Robin Simpson Chief Executive, Creative Lives Expand Robin Simpson has been Chief Executive of Creative Lives since September 2005. Robin is the Chair of the Steering Group for the national Get Creative campaign – a partnership between the BBC and hundreds of arts and cultural organisations across the UK. He is also the Chair of Peterborough Presents, the Peterborough Creative People & Places Consortium. Robin was a founding Trustee of Luminate – Scotland's creative ageing organisation. He has been a Trustee of the National Council for Voluntary Organisations and a member of the ChangeUp Volunteering Hub Scrutiny Committee. Robin has served on committees and boards for several Government Departments including: the Office for Civil Society (Cabinet Office); Department for Culture, Media and Sport; the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. Robin completed his MBA with the Open University Business School in 2002. Before joining Creative Lives Robin was Deputy Chief Executive of Making Music – the national umbrella body for amateur music making, supporting over 2,000 amateur music groups throughout the UK, including choirs, orchestras, and music promoters. Previously, he worked as General Manager of the British Federation of Festivals, supporting the volunteer organisers of more than 300 festivals of music, dance and speech and drama across the UK. Robin has substantial experience of working with volunteers, having also worked for six years for the Royal National Institute for the Blind, managing a team of over 130 volunteer readers to record academic textbooks onto tape for visually-impaired students. Robin is a keen amateur French horn player, currently a member of the Northampton Symphony Orchestra. He is also a perennial ballroom dancing student, a frequent theatre-goer, an enthusiastic reader of contemporary fiction, an insatiable consumer of classical and world music and a keen blogger at culturalplayingfield.org and culturaldessert.blogspot.com. “For those of us who voluntarily practice some form of arts activity in our own time – and some estimates suggest that this includes almost half the adult population, playing in orchestras, singing in choirs, acting, dancing, painting, lace-making etc. – it’s often difficult to articulate exactly why we do it. But it usually becomes such a significant part of our lives we genuinely feel we couldn’t do without it.”
Lindsey Jackson Finance and HR Director, Creative Lives Expand Lindsey joined Creative Lives in 2009 and has the dual role of overseeing Finance and HR for the organisation, she is a member of both the AAT and CIPD holding qualifications with both. During her spare time, she enjoys reading and wild swimming. “What I enjoy most about working for Creative Lives is the opportunity to work with so many talented individuals both in-house and the organisations we work alongside with, it really is inspiring to see so many diverse and different forms of creative expression”.
Andreea Lupu Communications Officer, Creative Lives Expand Andreea joined Creative Lives in 2020 as Communications Administrator. In the last six years, she has worked across various areas of the arts and culture sector both in the UK and abroad, including theatre, contemporary art, heritage and film festivals, such as Birmingham Museums Trust, Ikon Gallery, START Art Fair (London, 2019 & 2020), Supermarket Art Fair (Stockholm, 2019) and Anim'est International Film Festival. Her communications and project management experience expands to the education sector as well, having supported the Erasmus+ programme in the UK. Andreea’s creative story starts with pencil on paper. Originally from Romania, Andreea followed her passion for drawing and painting since childhood, graduating from an arts college. Strongly motivated to promote the value and benefits of artistic practices, she then studied communication and public relations in Romania and France and got a Master’s degree in Arts and Project Management in Birmingham, UK. She is now producing the Arts and Cultural Management Conference’s fourth edition (2021) while developing her own creative practice. "I am eager to support Voluntary Arts in promoting and maximising the impact of creativity at social, cultural and health levels, notably in the current times of change and challenge."
Gareth Coles Wales Director, Creative Lives Expand Gareth joined Creative Lives in 2015 and leads the team in Wales. Prior to this, he worked in public services policy for the Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA), promoting participation in public services and representing voluntary sector interests to Welsh Government. Previously he worked for the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) as a Development Officer in the Collaborative Working Team, and as a Grants Officer for the Community Fund / Big Lottery Fund. Gareth has a degree in Fine Art and an MA in Medieval Art History from the Courtauld Institute of Art in London. Gareth is a Welsh speaker and lives in South Wales with his wife and son. He is a keen artist, with a particular interest in drawing, and a woefully poor guitarist and pianist.
