Our People

Our team draws its experience from having worked globally across media, government, the third sector and business. We are politically engaged and independently minded.

We have worked with governments across the world, liaised with diplomats, forged reputations for our clients and led global campaigns. We work to a simple mission – to craft and deliver strategies that aid commercial goals, help clients communicate better with stakeholders,  lobby government on purpose-led change, and manage reputations effectively.

Leon Cook

Founder Partner



Leon has more than 20 years experience as an international government relations and corporate communications specialist, having worked for four of the largest global communications agencies. He has spearheaded government affairs for multiple foreign governments and leading corporates, overseen communications and change management as a seconded department head within two multinationals, and worked in-house for the likes of Anglo American and SONY.
Read More
Leon helps leading brands connect with both Westminster and governments in major capitals and has worked on award-winning advocacy campaigns. As the Founder of Atticus, Leon is responsible for overall brand strategy and client campaign development across the company’s diverse client base, providing senior counsel on media and political strategy. Leon has broad sectoral client experience, focussing in recent past on corporate sustainability and ESG strategy. He is a former Vice-President of the CIPR Public Affairs committee and currently serves as a PRCA awards judge and member of the Public Affairs Board Executive Committee.
Read Less

Sir Charles Napier

Founder Partner



Charlie has been working in politics and communications for 23 years, both as an advisor and as a former local authority councillor. He previously worked for a number of the UK’s public affairs agencies before co-founding Atlas Partners in 2015, picking up the 2019 PRCA Public Affairs Agency of the Year Award.
Read More
Charlie’s clients have encompassed a wide variety of sectors and he has particular experience in the culture, media, sport, energy, charitable and environmental worlds.
Read Less

Senior Team

Suzi Whyte

Operations Director

Ben Coltham

Associate Director

Michael Dowsett

ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR

Bethan Phillips

SENIOR CONSULTANT

Jonathan Webb

Senior Consultant

Ella Rose

Senior Consultant

Alex Tiley

Senior Consultant

Senior Counsel

Lionel Zetter

Senior Counsel



Lionel Zetter is a communications specialist with more than forty years’ experience working in-house and with agencies. His main areas of expertise are public affairs and public diplomacy.
Read More
He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, and its former President. He is also a Fellow of the Public Relations and Communications Association, and a former Chairman of its Public Affairs Board, and of the Government Affairs Group. He has won multiple awards, including several ‘Lifetime Achievement’ and ‘Outstanding Contribution’ awards.

As well as working with a string of UK and international communications agencies, Lionel has worked within the UK government as a special adviser, policy adviser and Policy Fellow. He is currently Vice Chairman of the Enterprise Forum, Vice President of Public Affairs Asia, and an Advisory Council Member of Scottish Business UK - as well as Senior Counsel at Atticus Partners.

Lionel has been an association chairman, election agent, elected councillor and Parliamentary candidate. He has worked in the House of Commons and the House of Lords.

He is also author of ‘The Political Campaign Handbook, ‘Blueprint’, and ‘Lobbying – the Art of Political Persuasion’.
Read Less

James Frith

Senior Counsel



James Frith is an experienced parliamentarian serving formerly as MP for Bury North. He is a former member of the Parliamentary Select Committee for Education and was Private Parliamentary Secretary to the current Shadow Secretary of Defence, John Healey MP.
Read More
James was an influential member of the Education Committee that reported in its inquiry on the value of Higher Education. He has strong national and regional government ties across the UK, while also serving as a consultant on diplomacy and international government affairs campaigns.
Read Less

Mary Jo Jacobi

Senior Counsel



Mary Jo is an internationally-renowned expert in reputation, brand and crisis management and a trusted advisor on the complex dynamics of international corporate, economic and government relationships.
Read More
In addition to devising award-winning global brand strategies for the HSBC Group and Lehman Brothers, Mary Jo created the often-copied use of airport jetties for brand building and thought leadership. Mary Jo holds the distinction of being appointed to public sector office by two American Presidents, two British Prime Ministers and a reigning monarch. George H W Bush named her Assistant US Secretary of Commerce. She was Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan and later a member of his Advisory Committee on Trade Negotiations. Prime Ministers David Cameron and Theresa May appointed her to the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, prior to which she was one of Her Majesty’s Civil Service Commissioners. Early in her career she served on the staff of the US Senate Committee on Commerce.
Read Less

Peter Cardwell

Senior Counsel



Peter Cardwell has worked at the highest level of the UK Government for three-and-a-half years as a senior ministerial adviser to four Cabinet Ministers in four departments: the Ministry of Justice; Home Office; Northern Ireland Office and the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government.
Read More
As well as working with Atticus, he is Political Editor of talkRadio and presenter at the station. A graduate of Oxford and Fulbright Scholar to Columbia University in New York, he spent 10 years in broadcast journalism before government, including stints at BBC Newsnight and Question Time. He is also the author of the book, ‘The Secret Life of Special Advisers’.
Read Less

Read our insights if you’d like to hear more from our team.

Atticus Partners works with a network of freelancers and global partners who provide the flexible resources and technical expertise needed to provide bespoke results to our clients. Our freelancers enhance our capability to serve clients and deliver impactful solutions, utilising regional and local knowledge. Working together, we can provide additional capacity and meet any skills gap that our clients may require.

Through our global partnerships, we deliver results for our clients. Our integrated network enhances our capability to serve clients and deliver solutions utilising regional and local expertise.

We’ve cultivated an environment that harbours independence. Whether they are early birds who go to yoga and then smash their news updates before 8.30am, or they simply hate travelling on the tube in rush hour, we trust and respect our team’s skills and conscientiousness. As long as core responsibilities are covered, our team is free to work flexibly.

We’re proud to be a living wage employer. We believe that no one should have to choose between financial stability and doing a job they love, so we pay a wage that allows our team to save for a rainy day and guarantees a good quality of life.

Many members of the Atticus Partners team hold the Communications Management Standard (CMS). CMS demonstrates a commitment to achieving excellence and assures our clients that we are providing the most effective service possible.

Sign up to receive the Atticus Agenda


Sign Up Here