Derby Museums and NAS are excited to announce the 2020 cohort of UK Creative Community Fellows, comprised of 25 creative entrepreneurs working to drive transformational change in their communities through the power of arts and culture. From Edinburgh to Brighton, Fellows were selected amongst communities throughout the UK to explore proven tools and frameworks with faculty and form a community of practise, enriching projects that advance a more equitable world.

Celebrating its inaugural cohort, UK Creative Community Fellows is an international partnership between Derby Museums and United States-based NAS with support from the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Social Impact Strategy (CSIS).

The Fellows’ programme journey includes an online retreat and focussed online learning modules in addition to two in-person convenings; one at an incubator-like environment in Yorkshire and one at a summit of arts and culture leaders in the United States.

“We are proud to support such an incredible group of arts and culture trailblazers working with and for their communities,” said Hannah Fox, Director of Projects and Programmes at Derby Museums.

“UK Creative Community Fellows will assist Fellows in building upon their existing skills to accelerate their projects and become valuable community leaders.”

Fellows will work with Derby Museums, NAS, faculty partners, mentors and each other on projects including a jubilee-style street feast at a medieval stronghold in Hay-on-Wye that embraces the theatre of food to address isolationism and lack of arts engagement in rural communities, a platform that encourages young people in East London to develop their own artistic voices and rebuild the area’s sense of community through thought-provoking work on human rights, and more.

Together, Fellows will embrace their authentic leadership capacities, examine opportunities to strengthen partnerships and strategies, and deepen their relationships with their communities.

“Leaders working at the intersection of culture and community are a powerful force in driving equitable and inclusive change within our society,” said Sunny Widmann, Director at NAS.

“The community of practise the cohort establishes in UK Creative Community Fellows is one of the programme’s strongest elements and will assist Fellows in elevating their work long after the curriculum concludes.”

UK Creative Community Fellows programme fees are underwritten thanks to generous funding through Arts Council England Transforming Leadership Programme and the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (UK Branch). At the programme’s conclusion, Fellows will join a network of nearly 200 leaders from NAS’ long-running Creative Community Fellows programme who work to drive positive change in our world.

The following Fellows were selected for the crucial work they are doing in their communities:

2020 UK CREATIVE COMMUNITY FELLOWS

Sandy AbdelRahman | London

Shirley Bailey | Preston

Laura Beattie | Edinburgh

Georgina Bednar | London

Rachel Crossley | Twickenham

Sona Datta | London

Celine Elliott | Wadebridge

Rachel Gillies | Birmingham

Phillip Hargreaves | Wakefield

Becky Harrison | London

Erica Hesketh | London

Ruth Hopkins | Birmingham

Lewis Hou | Edinburgh

Kristoffer Huball | Hereford

Lucy Jefferies | Brighton

Xi-mali Kadeena-Guscoth | London

Murad Khan | Oldbury

Tara Munroe | Leicester

Tara Okeke | London

Christelle Pellecuer | Bristol

Alex Pemberton | Altrincham

Jessica Prendergrast | Watchet

Alison Solomon | Derby

Jenny Staff | Brighton

Naomi Wilds | Derby

See more about the Fellows here and follow their journey online with the hashtag #UKCCF.