I’m Helen McCabe, and I lead the Make It Market Drayton campaign. But my journey to this point began many miles from Shropshire – in Liverpool, where I was born and raised.
I’ve always been passionate about business and people. I studied business studies and then marketing, which led me to move to Eastbourne in my twenties to join the events team behind a large Christian festival. It was here I discovered my love for community engagement and communication.
Pioneering in Publishing
After that, I stepped into the world of Christian publishing in a marketing role. During that time, I created the UK’s first Christian ringtones, including the well-known worship song “Here I Am To Worship”. It was an unusual but exciting campaign that showed me how digital creativity could open unexpected doors.
Later, I joined another company where I stayed for eight years before being made redundant. That could have been a setback—but instead, it was the start of something new.
Helen Owen Marketing Enterprises CIC
My husband Paul Owen encouraged me to follow my passion. His only condition?
“As long as it doesn’t cost anything.”
So I founded Helen Owen Marketing Enterprises CIC, a charitable marketing company focused on supporting young people and those out of work. At the time in Eastbourne, 1 in 4 young people were unemployed, and many lacked access to training or support.
We secured funding to buy laptops, hire a room, and began running free digital skills training for 20 young people—covering everything from building websites to using social media for promotion. The aim was to build confidence, improve employability and give young people a chance to succeed.
Helping Charities Get Better Known
We also realised that many local charities were invisible online. People didn’t know where to go for help—so we started offering free website design and marketing to small charities.
This evolved into a project called Community Get Better Known, where we hired a church building and trained young people to become community journalists, connecting them with charities and helping them produce content, manage social media, and run campaigns.
In 2015, I was awarded a TalkTalk Digital Hero Award at the House of Lords, along with £10,000 to hire an apprentice and continue the work.
Raising Awareness of Local Poverty
One day in a café, I overheard someone say that “poverty doesn’t exist in Eastbourne” and that “food banks create dependency.” I felt compelled to respond—not with anger, but with awareness.
I teamed up with a local video company to create a short film showcasing real stories of hardship and support. We interviewed local charities, the police, and Michael, a man sleeping under Eastbourne Pier. The film was shown at a public meeting, attended by councillors, including Leader David Tutt, who pledged to take further action.
Supporting People with Universal Credit
I also worked part-time with Eastbourne Borough Council, using DWP funding to deliver basic IT training ahead of the rollout of Universal Credit in the area. Once the funding ended I then started to work for East Sussex Credit Union (now Wave Community Bank) where I continued this work but was faced a major problem: many claimants lacked a bank account, address, device, phone number, or even basic digital skills—making it impossible to apply and therefore not able to leave their cycle of homlessness.
With approval from the Financial Conduct Authority, we arranged for people to use the Salvation Army’s address and helped them open credit union accounts. I went into the Salvation Army where I opened up credit union accounts for their clients so they could apply for Universal Credit.
The BBC featured this work in their BBC 2 documentary series A Matter of Life and Debt in 2019 (Series 2).
Creating Digital Online Brand
As our work with local businesses and charities grew, we saw the need for a more formal structure. In 2018, we launched Digital Online Brand in partnership with others to help small businesses with websites, marketing, and strategy—offering free advice where possible and tailored help to those just starting out.
After relocating to Shropshire in 2021, we decided to reflect the community-driven nature of our work more clearly. In 2023, we converted Digital Online Brand into a Community Interest Company (CIC), dedicated to delivering free digital training, building local capacity, and supporting grassroots enterprise.
A New Chapter in Shropshire
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, everything shifted. Paul was told he could work permanently from home, and with family spread across Liverpool and Wolverhampton, we decided to move closer to them. That journey brought us to Shropshire—a county we’d never stayed in, but one we quickly came to love.
In our first week, we visited nearly every shop on the high street, buying sweets from the sweet shop, bacon from the butcher, custard tarts from the bakery, and flowers from the florist. The only businesses we haven’t used are the tattoo parlour and the funeral directors—and hopefully we won’t need those anytime soon!
Deputy Clerk and the Wem Economic Forum
Soon after settling in, I took a part-time role as Deputy Clerk to Wem Rural Parish Council. When asked what I was passionate about, I said:
“Helping the local economy and supporting people into work.”
That led to the revival of the Wem Economic Forum, originally a project from Wem Town Council and Wem Rural Parish Council. With support from Shropshire Council, we relaunched the forum, planned a full year of events, and continue to support small businesses and local initiatives today.
Launching Make It Market Drayton
Our work in Wem caught the attention of Market Drayton Town Council, who invited me to create a proposal to support the local economy and raise the profile of the town.
Following meetings, I was selected in February 2025 to lead the Make It Market Drayton campaign.
But I didn’t want to just build a static website that no one would visit. Instead, we developed a dynamic digital platform where local businesses could upload their own news, events, profiles, and job opportunities—a platform led by local content.
We began by interviewing dozens of local businesses, understanding their needs, and designing the platform around them. This was backed up by social media campaigns that spotlighted local success stories and upcoming events.
In June 2025, we launched the platform publicly at the Festival Drayton Centre, where businesses gave feedback on the seven priorities of the Market Drayton Economic Action Plan, setting a course for local development and collaboration over the months and years ahead.
And That Brings Us to Today…
From Liverpool to Eastbourne to Market Drayton, my journey has always been about empowering people, supporting enterprise, and connecting communities.
Whether through digital training, business support, or community journalism, I believe local people know what’s best for their towns—and that with the right tools and encouragement, they can help each other thrive.
Together, we can make it Market Drayton.
