achieve the Gold Award, the third in the Diocese of Bristol and the first in Swindon.
Dedicated team
This achievement is in large part thanks to the dedicated work of the church’s Eco Team. Headed by Anne Grainger, her leadership and commitment have helped turn vision into reality.
Anne Grainger, Eco Team Chair, said:
‘We’re happy to receive this award as it shows we’re moving in the right direction. This isn’t the finish line but a milestone on our journey to help protect the earth for future generations. And to inspire others to do the same.’
Daphne Hardwick, Christ Church Eco Fair Organiser, said:
‘We want to extend our heartfelt thanks to the many local eco and wildlife organisations who’ve supported and partnered with us throughout this journey. Their expertise, encouragement, and collaboration have been invaluable in helping us achieve this milestone. We look forward to continuing these strong partnerships as we work together in our community to care for God’s creation.’
The Rt Revd Neil Warwick, Suffragan Bishop of Swindon, said:
‘I’d like to offer my congratulations to Christ Church Swindon for becoming the first church building in Swindon to receive this status. They’ve joined two other congregations in the diocese who’re also commended for their attentiveness to environmental justice. This is a wonderful example of how our church communities are responding to the cry of the earth. And I’m pleased that their hard work has received this recognition.’
The Revd Canon Simon Stevenette, Vicar of Christ Church with St Mary’s, expressed gratitude for the dedication of any people over the years:
‘This achievement is the result of years of prayer, action and partnership. We’re thankful for all who’ve worked so hard to help us reach this point. From those who inspired our creation care journey years ago, to the many volunteers and community partners who have been part of our mission. We’re honoured to get this recognition and are humbled by the responsibility to inspire others in caring for God’s creation.’
Christ Church Gets Eco Award – The Swindon Christ Church eco team
A tribute
The award is also a tribute to the legacy of creation care pioneers within the church, including:
Owen Barraclough
Margaret Williams
Phil Mansfield
As well as the inspiration of Martin Palmer and the encouragement of the Old Town Partnership and Swindon Deanery colleagues.
Looking ahead, Christ Church plans to continue working with its many community partners to further develop its environmental mission, seeking to live out God’s passion for the renewal of the whole created order. We hope that this Gold Award will inspire other churches to pursue environmental initiatives. And hear the cry of the earth and join us in achieving Net Zero by 2030.
Big Breakfast Meets High Sheriff of Wiltshire. Wiltshire’s High Sheriff Martin Nye had an early start when he visited Swindon’s Big Breakfast Plus. He did so as part of his focus on food, exploring the theme of farm to fork.
Martin, who took over as High Sheriff in April and who is also chair of the Soil Association, spent time at the charity. It opens seven days a week, from 7.30am, offering a cooked breakfast and warm welcome to homeless and hungry people in Swindon.
Big Breakfast Plus operate from the Pilgrim Centre, and fits well into the farm to food theme. It uses locallysourced food where possible. This includes 800 free range eggs a week from Beechwood Eggs in Berkshire.
They also get organic milk from 10 Green Bottles at Berkeley Farm Dairy in Wroughton. And some of the sausages come from Helen Browning’s organic farm in Bishopstone. Donations of fruit are also brought in, from a local allotment.
Martin said: ‘I was so impressed with the well-oiled machine of Big Breakfast Plus. The speed, efficiency, and very high standards, all delivered with good humour and kindness. The charity and its volunteers are doing some valuable work that’s evidently a vital part of the lives of the people who use the service.’
Big Breakfast Meets High Sheriff – Wiltshire High Sheriff Martin Nye with volunteers at Big Breakfast Plus
A warm welcome
Big Breakfast Plus trustee Charlotte Mannion said it was wonderful to welcome the High Sheriff.
She said: ‘He spent a lot of time talking to the team, volunteers and guests and seemed most interested in what we are doing. We agree with the principle of using local produce where we can, and are always interested in hearing from potential suppliers. We get through a lot of food, here, often serving well over 100 breakfasts in a day!’
Big Breakfast Plus relies on volunteers to help run the café and also donations to fund its services. For more information about how to support the charity, visit https://bigbreakfastplus.org.uk/.
RPA Founder Business Award Finalist. Swindon-based entrepreneur Fi Da Silva Adams is a finalist in the prestigious Best Businesswomen Awards2025. That’s the UK’s largest celebration of female business talent!
Fi, is the founder and CEO of Swindon and Wiltshire’s leading performing arts company for children and young people, Revolution Performing Arts (RPA). She made the shortlist for the Best Businesswoman Working with Children & Families award.
After launching RPA in 2007 as a small drama group for toddlers and preschoolers, Fi soon expanded the programme. She extended it to offer creative performing arts experiences to children of all ages. RPA was the first organisation to introduce performing arts after-school clubs in the Swindon area.
Revolution Performing Arts Founder & Business Award Finalist – Fi Da Silva Adams, founder of Revolution Performing Arts and its sister company, Rapport Community Interest Company
RPA today
Today, RPA delivers over 1,200 sessions every year. 300 children attend weekly classes. And almost 5,000 young people take part in its Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) Programme across Swindon and Wiltshire. The organisation also stages five public shows per year. They offer inclusive, pressure-free performance opportunities for children from all walks of life.
Fi said ‘Being named a finalist is a huge honour, especially for work that means so much to me personally. Performing arts has the power to change lives, and we see the impact every single day. It’s a privilege to create safe, joyful spaces where young people can be themselves and grow in confidence.’
Besides RPA, Fi also leads Rapport Community Interest Company (CIC). That’s a not-for-profit sister organisation aimed at 11–18-year-olds. Rapport explores all forms of performing arts, including:
drama
singing …
…and dance. All delivered in a way that’s age-appropriate, inclusive and empowering. The focus is on confidence, self-expression, and celebrating individuality.
Fi, who overcame her own challenging start in life, is a passionate advocate for the transformative power of the arts. AND the importance of every child feeling seen, heard and valued.
The Best Businesswomen Awards
The Best Businesswomen Awards recognise and celebrate the achievements of women across all industries.
Debbie Gilbert, founder of the awards, said ‘This is the 11th year of these awards, and once again, we’ve seen an incredible calibre of entries. Despite the mounting pressures faced by women in business, from funding gaps to rising costs to the mental load of balancing life and leadership, these finalists have shown that female entrepreneurship is stronger than ever. The standard of entries impressed our judging panel. We’re proud to shine a light on these trailblazing women.’
On the 10th October 2025, the Gala Awards Night at the Daventry Court Hotel, Daventry will see the winners announced.
To find out more about Revolution Performing Arts and its initiatives, visit www.revolutionpa.co.uk.