Damien McGlynn Ireland Director, Creative Lives Expand Damien has worked in the cultural sector across Ireland, the UK and Europe for 15 years. Damien joined Creative Lives (then Voluntary Arts) in 2015 and became Ireland Director in 2021 and works on a number of European partnership projects. Previously, he was Project Manager for the Get Creative Festival as well as managing communications across the organisation and managing the staff team in England. Damien was born in Dublin and studied Fine Art (Sculpture) at the National College of Art & Design while also completing an exchange in the Vilnius Academy of Arts, Lithuania. His creative passion has, since the age of 8, been photography, and spent several years working as a freelance photographer – primarily in documentary photography and photojournalism. Damien has also worked with organisations such as Visual Artists Ireland, National Galleries of Scotland and Tate. He is a trustee of Engage and Sydenham Arts, and a member of the Advisory Group for Dublin City Council Culture Company.
Kathryn Welch Scotland Co-ordination and Collaboration, Creative Lives Expand Kathryn is passionate about bringing people together, leading creative projects and strengthening communities. Now freelance, Kathryn has spent over a decade in senior roles across the Scottish charity and arts sectors, specialising in community development, strategic planning, social impact and sustainability. This is her second time around leading the Scotland team at Creative Lives on an interim basis, and is also currently the Programme Lead for Culture Collective. Kathryn was a Clore Social Fellow in 2017, and is founder and co-conspirator of a host of community-led creative and outdoor projects, from community gardens and nature trails to crowdfunding events. You can find her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/kathryn_welch, or via www.kathrynwelch.co.uk
Jemma Neville Scotland Director, Creative Lives Expand Jemma has been Scotland Director of Creative Lives since 2013. She was previously Communications and Outreach Coordinator at the Scottish Human Rights Commission and has worked in a range of roles connecting the global and the local. During a sabbatical in 2017- 2018, Jemma was the inaugural Community Fellow at The Institute of Advanced Studies in Humanities, University of Edinburgh, researching her debut book, Constitution Street, finding hope in an age of anxiety. Part-memoir, part-social and legal history, the book explores the interconnecting lives of neighbours on one street. It won the Creative Edinburgh City Award 2019. Follow Jemma on Twitter @jemma_tweets
Natanya Mark England Senior Development Officer and England Development Officer (London), Creative Lives Expand Natanya joined Creative Lives in 2019. She lives and works in London. Natanya is the founder of Local Senses, a collective of ten individuals with varying levels of sight. She is also a co-director of F.A.T. Studio, where she co-founded Old Kent Road Arts Club and leads the Second Life Club programme. Natanya is a PhD Candidate in Visual Sociology at Goldsmiths University.
Kelly Donaldson Communications Manager, Creative Lives and Scotland Communications & Engagement Manager Expand Kelly has a BA (Hons) in Drama and Media and has been responsible for Creative Live's communication output in Scotland since 2005, and across the whole organisation since 2021. She has coordinated a number of projects and exhibitions, including My Time, A Creative Century and Mouth of the River. She also works as a freelance journalist and has been The Scotsman’s chief dance critic for over 20 years, is Dance and Kids Editor of The List Magazine, writes for a variety of other newspapers, magazines and festivals and is a regular guest on BBC Radio Scotland. Kelly is a member of the Love Music Community Choir in Edinburgh, and enjoys creative writing.
Phoenix Archer Scotland Community Engagement Officer, Creative Lives Expand Phoenix Archer is a Heritage Professional, Multidisciplinary Artist and Singer/Songwriter. She works for a religious institution, a mental health facility as well as Creative Lives. Phoenix has a history of engaging in the arts, culture and heritage sector in England and Scotland to promote healthy representation. She is a moderator at Queer Heritage Forum, a co-organiser at UnArchaeology and is the Creative Director at Progress in Dialogue. Phoenix runs the Scottish Black Owned and People of Colour Businesses and Opportunities groups. She likes to research diverse ways to increase respectful relationships with all kinds of people and create a more harmonious relationship between humans and the environment. Phoenix loves nature and exploring all things cultural, and heritage based.
Sally Reay England Development Officer (South West), Creative Lives Expand Sally joined Creative Lives in January 2020 as the new Development Officer for the South West. Sally has been working in Bristol as an event and project manager specialising in the arts and community development for the last fifteen years. During this time she was International Project Manager for Luke Jerram’s touring street piano project Play Me, I’m Yours, Founder and Director of Bristol Creatives, a network for visual and applied artists, and Event Manager for a number of celebratory parades and festivals for community arts group Phoenix52. Originally from South London, Sally has been living in the West Country since 1995 when she won a start-up grant from the Prince’s Trust to set up in business as a silversmith and jewellery designer maker, working to commission and selling her designs at festivals and online, before eventually settling in Bristol in 2002. Sally specialises in event management and in providing mentoring and support both virtually through document toolkits and face-to-face in advice sessions and training. She is currently learning to throw pots and she loves yoga, cycling and going on road trips in her camper van.
