Starting a cultural organisation can feel daunting, especially in the arts, where passion, purpose and practicality all collide. I speak from experience. I’ve built things from nothing, often through my own expense, not as a martyr, but because I’ve always been driven by service, belief, and a stubborn conviction that creativity changes lives. I wouldn’t change any of it.

So, when I was honoured with a Certificate of Recognition at the Mayor of Lambeth’s Parlour Awards 2026, a long‑term acknowledgement of my contribution to community arts, it felt like a moment to pause. Not to celebrate myself, but to reflect on the deeper thread that has run through my entire life and work: inequality and the fight against it.

I grew up in Yorkshire, with an early childhood shaped by a mining family and a community that understood both pride and precarity. Inequality was the backdrop to daily life. I saw people graft with everything they had, not for status, but to keep families afloat and communities strong. I saw resilience, humour, and solidarity. But I also saw how political decisions could devastate whole towns (Miner’s Strike). Those early truths shaped me. They’re the fire that has fuelled forty years of creative work, community building, and belief in people.

Recently, I re‑watched Richard Wilkinson’s TED Talk on economic inequality. His research shows what many of us have felt in our bones for decades: when the gap between rich and poor widens, societies don’t just become unfair, they become unhealthy. Trust falls. Mental health worsens. Violence rises. Life expectancy drops. Inequality wears people down. What struck me again is this: it’s not poverty alone that harms us, it’s the gap. The humiliation of being made to feel “less than”. The stress of navigating systems not built for you. The exhaustion of fighting for things others take for granted.

I’ve seen this play out in every community space I’ve ever worked in. People aren’t broken; the conditions are. And when you give people dignity, beauty, creativity, and a sense of belonging, they rise. Every time. That’s why I built Art4Space. Not as a “nice arts project”, but as a place where people who’ve been pushed to the margins can take up space, lead, create, and be seen. Over 27 years, I’ve watched thousands of people step into their own agency through creative practice. That’s not accidental. It’s a structural and systemic change in action.

Wilkinson’s research shows that more equal societies are healthier, safer, more trusting, and more resilient. That aligns with everything I’ve witnessed: when people feel valued, they contribute more. When they feel safe, they take risks. When they feel seen, they lead. This is why I fight for access, representation, fair pay, and community-led decision-making. It’s why I build structures where people can thrive, not just survive. And it’s why I will always speak up and fight for funds to do this work.

Receiving a Hero Award at the Mayor of Lambeth’s Parlour Awards doesn’t mean I’ve “made it”. It means the work continues -I’m deeply proud, but it’s not about me. It’s about the communities that shaped me and the colleagues who stood beside me. Receiving this recognition so soon after losing my dad has reminded me where my strength comes from. His resilience shaped mine, and that thread runs through everything I do with Art4Space.

And it’s why I was delighted to write a new piece for ArtsProfessional: Setting Up a Cultural Business. It’s an honest guide drawn from real‑world practice. Written for the start‑ups, freelancers and early‑stage creative organisations who are trying to build something meaningful in a world that doesn’t always make it easy.

The story is currently on their home page.

Because helping others start, grow and lead is part of the same mission. Because building spaces where people can thrive is the work of a lifetime. Because inequality harms us all, but collective action heals. That’s the legacy I want to leave. And that’s the work I’ll keep doing creatively, and with the same working‑class fire that started it all.