Rachel Hayward

Rachel Hayward is the MD and founder of Ask the Chameleon Ltd, a multiple award-winning micro-consultancy writing winning submissions for commercial tenders, grant funding and business awards, with over £117m in contract value secured for clients to date.

A volunteer Area Lead for the Federation of Small Businesses, Rachel is also a trustee of The Star Trust, an entrepreneurial charity offering vital funding for local smaller charities in the East Midlands.

Self-taught and previously a HR professional, Rachel honed her bid-writing craft at the sharp end in the voluntary and community sector, wielding her pen to secure vital funding to support local unemployed people back to work. Discovering a competitive streak and a determination to level the playing field, over the last 10 years she’s been encouraging SME's to access these commercial opportunities to grow. And she’s never looked back!