BECG acquires Cavendish to grow advocacy offer

Built Environment Communications Group has acquired global public affairs consultancy Cavendish, which it has re-named Cavendish Advocacy.

Under the deal, Cavendish Advocacy will continue to trade as a separate company from BECG under the revised Cavendishadvocacy.com brand.

Cavendish has a 17-year track record in government relations advocacy across the UK and internationally, on behalf of clients including Google, Starbucks, Infosys, Aster Group, Keolis and the Canal & River Trust. In the built environment, Cavendish’s clients include housebuilders Clarion Housing Group, Crest Nicholson, Grainger, Aster Group and L&Q.

Founder Alex Challoner will continue as the managing director of Cavendish Advocacy and join BECG’s board, reporting to chief executive Stephen Pomeroy.

BECG said its government relations clients “will have access to Cavendish’s established national and international network, expertise and experience in political advocacy and government relations”, as a result of the acquisition.

Cavendish’s clients, meanwhile, stand to benefit from integration with BECG’s digital and social media expertise, and from BECG’s regional office network – with teams based in Manchester, Leeds and Birmingham – and its understanding of devolved and regional government.

The deal aims to bring together national and international public affairs services with sophisticated digital communications, better enabling clients across the North and Midlands to capitalise on the Government’s ‘levelling up’ agenda.

Pomeroy said: “This acquisition and re-launch of Cavendish Advocacy, which we initiated at the beginning of 2020…is an important step towards delivering more rapid growth for BECG by offering these government relations advocacy services to clients in the built environment.

“With Cavendish on board, we see fresh development opportunities as the government announces the infrastructure, energy, housing and green agenda for growth.”

Kevin Whitmore, director of BECG in the North, added: “Our combined regional knowledge and national political reach means we can continue to help clients capitalise on the opportunities presented by the Government’s levelling-up agenda.”

And Challoner said: “With BECG’s resources behind us, we look forward to scaling up our political advocacy work in the UK and globally – offering clients communications solutions that help them achieve success in this new, post-Covid-19 world.”

Alex Challoner is the founder of Cavendish