Pick of the Month - February 2022

February is finally here and with it, we bring you our monthly highlight of individuals doing great things in the sector. This month, we feature a new Director of Span Arts, a Chief Executive tackling environmental and social challenges, a Trustee with a “lifelong passion for the arts”, and the leader of Lightful, supporting organisations to multiply their impact through technology.

Charity Leader of the Month – Trewin Restorick, Hubbub Foundation

Trewin Restorick is the CEO and Founder of Hubbub, an organisation that inspires and offers practical actions that are not only good for the environment, but for you too. Since 2014, Hubbub have been designing campaigns to inspire ways of living which benefit the environment, focusing on small changes that can be made in day-to-day life. Hubbub make things simple. They offer practical and realistic solutions to help reduce waste, make clothes last longer, save money and create cleaner spaces to live and work in by designing playful ways to change behaviours.

Trewin talks to us about his journey so far:

“Eight years after starting Hubbub with just a £25,000 grant, it is massively rewarding to see the charity grow to around 50 employees winning awards such as Charity of the Year. Hubbub has been built around strategic partnerships with major companies such as the Co-op, Starbucks and Virgin Media O2. With these companies we jointly tackle environmental and social challenges such as our network of over 250 Community Fridges redistributing perishable food that would have been wasted freely to local communities. We pride ourselves on creating campaigns that are practical, positive and built around proven behaviour changes techniques and great design.”

Reflecting on how Hubbub has supported people though the pandemic, Trewin said:

“COVID-19 highlighted the importance of building an organisation with a strong set of core values allowing us to respond quickly to vastly different external circumstances. This led to our Community Calling campaign redistributing 10,000 surplus smart phones plus free data to people who are digitally isolated. In the year ahead we plan to tackle the environmental impact of fast fashion, back innovative campaigns that create a more circular economy and provide support and funding to local charities tackling food and electronic waste.”

Check out Hubbub on Twitter at @hubbubUK

Trustee of the Month – Liz Edwards, Unity Theatre

Liz Edwards is a senior HR specialist with a lifelong passion for the arts, having studied Drama at the University for Manchester as an undergraduate. Seeking to apply her professional skills to a setting she was passionate about, Liz took on a Trusteeship at the Unity Theatre in Liverpool, a local arts organisation aligned to her values of inclusion and representation.

At the outset of Covid-19, the Unity Theatre board became much more reactive and short-term while assessing different scenarios. Now, while the pandemic is far from over, the board is focussing on readdressing the balance to focus on more strategic and generative governance modes.

“I am incredibly proud of how the organisation dealt with the challenges faced during this time, having to make extremely difficult decisions but never losing sight of the Unity’s charitable aims, values and the needs of the people the theatre supports.

 

I’m not sure highlight is the right word as there were many difficult situations to deal with but being able to offer guidance, reassurance and sometimes just a presence of support during what was an incredibly challenging time felt fulfilling as a Trustee.“

Liz’s advice for a new Trustee is:

“Not to underestimate the value of your unique perspective, no matter what stage you are at in life. I think a lot of people might think that you need to be at a certain level in your career or in a particular kind of job to contribute to a board. Whilst certain areas of expertise are helpful, it is the diversity of viewpoints and experience that makes a strong trustee group, in my opinion. The range of perspectives around the table (or Zoom screen!) and their ability to listen to each other and problem-solve collectively is what can add true value to the executive team.” 

Follow Unity Theatre on Twitter at @unitytheatre

Social Entrepreneur of the Month, Vinay Nair, Lightful

Vinay Nair is the Chief Executive and Co-Founder of Lightful, an organisation working to build a better future through “technology that’s delightful”. Lightful was founded in 2015 with the mission to give non-profits the technology they deserve by filling critical gaps in the tech world and removing barriers that can hinder organisational progress and change.

“It’s a true honour being the CEO and Co-Founder of Lightful, a technology company and certified B Corp, that powers social and environmental change. We believe that those doing the greatest good deserve the best technology, and it’s amazing to watch our fantastic team motivated by this all the time.”

Speaking of upcoming projects, Vinay said:

“The charity sector is vital to build back better (and greener and fairer) as we emerge (hopefully) from Covid, whilst continuing to deal with other critical challenges. We work with many inspiring charities, social enterprises and foundations around the work to build their resilience through the power of digital. 

 

One of our newest and most exciting projects, partnering with Cause4, is a digital capacity-building programme for arts and culture organisations to help them to raise greater awareness - and funds - for their vital work, thereby multiplying their impact through technology.” 

Check out Lightful on Twitter at @lightful

Fellow of the Month – Bethan Touhig-Gamble, Span Arts

Bethan Touhig-Gamble is new in post as Director for Span Arts, joining in November 2021 after almost a decade as Head of Development for NoFit State Circus. 

SPAN is a vibrant community arts charity based in Narberth with an impressive, 30-year history of bringing the arts to rural Pembrokeshire. Driven by the core belief that the arts truly have the power to improve lives, the organisation hope to inspire and connect rural people, places and communities creatively. 

Looking back at her previous role and forwards to her new one, Bethan said:

“Although very different organisations in scale and focus, Span Arts and NoFit State Circus share an absolute commitment to equality, access, and a clear focus on the importance of community. Span Arts emerges from the past two years of pandemic, stronger in their commitment to the community and bolder in their approach. As the new Director I have the honour of building on the amazing work they have delivered to date, and the mission to push that work further still.” 

Bethan is also one of Arts Fundraising & Philanthropy’s Senior Fellows and alongside this, is a freelance coach, mentor and fundraising consultant, having previously lectured on ethics, strategy and business development as part of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama Arts Management MA.

Reflecting on the Senior Fellowship, Beth feels that:

“The fellowship has, and continues, to be a huge source of learning and insight. Aside from the academic teaching and masterclasses with some of the greats of the arts world, being part of this cohort of truly epic women is inspiring. Their generosity of spirit and support gives me great faith that the arts sector will continue to call out inequality, ask the difficult questions and strive too relevant and revelatory. 

 

Being part of the fellowship helped me see that senior fundraisers have the skills needed to lead. As I step into my first Director position, I know that all of my work to date has equipped me to succeed and that together with my team, our artists and our community, we will achieve remarkable things.” 

Keep up to date with Beth’s work on Twitter at @SpanArts