Charlotte Chapman England Development Officer (South East), Creative Lives Expand Charlotte has worked in Learning & Participation for over ten years across the South West, Wales and the South East. Originally born in London, she grew up in East and West Africa before returning to London aged eight. She has always enjoyed travel and taught in New Zealand at Auckland Girls Grammar School, managing the Design Department, and has run projects in Tamil Nadu, India and Accra, Ghana. Charlotte was lead artist on the participatory research project ‘Dead & Buried’, funded by the ARHC, with the Centre for Death & Society at Bath University, researching young people’s response to Natural Burial Methods currently practiced in the UK. She was awarded an Artist International Development Fund (ACE/BC) researching participatory approaches by Ghanaian artists. Working with a group of young people on an installation, ‘Perceptions of Death’, for Chale Wote Street Arts Festival. More recently, Charlotte was the Creative Learning Manager for Creative Youth Network and the Participation Manager for Canterbury Festival. She lectured at the University of South Wales in Creative & Therapeutic Arts and currently lectures at Canterbury Christ Church University on the MA Arts & Cultural Management. Folkestone Museum has recently acquired a collection of Charlotte's work which was completed during a remote residency at ’35-37 Gallery’, Folkestone. The collection is a response to the Covid-19 pandemic and the first national lockdown in March 2020. The collection includes a large installation with quotes from two hundred and fifty residents about their experiences of the pandemic and lockdown. Charlotte spends her free time enjoying the sea; swimming or paddle boarding and walking with her dog.
Nicola Winstanley England Development Officer (West Midlands), Creative Lives Expand Nicola has worked in the West Midlands as a participatory artist and producer since 2009. She has headed up large participatory public art projects and advised on strategic arts programmes, as well as leading on creative consultation and evaluation for arts and heritage organisations, such as the Arts Council England’s Creative People and Places Programme and the UK Historic Buildings Preservation Trust. As Creative Live's Development Officer for the West Midlands, Nicola is passionate about supporting the everyday creativity that happens in her region and is keen to promote the contribution that creativity makes to the lives of individuals, communities and societies. Nicola will be working to showcase and celebrate the incredible creative work that is already happening across the West Midlands, and to encourage more people to try something new, meet new people and learn new creative skills.
Jess Plant Media Partnerships Director, Creative Lives Expand Jess Plant joined the Creative Lives team in September 2020 as Media Partnerships Director, leading on the Creative Lives On Air programme of work, promoting creativity in partnership with BBC local radio stations. She previously worked at Clinks as the Director of the National Alliance for Arts in Criminal Justice. During her time there she significantly raised the profile of arts in criminal justice settings by successfully securing Arts Council England, National Portfolio Status and developing a pioneering research project in partnership with the Institute of Criminology at the University of Cambridge funded by the ESRC and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. Jess is a Trustee of the charity Streetwise Opera and supported the development of the newly established charity Arts and Homeless International. Jess has continuously worked to enhance creative opportunities for socially excluded adults and young people. Previous roles include working at Homeless Link, where she developed tools to promote arts opportunities for homeless and vulnerable people. Jess has written numerous good practice guides for the arts and voluntary sector and has significant fundraising and management experience. Jess holds a BA Hons in Sociology from the University of Nottingham and an MA in Art and Design from the University of Brighton. She also completed the Clore Leadership course in February 2017.
Rachel New Creative Lives Producer, BBC Radio Coventry & Warwickshire Expand Rachel joined Creative Lives in January 2020 as the new Creative Lives On Air Producer at BBC Radio Coventry & Warwickshire. Rachel is a radio broadcaster who began her career in the 1990s, working her way around the West Midlands presenting shows in Wolverhampton and the Black Country, Birmingham and Coventry. Also dipping her toe in the stand-up comedy pond she was a BBC Comedy Newcomer runner-up in 2000. In 2013 she began an MA in Creative Writing which led to a PhD at the University of Birmingham and the position of Writer-in-Residence at the Birmingham Literature Festival in 2013 and 2014. Always interested in people and their stories, in 2018 she launched a podcast about homelessness, giving a voice to those we usually see but don't hear. Rachel also runs creative workshops offering people the chance to explore their inner maker using copper. "Coventry is an incredibly creative city. I love working with small groups of people who are just getting stuck in - whether it's sketching, drumming or writing. They know only too well how good for the soul it is to get lost in the 'flow' of making and doing and I love to help facilitate that work, finding exciting projects to collaborate on and new spaces around the city to work in."
