ABOUT
Tell stories that spark excitement…
This is me, Sarah Oswald aka The Authentic Spark, and this is how I got here…
The Authentic Spark was born out of my passion for developing and supporting others including working with teams and individuals on visioning, creative collaborative thinking, skills development and personal professional growth. As The Authentic Spark, I harness my ability to see the bigger picture, to make connections and to enable others to reflect on and utilise their own resources.
I have 20 years’ experience in the sector incorporating both private sector consultancy as well as local authority community engagement, working with public and volunteer heritage sector organisations.
As a director of PLB, a leading heritage design consultancy, for 10 years I was responsible for all aspects of HR, training development and delivery within the company, and experienced the challenges as well as the opportunities arising from change in an organisation. As a consultant I was the lead on PLB’s strategic work including feasibility studies, options appraisals and visioning, supporting Heritage Lottery Fund bid applications and developing skills through audience development and interpretation training. Working with PLB’s designers I lead interpretive planning and scripting, from the concept designs through to the delivery of the projects.
I am an Associate of the Museums Association and on the AMA Mentor list as well as an Heritage Lottery Fund Resilient Heritage Mentor. I hold a Certificate in Coaching with an Affiliate membership of the Association of Coaching as well as a City and Guilds Certificate in Adult Learning and an Open University Certificate in Management. With membership of a number of professional bodies including the Chartered Management Institute, Association for Heritage Interpretation, GEM and AIM alongside my long standing sector experience, I have a strong and diverse network of contacts within the sector enabling a wide perspective on any project or challenge.
