Rachel Dunford Consulting

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Rachel Dunford Consulting

Specialist support to the education sector: research, evaluation, business planning, problem solving, writing. Hi, I’m Rachel. I am the Impact Specialist.

My passion lies in helping my clients to capture the difference they make to the lives of the people they serve - especially when that difference is something that might feel intangible or unmeasurable. I work with small businesses, charities, large global membership bodies and everyone in between: so long as you want to make a positive impact somewhere, I want to help you achieve that! I began my career as a management consultant, specialising in complex change programmes and transformed into a solo business founder after having my first child, and I now have 12 years of successful self-employment under my belt. I have built an award-winning evaluation and impact measurement business, successfully helping countless clients to get to the heart of understanding their impact and finding ways to maximise it. I support my clients to focus their efforts on the things that deliver the greatest value and impact and help them make important decisions to stop doing the things that are no longer serving them or their audiences.

01/10/2026

Pure joy 🥰

Today I got to share a beautiful lunch with some of my very dear Impactful Community®️ members, because one of our longest serving members Vanessa was visiting from her home in East Coast Canada.

It’s pretty special when the people you work with become such important friends isn’t it?

Thank you for your wonderful company Aga- balayage and sun-kissed hair specialist in Bedfordshire Alex Chell | Brand Designer Becca Scott and Vanessa ❤️

21/09/2026

It’s today!!

Impactful Networking - for women who want to make an impact, networking done differently.

2pm uk-time, online. Monday 21st September.

Get your space using the link in my bio or stories.

See you soon!

19/09/2026

Back in July, right in the middle of our first Impactful Networking session, someone dropped a single frog emoji into the chat.

No explanation. Just a frog.

A few minutes later, someone else replied, I'm intrigued by the frog.

It turned out one woman had just met another in her breakout room, and the connection between them involved, of all things, a frog. I'm still not telling you the full story, it's better left a little mysterious.

But that's genuinely what these ten-minute conversations can turn into. You never quite know what you'll walk away with, a client, a collaborator, a friend, or apparently, an inside joke about a frog.

Our next session is Monday 21st September, 2 to 3pm.

Fancy finding out what your version of the frog story might be?

Come and join us here: https://go.racheldunfordconsulting.co.uk/rd-impactful-networking

18/09/2026

I don't think I need to tell you Impactful Networking was good. I think the room told me itself.

By the end of our first session, one woman said it had been so many interesting and really meaningful conversations.

Another called it an amazing space.

When I shared the pricing in the chat, one reply just said no brainer.

Nobody was told what to say. Nobody was thanked for saying it. That was just what came out, in real time, while everyone was still logged on.

I think that tells you more about what this actually is than anything I could write about it.

Our first official monthly session is Monday 21st September, 2 to 3pm. Four women, four ten-minute conversations, no pitching required.

Curious what a room like that could do for you? Come and find out for yourself.

Come and join us here: https://go.racheldunfordconsulting.co.uk/impactful-community-membership

18/09/2026

Before every Impactful Networking session, I share a few simple lines with everyone in the room. Not rules exactly, just the spirit of how I want it to feel.

Lead with the difference you make, not what you're selling.

Be as interested as you are interesting.

Share the time, nobody dominates the conversation.

Speak each other's names in the rooms you go into afterwards, so we leave as advocates for one another.

No pitching, no pressure. That's genuinely it. Four sentences and an hour of proper conversation.

I think we've all sat in networking spaces that needed a hundred rules to feel safe, and spaces with barely any that felt like a free-for-all. I wanted something in between. Structured enough that you know what's expected of you, loose enough that you can just be yourself inside it.

If that sounds like the kind of room you'd like to be in, our next session is Monday 21st September, 2 to 3pm.

What would you want a room like that to feel like? Tell me in the comments, then come and find out if this is it.

Come and join us, link below:
https://go.racheldunfordconsulting.co.uk/rd-impactful-networking

17/09/2026

When we opened our first Impactful Networking session back in July, I asked everyone one simple question.

What does networking feel like to you?

The answers came in fast.

Excited. Invigorated, but exhausted. Curious. Sometimes awkward. Previously terrified, now tantalising. Mixed, because the group has to be right.

I sat there reading every single one and thought, this is exactly why I built this differently.

So many of us love the idea of networking and dread the reality of it. We want to meet people, build relationships and grow our businesses, but not if it means forcing our way into a room that isn't right for us, performing a version of ourselves that isn't quite true, or standing there hoping someone talks to us first.

