David Bryan CBE Chair, Creative Lives Expand David Bryan has been Chair of Creative Lives since November 2017. He is a management consultant working within the voluntary and public sectors (including the arts) for over 30 years. He is also currently the Chair of two other arts organisations: Battersea Arts Centre and Brixton House, and is a Director of Dunraven (School) Educational Trust. He was recently appointed to the Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm by the Mayor of London. In the arts, David was a director of Brixton Village, an arts centre, founder of a bookshop, a festival director, producer, adviser and consultant to Arts Council England and member of its national council. He has worked in academia, lecturing on Management Studies at Goldsmith College; post-graduate social work at London South Bank University; and Arts Leadership at Birkbeck College and King’s College with their global programme. David also co-authored, Achieving Good Governance: a challenge for our times (2017). David was awarded a CBE in the Queens Birthday Honours List 2021 for services to the arts.
Pauline Tambling CBE England Convenor, Creative Lives Expand Pauline has worked in the arts and creative industries since 1983. Most recently she was Chief Executive of Creative & Cultural Skills, the UK sector skills council for craft, design, cultural heritage, music, performing arts, literature and the visual arts, where she also ran the National Skills Academy, a national network of Further Education Colleges working with the creative industries, and was part of High House Production Park, a regeneration project in the Thames Gateway. Previously Pauline set up and ran the Royal Opera’s Education Programme and worked in senior roles at Arts Council England. She has held many non-executive roles in the arts and is currently a trustee of the Roundhouse and the Theatre Royal Haymarket Masterclass Trust. Pauline was awarded a CBE in the 2014 Queen’s Birthday Honours for services to education and training in the cultural sector.
Jill Miller OBE Scotland Convenor, Creative Lives Expand Jill Miller OBE is the Scotland Convenor at Creative Lives. Jill has extensive public and voluntary sector experience with specific interest in creativity, inclusion, engagement and wellbeing, focussing on how we make and share individual and community stories. After graduating from the Scottish College of Textiles she worked as a freelance Community Artist, Facilitator and Trainer before joining Fife Council, initially as an Arts and Disability Officer in 1990 and then moving to work in Glasgow in1999. Jill retired in July 2021 from her role as Director of Cultural Services at Glasgow Life, where she was responsible for strategic leadership and management of Art and Music, Museums and Collections, Libraries, Learning and Community Development. She is currently the Chair of the Donald Dewar Arts Awards, Vice Chair of Fife Coastal and Countryside Trust and a trustee at the National Trust for Scotland.
Helen Keatley Wales Convenor, Creative Lives Expand Helen has enjoyed a varied and interesting career, working in both public and private sector, and even running her own business for several years. Her knowledge and experience are subsequently quite wide ranging but her main areas of expertise include public engagement, communications, performance management and customer relations. Since 2004, Helen has worked for the Wales Audit Office (WAO) as Performance Specialist and lately as a Performance Audit Lead. ‘I thoroughly enjoyed my time with WAO as it meant working in depth with many of Wales’ local authorities, auditing such areas as Community Engagement, Project Management, Performance Management and Governance. Before my retirement in June 2017, I was a member of a team considering how WAO is going to apply the Future Generations Act.’Prior to 2004, Helen worked with the National Trust for three years, followed by seven years with the City and County of Swansea. She is married with two sons, and two grand-daughters. Her passion is art and she is long standing member of a small group of artists based in the Mumbles. Her other interests include history, travel and music. She enjoys walking and swimming and is a volunteer at the National Botanic Gardens.
Catherine Mugonyi Expand Catherine Mugonyi is a Director and founder of Aunty Social, a grassroots mixed arts organisation that provides accessible, participatory arts activities on Lancashire’s Fylde Coast with a particular focus on socially engaged work. Catherine loves connecting with local residents, artists and academics to explore ways that people can develop their creativity and celebrate their culture. She especially enjoys programming film events and supporting the volunteer-run online magazine Blackpool Social Club which keeps people on the Fylde Coast up to date with hyperlocal arts and culture news. Catherine is a member of the National Lottery Heritage Fund, North Committee, making funding decisions, advising on priorities and providing local perspective to the Board. As a freelancer, Catherine specialises in organising and coproducing events and projects that strengthen engagement between marginalised communities, local history and the arts. Previously Catherine was Creative Programmer at the Harris, a museum, library and art gallery in Preston, planning activities that encouraged people to explore their creativity as well as the Harris’ extensive collections. She also spent 10 years at Blackpool Council as Equality and Community Engagement Officer, working with marginalised communities to improve policy, service access and employment opportunity issues.
