Brand Guidelines

James Ketchell

Corporate communications expert. Version 1.0 — June 2026.
01 — Colour Palette
Primary
Navy #1E2D40 Headings · Hero bg
Slate #4B5F7D Primary brand colour
Slate Light #6B7F9D Secondary text · Icons
Slate Tint #E8EDF4 Backgrounds · Dividers
Slate Pale #F4F6FA Card backgrounds
Accent
Amber #C8924A CTAs · Highlights
Amber Light #E8B87A Hover states · Italics
Amber Pale #FDF5EC Alert backgrounds
Neutrals
Off White #F8F7F5 Page background
Mid Grey #9AA3AE Captions · Meta text
Dark Grey #3A3A3A Body copy
Black #181818 Display headings
02 — Typography
Heading font
Playfair Display — Serif
Clear.
Compelling.
Considered.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Body font
Source Sans 3 — Sans-serif
A communications specialist with two decades of experience helping complex organisations tell their stories simply and effectively.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Type Scale — In Use
Label / Eyebrow — 11px · 0.2em tracking · uppercase · Source Sans 3 600
Display heading
40–56px · Playfair 700
Section heading — 28px · Playfair 600
Subheading — 20px · Playfair 600 · Slate colour
Body copy — 16px · Source Sans 3 400 · 1.7 line height. This is how longer passages of text will read across the site, including bio text, blog posts, and portfolio descriptions.
Small / caption — 13px · Source Sans 3 300 · Mid grey · Used for dates, tags, image captions.
03 — Components
Buttons
Strategy New AI
Navigation
Hero Section
Corporate Communications
Helping complex organisations tell their stories simply.
Two decades of experience across membership bodies, trade associations, and social good organisations.
Service Cards
Strategy
Goal-first communications that work for any organisation.
Writing
Impactful writing for all audiences and channels.
AI
Practical AI-assisted communications for organisations that need to do more with less.
Reports
End-to-end report delivery — writing, editing, design, production.
Portfolio Thumbnail
Unlocking £1 billion
of Government funding
Campaigns · Government Affairs
Spacing Scale
4px
XS
8px
SM
16px
MD
24px
LG
40px
XL
64px
2XL
04 — Tone of Voice
Do
  • Be direct and purposeful — lead with the point
  • Use plain language to explain complex ideas
  • Let results and evidence do the work
  • Write in the active voice
  • Be warm but professional — not informal
  • Use specific numbers and outcomes where possible
Don't
  • Use jargon or buzzwords without purpose
  • Over-qualify or hedge unnecessarily
  • Use passive constructions to avoid clarity
  • Pad copy with filler phrases
  • Be overly formal or stiff in tone
  • Exaggerate — understated confidence is stronger