That's the whole reason Impactful Networking exists. Four private, ten-minute conversations, structured enough that you're never left wondering who to talk to, warm enough that you can just be yourself.

If any of those words above sound like how networking feels to you, I think you'd fit right in.

Our next session is Monday 21st September, 2 to 3pm.

Which word would you use to describe how networking feels for you? Tell me in the comments, then come and see if this one feels different.

Link below to join us.
https://go.racheldunfordconsulting.co.uk/rd-impactful-networking

17/09/2026

I love meeting people. I love hearing about what they do. I love making connections.

But I don’t love the pressure that can sometimes come wrapped around traditional networking.

And I know I’m not the only one.

It’s a huge part of why I created Impactful Networking.

I wanted the kind of networking I’d actually feel comfortable walking into: warm, structured enough that you’re not left awkwardly wondering who to talk to, and full of women who genuinely care about the quality of their work and the difference they make.

No working the room or icky pitches required. Just four proper, ten-minute conversations with four other women.

Our first official session is Monday 21st September, 2-3pm.

If networking normally makes you want to run in the opposite direction, perhaps come and try our version.

Link below to save your place.
https://go.racheldunfordconsulting.co.uk/rd-impactful-networking

16/09/2026

I wonder how many opportunities we miss because we’re trying so hard not to be cheeky.

There’s plenty written about women being less likely to ask for what they want at work, whether that’s more money, an opportunity or an introduction.

And I wonder if some of that follows us into networking too.

Because we don’t want to seem pushy or we don’t want someone to think we’ve only spoken to them because we want something.

So instead of saying:

“Actually, I’d really love an introduction to…”

We say:

“Oh, I’m just happy to meet people.”

Which is lovely. But also… you’re allowed to want something from networking.

A referral. A collaboration. A podcast opportunity. An introduction. Two more clients for your new offer.

Asking doesn’t mean expecting somebody to give it to you.

It simply opens up conversations and gives the person opposite you the chance to think, “Actually… I might be able to help with that.”

And then you get to ask what would be useful to them, too.

That’s the kind of generosity I want to encourage inside Impactful Networking. Not awkward pitching or taking from each other. It’s about being open about what we need and being genuinely interested in helping each other get there.

Our next Impactful Networking session is Monday 21st September, 2–3pm.

So come with an ask. Even it feels a bit ‘cheeky’.

Link below to join us ❤️
https://go.racheldunfordconsulting.co.uk/rd-impactful-networking

16/09/2026

This is exactly why I want to give women ten whole minutes together inside Impactful Networking.

I don't just want you to leave knowing that Sarah is a copywriter, Jo is an accountant and Amy is a brand designer.

I want you to understand the difference their work actually makes.

Because that's the bit you remember and more importantly, that's the bit that helps you talk about someone else's work when they're not in the room.

If a friend tells you they're struggling to feel confident about how their business looks, you might suddenly think:

“Oh! I met someone you need to speak to…”

That's when networking starts to become really useful.

Not when we've collected a list of job titles, but when we've understood each other well enough to recognise the opportunities, referrals and introductions that could be a good fit.

That's a huge part of what I want to create through Impactful Networking.

Our first official monthly session is this Monday 21st September, 2–3pm, and I'd love you to be in the room.

Four women. Four ten-minute conversations. And plenty of time to get beyond the job title.

Head to the link below to secure your place.
https://go.racheldunfordconsulting.co.uk/rd-impactful-networking

15/09/2026

I LOVE meeting brilliant women.

I’m significantly less enthusiastic about walking into a room full of strangers and being told to “go and network” 😂

So I created the kind of networking I actually look forward to attending.

Impactful Networking is held via Zoom and gives you access to four proper, one-to-one conversations with four women in business every month.

No working the room, no 60-second pitch, and no awkwardly wondering who to talk to next.

Just ten uninterrupted minutes together to talk about what you do, what you’re looking for, the impact you make - and how you might be able to help each other.

Because networking can lead to brilliant things: clients, referrals, collaborations, introductions and people who carry your name into rooms you’re not in.

Our next session is Monday 21st September, 2–3pm.
❤️£20 a month
❤️Just £5 extra for Impactful Community® members

If this sounds like your kind of networking, come and join us. Link below to save your place.
https://go.racheldunfordconsulting.co.uk/rd-impactful-networking

Address

Bedford

Website

http://www.theimpactspecialist.co.uk/, https://www.racheldunfordconsulting.co.uk/course

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