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Martyn Barr has recently been working on the sequel to his acclaimed Sheringham at War: 100 years on book published in 2018. He was commissioned to produce a companion volume on the life and times of this popular North Norfolk town during the Second World War, aptly entitled Sheringham at War: 75 years on, to coincide with this year's VE and VJ Days.

Unfortunately the coronavirus pandemic has put paid to a big launch at Sheringham Museum planned for this spring.

Written by Tim Groves, the 84-page richly illustrated book will be available in the summer from town centre outlets as well as online priced £5.99.

We've recently undertaken a magazine rebranding exercise for the Christian charity Rural Ministries. The high quality, 48-page magazine has been renamed Mosaic (previously Vibe). It is published three times a year and distributed to churches nationwide.

Having worked on an ad hoc basis for the past ten years for Corby town centre we were delighted to be appointed as its retained marketing consultancy in the summer of 2018. Our brief includes marketing, PR, events, advertising and website for the scheme, which includes over 150 shops. At the start of 2019, we were also pleased to be appointed marketing consultants to the Longton Exchange shopping centre in Stoke. Over the years we have built up significant experience working for shopping centres large and small across London, the South East and the Midlands.

Also at the end of 2018 we secured the contract to provide design services to Christian charity Rural Ministries. This comprises three editions of the 48-page VIBE magazine per year as well as ad hoc design projects.

We completed two book projects during the third quarter of 2018. The first was for Kent College in Canterbury, entitled Then Sings My Soul. This was a tribute to the Kent College Choristers and their inspirational leaders Jackie and Rod Spencer. It includes a collection of compositions and arrangements by Rod for the choir, who have achieved significant success in UK competitions as well as performing at prestigious venues across Europe. This is our second book for Kent College, the first being A Richer Dust Concealed – The Old Boys of Kent College who Died in Conflict, published in 2016.



Our second book project in 2018 was for the Sheringham World War One Centenary Commemoration and Remembrance Project. Published to mark the 100th centenary of the end of World War I, Sheringham at War 100 Years On is a unique memoir of life in the war years and the contribution made by locals of this popular North Norfolk seaside town who fought and died in the service of ‘King and Country’.

Over 500 copies were sold in the first two weeks of publication alone. Along with advertising and donations, this more than covered the cost of production, enabling significant donations to be made to the Help for Heroes and Poppy Appeal charities. A companion volume covering World War II is being planned for 2019.

In the summer of 2018, Whitefriars became one of the first shopping centres in the UK to embrace the emerging Augmented Reality (AR) computer technology.

Impact created a free smartphone app utilising the HP Reveal platform for a secret ‘Garden Spy Trail’, part of Whitefriars’ 2018 ‘In Bloom’ campaign. Ten ‘trigger’ images were placed in shop windows. When participants pointed their smartphone or tablet camera at the image, a hidden picture and nature topic was revealed, as well as a secret word. The ten secret words then needed to be arranged to make a meaningful sentence.

Every child submitting a correct entry received one of Martyn Barr’s acclaimed nature books and four winners were selected at random to receive a £25 gift card to spend in a Whitefriars store of their choice.

In July 2018, we were delighted to attend the 50th anniversary celebrations of ITOPF, the world’s foremost, not-for-profit, marine pollution response consultancy, which provides advice on effective response to spills of oil and chemicals at sea.

ITOPF is Impact’s oldest client. We well remember attending the organisation’s 25th anniversary celebrations back in 1993! We are grateful for having such loyal clients, including the Whitefriars shopping centre in Canterbury (19 years) and the International Association of Teachers of English as a Foreign Language (17 years). We must be doing something right!

Martyn Barr challenged Year 6 students from The Orchard School, Canterbury to come up with the plot for his 2017 Christmas story book, and St Nick in Neverland was the result! The 20-page story and activity book was commissioned by the Whitefriars shopping centre as a gift for Santa to give away in its Christmas Grotto.

Martyn presented signed copies of the book to each of the pupils and participated in a Q&A session with the children, who are big fans of his educational books that they use in the classroom. He was joined by Peter Pan (David Ribi) and Wendy (Samantha Dorrance), cast members from The Marlowe Theatre pantomime, as an extra surprise for the class.

We took a break from book writing this year in order to concentrate on our relocation to beautiful North Norfolk. However, we were delighted to be asked to produce a guide to Canterbury’s flora and fauna by Canterbury Connected (business improvement district), which was also supported by the Whitefriars shopping centre, Canterbury City Council, Canterbury Cathedral and Canterbury Christ Church University.

Ten thousand copies of A Canterbury Safari were produced, for free distribution to visitors and residents. One side of the publication features a guide to Canterbury’s green spaces, whilst the other, targeted at younger family members, highlights some of the wildlife that might be encountered in the city.

Impact has been appointed by Tavern Holdings Limited to handle the rebranding and associated design services for its three historic Kent pubs - The Phoenix Tavern in Faversham, The Ship in Herne Bay and The White Horse Inn in Bridge.

