London School of Mosaic

2017 to 2024, Organisation development

As a founding member I contributed to the set up of the London School of Mosaic, based on the legacy of the socially engaged mosaic practice at Southbank Mosaics in Waterloo, a CIC I volunteered for since 2007. The charity took over abandoned premises under a social housing estate in Camden and established its education and volunteer offer there between 2017 and 2025. This included:

• setting up of a functional and efficient workshop space for bespoke craft courses for a team of freelance tutors, unlocking an unused workspace in a strategic location for social and economic impact

• putting in place an operations team to oversee the smooth running of the education programme, volunteer offer and commissions

• implementing a networking and IT infrastructure for the business, including communication channels (website, social media and newsletter) to our growing audiences

As Head of Education I have launched the first higher education course in Mosaic Studies in the UK, which can be considered a lost art form with unique qualities for work with communities, decorating surfaces and urban regeneration. The course has achieved the following:

• The school’s educational offer has been recognised by the prestigious Leverhulme Trust which has given out 12 scholarships for our diploma for students from diverse backgrounds who find it difficult to access higher education otherwise

• The diploma developed the school’s capacity to facilitate large scale commissions, which we have championed with multiple cohorts graduating and attaining traditional mosaic making skills previously not taught in the UK

As Managing Director (2021-2024) I project managed the expansion of the site into a 1960sqm large community hub and artist studio provider collaborating with architects Public Works, which ensured the creation of improved workshop facilities for the school and diversified income. The building is now run by well known artist studio provider ACAVA under the Undercraft brand we established with resident organisations and artists.

As of August 2025 the charity has closed due to financial and strategic leadership challenges following my departure as CEO the year before. In order to sustain elements of what the charity provided, it was decided that it was more sustainable for larger institutions to host our programmes to expand the student recruitment horizon. The Diploma in Mosaics programme has been acquired taken over by City and Guilds School of Art. The short courses are now delivered by Working Men’s College and by City Lit.