WHO WE ARE

Tamsin Ace is currently the Director of East Bank, the UK’s newest cultural and education quarter on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. As well as this, she has extensive experience working with partner institutions including London College of Fashion; UAL, UCL East, Sadler’s Wells East, the V&A Storehouse and Museum, and BBC Music Studios, leading on creative strategy and programme development. Her work focuses on unlocking the collective potential of major cultural organisations while engaging meaningfully with local communities.

Her recent work as Head of Cultural Programming at London College of Fashion (2021–2023), saw her lead public engagement through fashion and design. Prior to that, she was Director of Creative Programmes and Collections at Hoxton’s Museum of the Home, where she introduced a pioneering cultural strategy as part of the museum’s transformation.

Having spent over a decade at Southbank Centre, she became Head of Public Programming, where she curated and delivered some of the centre’s most ambitious public festivals including the Imagine Children’s Festival, seasonal festivals, and Unlimited, a multi-artform festival showcasing outstanding dance, performance, comedy, music, poetry and visual art by disabled artists. Her impact was marked by innovative collaborations with schools, artists, and commercial partners, consistently championing access and diversity.

Deborah is a creative and producer with over a decade of experience developing, curating and producing multi-disciplinary art at scale. A born and bred Londoner who is a product of participatory schemes and projects, Deborah currently works at the Southbank Centre as a producer and specialises in festival production and public space work. Her creative work tends towards immersive art, and she is currently one of the co-directors of a new multi-sensory work by experiential company BitterSuite, which is in research and development with Oxford University’s Cultural Programme. Throughout her freelance career, she has worked as a journalist with the Huffington Post UK, crafted award-winning short stories and hosted panels and in conversations at events including We Out Here Festival and The Albany.

Chloë is a Heritage Participation and Public Engagement Consultant who works with clients across the heritage and cultural sector to build capacity through developing inclusive and creative public engagement strategies unique to each individual setting which deliver on wider ambitions. Early career roles included leading learning and community engagement programmes in the London Boroughs of Southwark and Brent, including co-developing opportunities with local residents in each place. Chloë then went on to lead a pan-London engagement programme for the National Trust. After working at Historic England in the run up to the Olympics in 2012 to lead their outreach work in the capital, Chloë combined freelance consultancy work with being Heritage Participation Associate at Southbank Centre.

Chloë’s freelance practice strategically supports organisations to create productive collaborations that shift the dynamics of their public engagement work, creating routes for communities to lead, shape and produce heritage experiences that offer richer and more relevant opportunities for participation for all. She has worked for a cross-section of places ranging from museums, galleries, theatres, arts centres, churches, cathedrals and historic landmarks. Recent consultancy clients include: National Portrait Gallery, Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration, Royal Observatory Greenwich, Barts Heritage, Portsmouth Historic Quarter and Bristol Old Vic. Chloë is committed to supporting organisations to develop effective approaches to extend their reach and measure the impact of their work. As a specialist consultant working on behalf of National Lottery Heritage Fund, she regularly advises on strategic and delivery issues in relation to participation, interpretation and public engagement in a range of settings.

Verity is lawyer with a focus on the art, media, and technology sectors, representing a diverse portfolio of UK and international clients.

She advises on a broad spectrum of contentious intellectual property matters, offering strategic commercial guidance to both emerging and established brands in pre-litigation and post-litigation contexts. Verity's practice centres on brand protection and enforcement, with specialist expertise in trade mark and copyright disputes. Verity also regularly handles defamation claims and has significant experience in technology-related disputes, particularly those involving contractual breaches and termination issues.

Osas is an analyst at film and television strategy consultancy, Olsberg•SPI. Having grown up locally, Shoreditch Town Hall holds a personal significance for him, and he is particularly passionate about increasing engagement from communities traditionally less exposed to the arts, a cause inspired by his own experience of having to find his way to the arts through curiosity and self-discovery only later in life. His work involves delivering data-driven evidence bases that have helped unlock new funding streams for creative industry organisations, as well as fostering creative talent development and supporting location filming.

Additionally, through his work as the Co-Chair of the Steering Committee at Creative Access, which promulgates inclusive opportunities in the sector, he has provided strategic direction and governance to expand access to creative industry roles. He also works as a Trustee for Lafiya Nigeria, offering strategic oversight for reproductive health initiatives.

Laura is a fundraiser focused on Arts and Culture across the UK. Currently Laura is the Senior Development Manager at London Museum delivering the £100million capital campaign to build the museum site in Smithfield. Previously Laura has worked at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts, Imperial War Museum and consulted on several national organisations in England and Wales.

Laura has served as Trustee of Engage, the leading charity for promoting engagement and participation in the visual arts, and Non-Executive Director of Rising Arts Agency, a creative agency mobilising for radical change within the arts.

Laura is a passionate advocate for the cultural sector and providing a platform for the voices of young people and those often underrepresented within the sector. She is an avid theatre go-er and proud bookworm.

Umesh Kumar is CEO of Allia Impact, where he leads the organisation’s work supporting entrepreneurs and businesses to start, grow and make a positive social and economic impact.