Bobsie Robinson Vice Chair Expand Bobsie Robinson is currently employed by Bradford Council as the Cultural Policy and Strategy Manager. She has a long and varied history of working with ethnically diverse communities on various regeneration initiatives. She has established new groups and organisations, particularly in the African and Caribbean communities in areas such as education, health, young and older people. On a regional and national level, Bobsie has been involved with various Arts Council England steering groups to engage and develop Black British and British Asian artists and organisations. Bobsie is currently leading on a joint DCLG and Arts Council England Arts in Communities programme where she is developing a number of community arts networks across various localities and interests groups to enable grassroots communities to participate and engage in the arts.
Nisha Tandon OBE Northern Ireland Convener, Creative Lives Expand Nisha Tandon OBE conceptualised and founded ArtsEkta (Ekta meaning ‘Bonding’), a social enterprise leading on innovation through a highly unique programme of work, addressing key social issues in Northern Ireland such as segregated communities, demographic change, legacy of the troubles, multiple deprivation, and weak community/arts infrastructures. Nisha has also led the design, development and delivery of Cultural Coach, a region-wide intercultural outreach programme; the development of Northern Ireland’s first South Asian Dance Academy; the delivery of three large scale award-winning festivals including Northern Ireland’s largest intercultural arts festival, Belfast Mela. She was appointed by the Minister for Culture, Arts & Leisure to the executive board of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland providing representation for the community arts sector. She also leads on the Stronger Together working group established in 2010. In June 2014, Nisha was the first Asian women from Northern Ireland to be awarded the prestigious UK Asian Women of Achievement Award for contribution to arts and culture, and later that month she was awarded an OBE for services to the minority ethnic sector in the 2014 Queen’s Honours List. In 2015, she won the British Indian Award for ‘Indian Spirit in the Community’ presented by Trade Next and BDO.
Maryam Wasim Expand Maryam Wasim is a Project Management, Training & Fundraising Consultant, based in Glasgow, currently working for Glasgow ANSAR, Diversity Arts and Noor Arts. Her previous work has included BEMIS – Black and Ethnic Minority Infrastructure in Scotland and Deaf Connections. Maryam is predominantly a community facilitator of equality and diversity work with training as her main specialism. She also has strategic fundraising, capacity building, research and consultation, community engagement and networking skills, particularly with public bodies. Maryam has a vast range of funding experience from Scottish Government Grants, Big Lottery, VAF, trust funding and business sponsorship in voluntary and community group settings.
Leanne Rahman Expand Leanne joined the Voluntary Arts board in December 2020. Leanne is a professional projects manager, trainer, arts, and events coordinator based in Cardiff who has developed her practice around audio visual, performance arts and diversity.
Tom Doyle Republic of Ireland Convener, Creative Lives Expand Tom Doyle joined the Voluntary Arts board in November 2020. Tom is a freelance musical director and lecturer, based in Cork. A graduate of both UCC and MTU Cork School of Music, Tom Doyle is highly sought after as a musical director and pianist in Cork City and its environs. As a choral enthusiast, Tom has had the pleasure of working with the UCC Choral Society, Blackpool Parish Choir, Mayfield Gospel Choir, the Fleischmann Choir, Cork ETB Youth Choir, the workplace choirs at Musgraves and Cork County Council, Munster Rugby Supporters Club Choir, Cantate, the choir at Presentation Secondary School Ballyphehane, the Willcolane Singers, and the Cork Garda Male Voice Choir. An accomplished pianist and répétiteur, Tom has worked with many renowned Irish singers, as well as ensembles such as Irish Youth Opera and Cork Operatic Society. In 2015, Tom was invited as guest conductor for the Cork Concert Orchestra’s Mozart to Morricone concert series; and in early-2022, he was appointed conductor of the University of Limerick Orchestra. Tom lectures in conducting at MTU Cork School of Music where he also directs the musical theatre choir Union.