In addition to the new branding for both Tavern Holdings itself and the three pubs, Impact has produced a range of literature, including stationery, gift vouchers, loyalty cards and even personalised beer mats, as well as advertisements, signage and display materials.

Impact has been closely involved with a new fundraising campaign for long standing client, The Fifth Trust. The charity, based in Barham, Kent, provides daycare educational and work opportunities for adults with learning difficulties. The Trust is seeking to raise £2 million to fund new life skills and educational facilities at its Greenbanks site.

A series of fundraising events have already been staged, kindly supported by the charity’s patron, acclaimed TV and movie actress Pam Ferris. Impact has provided promotional material and media relations services to support these events. We have also produced a fundraising brochure.

Impact is currently developing a new website and brochure for the charity, in addition to regular leaflets promoting The Fifth Trust’s garden centre and cafe. Last year, Impact implemented a rebranding programme which included new signage across the site as well as new stationery and other marketing collateral.

Impact has been currying favour with one local entrepreneur as he seeks to expand his popular food business. Already a regular at local events across the south east of England and also in France, Paul Babra’s range of curries, sauces, spice mixes and chutneys are all made to traditional recipes inspired by his Indian grandmother.

Impact has redesigned Paul’s packaging and labels as well as his promotional materials. With a more consistent and eye-catching image, Paul has been able to expand his Bahrani Foods range and find new outlets for his Indian treats.

Martyn Barr's latest book explores Canterbury’s well and lesser known green spaces.

Sponsored by the Whitefriars shopping centre as part of its contribution towards Canterbury in Bloom 2016, No Lovelier Place celebrates Canterbury’s green spaces, with fascinating insights into their history, ecology and environment. As with previous Whitefriars sponsorships, free copies have been sent to every school in the district.

The book takes its title from a letter written by modernist writer Virginia Woolf to her sister in 1904 which stated: “There is no lovelier place in the world than Canterbury – that I say with hand on my heart as I sit in Florence – and I have seen Venice too.” Woolf spent time in Canterbury and stayed in Blean, coincidentally where Martyn now lives and works. A college at the University of Kent is named in her honour.

Commenting on No Lovelier Place, Canterbury Connected BID CIC Chief Executive Bob Jones describes it as “… a lyrical homage to a beautiful city’s most beautiful places”. He adds: “With stunning imagery and Martyn’s eye for quirky detail and fascinating facts, it is as interesting and compelling for those of us who think we know Canterbury well as it will be to a first-time visitor.”

The 68-page softback book is lavishly illustrated throughout, with many of the photographs taken by Martyn himself. Copies of No Lovelier Place can be purchased online at £5.99 including delivery from www.OOTBShop.co.uk, along with Martyn’s other titles. The book is also available from Canterbury Cathedral Shop and other city centre outlets.

This month sees the publication of A Richer Dust Concealed' - The Old Boys of Kent College who Died in Conflict.

Kent College, Canterbury had been established less than 30 years at the outbreak of the First World War. It was still a small school of less than a hundred boys as term began in September 1914. So, the grievous death toll of 50 former pupils in that conflict represents more than seven per cent of the total number who had passed through its gates. To these must be added a further 42 old boys, who lost their lives in the Second World War and three others, who subsequently died in the Korean War, the Troubles in Northern Ireland and the Falklands Conflict. The instances of extraordinary bravery and self-sacrifice amongst the 95 Old Canterburians who lost their lives were doubtless matched by similar actions for which no records have survived.

This new book, inspired by the successive centenaries of the Great War, is an attempt to tell their stories. It was written by Graham Noble with Julian Waltho and designed and published by Martyn Barr. Copies, priced £7.99, are available from the school.

Primary schools across the Canterbury district have received free copies of a new book on water thanks to generous sponsorship from the Whitefriars shopping centre.

Water World has been produced by Martyn Barr as part of the shopping centre’s contribution towards Canterbury in Bloom 2015. The 56-page softback book is beautifully presented with over 60 stunning photographs, articles, infographics and facts highlighting all the many facets of water, including weather, erosion, rivers, oceans, plants, transport, treatment, pollution and the human body. The challenge of providing adequate supplies of clean water in developing countries, as well as the importance of using water wisely in the home and garden, are also covered.

Targeted primarily at 9-11 year olds, though likely to appeal to a broad readership, Water World is Martyn’s seventh young person’s guide. He describes his new guide as “a coffee table book for children”, adding: “We all take water for granted but it is very precious. After all, it makes up around two-thirds of you and me! But the impact of climate change, growing populations and increasing demand put huge pressure on our plant’s resources. I hope that, after reading this book, children will understand a lot more about this amazing substance and how important it is for us to use water wisely, to ensure there is enough to go around both now and in the future.”

Copies of Water World are available online from www.waterworldbook.co.uk, priced £4.99 including delivery.