He has spent more than a decade working across entrepreneurship, innovation and economic development, developing programmes and partnerships that help businesses and communities thrive. His work has brought him together with entrepreneurs, businesses, universities, investors, corporates and the public sector across the UK, giving him broad experience of building partnerships and turning ideas into practical opportunities.

Umesh has lived in East London for over seven years and has worked extensively across Hackney, Shoreditch and the surrounding area. He cares deeply about the area and is interested in how enterprise, culture and creativity can contribute to thriving local communities, as well as how we can create more opportunities for people from different backgrounds to take part.

Alongside his role at Allia Impact, Umesh is a member of the Advisory Council of the Impact Investing Institute. He has a particular interest in the role that culture, heritage and storytelling can play in bringing people together and helping communities feel connected to the places around them.

Kwame Otiende studied at the University of London, the University of Sussex and the University of Law. He has a background in Development Economics, Politics and Law, and over 15 years’ experience establishing and running multiple arts, culture and live music venues across London.

A strong campaigner for public spaces, Kwame has championed greater opportunities for non-mainstream music, particularly music and artists from the Global South. He also runs a charitable organisation supporting community development in Kenya.

Kwame is currently a Councillor for London Fields, Hackney’s Champion for Community Wealth Building and Local Enterprise, and Chair of Licensing at Hackney Council. He also serves as Hackney’s Representative Councillor for the Reserve Forces’ and Cadets’ Association for Greater London.

Roxanne is a senior arts leader, cultural producer and engagement specialist. She is Executive Director of contemporary performance company Clod Ensemble, where she leads on the strategic development of new partnerships and projects and is responsible for delivering the artistic programme across live performances, public events and participation. She has worked closely with artists, audiences and communities to create socially resonant, bold, award-winning programmes and public artworks across the live arts sector for more than 15 years. Preceding her Executive Director role, she has worked at venues and independent organisations such as Fuel, The Old Vic, Theatre Royal Plymouth, Tobacco Factory, Battersea Arts Centre, OperaUpClose, 14-18 NOW.

Landen is currently the CFO of ETM Group. ETM is one of London’s most renowned award-winning bar and restaurant groups, owning 14 venues across central London including The Botanist on Sloane Square and The Jugged Hare in the City. The business has over 500 employees and has a turnover of over £40M.

Previously Landen has been CFO of Itsu - the Julian Metcalfe founded healthy food retail company - where he spent 6 years helping to grow the business significantly from 30 to 70 sites and delivering circa £100m turnover in 2017.

He also spent 10 years with PepsiCo, holding both the Pepsi UK / Ireland CFO and Tropicana / Quaker CFO roles and winning the coveted Chairmen’s award. He has also been CFO of the Paul Allen owned private members club, The Hospital Club
ACCA qualified, Landen is an accomplished functional and general manager with broad leadership skills across Strategy, Finance, IT, Property, Legal and Supply Chain.

Landen has a BSc in Animal Physiology from Queen Mary College and is originally from Bedfordshire. Currently he lives in St Margarets, has 3 children, is passionate about most sports and all things food and drink related.

Tom has 20 years’ experience in arts, culture and entertainment, and is passionate about supporting artists, institutions and brands that strive to have a positive impact on the world. Prior to his freelance career as a Brand, Marketing and Communications consultant, Tom spent just under a decade as Director of Marketing & Audiences at Somerset House, following previous roles at some of London’s most important producing theatres including Donmar Warehouse, National Theatre and Young Vic.

Tom is also Chair of the Board of Trustees of Outside Edge Theatre Company, the UK’s only theatre company and participatory arts charity making change and using the performing arts to support people affected by addiction. His impressive career spans theatre, exhibitions, visual arts, live music, digital culture, popular seasonal entertainment, emerging creative practice and pioneering engagement programmes.

Fern Stoner qualified as a chartered accountant with KPMG.  Subsequently she has held finance roles in both the commercial and not for profit sectors, including as Head of Finance at the National Theatre.  She joined Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew as Finance Director in September 2013 and joined the Executive Board in June 2016.  In June 2017 she was appointed Director of Resources, responsible for Finance, and a range of corporate services including HR, Legal, Risk, Health and Safety, Governance, and Estates Management.  She was previously a trustee for British Youth Music Theatre.

Stevan Tennant is Managing Director of Development at Ballymore, where he leads the strategic direction of the company's residential, retail and commercial development portfolio across London. A Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS), he has more than 30 years' experience delivering complex mixed-use regeneration projects in the UK and internationally, with a combined development value exceeding £6 billion.

He is currently overseeing the planning and delivery of more than 16,000 homes across the capital, including major regeneration partnerships with Transport for London, the London Legacy Development Corporation and local authorities. His portfolio includes Bishopsgate Goods Yard, one of London’s most significant regeneration projects, transforming a 10-acre former railway goods yard into a new mixed-use neighbourhood that connects Shoreditch and the City Fringe through new homes, workspace, culture, heritage and generous public spaces.

Stevan has championed the role of culture in placemaking throughout his career, leading projects including London City Island and Goodluck Hope, as well as the delivery of English National Ballet's headquarters in Canning Town. He is a strong advocate for collaborative regeneration, community engagement and long-term stewardship, and regularly speaks on housing delivery, planning reform and the future of London's growth.

Find out more about our Associate Company programme by clicking here

Find out more about our Associate Company programme by clicking here