Rhiannon Beth Imiolczyk Creative Lives Producer, BBC Cymru Wales Expand Rhiannon joined Creative Lives in 2019, as Creative Lives Producer based within BBC Cymru Wales. Rhiannon is a trained professional singer and actress with a catalogue of professional performing credits in theatre, TV and Film. She trained in Musical Theatre and Professional Performance Practice at the Centre of Voice in Bristol. Rhiannon was an award-winning principal of six Stagecoach Theatre Arts Schools; two of which she created and launched herself in South Wales for eight years. She managed the Stagecoach National Children’s Choir of Wales for five years and led them to achieve many accolades and professional performances. She has taught singing, acting and directed for over 17 years at various theatres, schools, colleges and produced many shows at national, West End and international theatres including Disney World Florida. Rhiannon has enjoyed funding raising for various charities in Wales during her career. Rhiannon lives in South Wales with her husband, son and daughter, and spends her spare time making Music with her young family and friends. She wants to help inspire every generation to gain confidence and happiness through the creative arts!
Jennifer Vernon-Edwards Creative Lives Producer, BBC Radio Sheffield Expand Simple things bring me great delight; a good heart to heart conversation or a satisfying cup of tea (with a cake accompaniment!)However, I am made for discovery; musical*, people, talents, books, and thought and charity shops! For the longest while I have been making discoveries about the people and places in South Yorkshire and telling their stories on air with BBC Radio Sheffield. I love it when these stories highlight a convergence between the local and the global; which is surprisingly often. I’m looking forward to pleasure of further discovery as I attempt to unearth some the hidden creative delights of Sheffield! Along the way I’m hoping to meet a craft loving someone who can help me in my lifelong knitting saga of only being able to (badly) knit scaves! *today I discovered Takoshi Inomata and his 1970s Japanese Jazz piano playing ways.
Rachel Teate Creative Lives On Air Producer, BBC Radio Tees Expand Rachel is a presenter and producer from Middlesbrough, she has had a passion for creativity ever since she begged her parents for tap dancing lessons at age 3 and still goes to tap class now! Rachel hosts the Upload show on BBC Radio Tees and loves sharing creative practices and ideas with others. She is very excited to make more of an impact on the culture scene in the North East with this role.
Rosa Torr Creative Lives Producer, BBC Radio Norfolk and BBC Radio Suffolk Expand Rosa Torr is Creative Lives Producer for BBC Radio Norfolk and BBC Radio Suffolk. Since graduating from her Masters in Dramaturgy and Scriptwriting at Goldsmiths University, Rosa uses her passion for storytelling to produce a podcast, create short documentaries and platform artists. Having worked as Creative Content Producer for the last 5 years for an international arts charity, Art on a Postcard, Rosa now uses that experience to seek out other arts initiatives to platform on the radio. Rosa has worked as a theatre maker for the last 10 years creating politically driven comedies.
Marion Cheung Freelance Artist, Unearthing Creativity Expand Unearthing Creativity is a project run by Creative Lives in Wales
Naz Syed Freelance Artist, Unearthing Creativity Expand Unearthing Creativity is a project run by Creative Lives in Wales
Trevor Pitt Creative Lives on Air Producer for BBC Radio West Midlands Expand Trevor Pitt joined the Creative Lives On Air team to shine a light on grassroots creative activity across the West Midlands. Trevor is a Birmingham-based artist and curator with a 20-year track record of leading on community & socially engaged arts projects. He creates inventive, intelligent and collaborative projects in galleries and community contexts with a high participatory value. He works in various formats including installation, music, performance, public art, exhibitions and events and supports artists to develop their creative ventures. Previous radio shows produced include ‘Sleeve Notes Sessions’ and ‘The Great Barnfield Rambles’.
Abi Bliss Creative Lives on Air Producer for BBC Radio Leeds Expand Abi joined Creative Lives in July 2022 as the new Creative Lives on Air Producer for BBC Radio Leeds. With more than 20 years’ experience in journalism, editing and copywriting, Abi specialises in covering the arts but has also written about walking, food, graphic design, the sights of Yorkshire and much more for publications including The Guardian, Metro, The Wire and BBC Online. In 2015 she co-founded Yorkshire Sound Women Network, an organisation aiming to increase women and people of minority genders’ participation in music technology through workshops, education and advocacy. Since YSWN became a Community Interest Company in 2018 she has served as a voluntary director and also carries out coordination, communications and project work, including producing YSWN’s podcast, Audio Club. Originally from Dorset, Abi lives in Slaithwaite, West Yorkshire, where she enjoys playing violin and synths with friends, organising activities with YSWN’s Huddersfield branch, serving as Treasurer for a local community and environmental group and stretching her legs among the wonderful Pennine scenery.