GDS is leading the digital transformation of the UK government.

I help over 1500 cross-government professionals create human-centred digital content to meet citizen needs.

I do this by creating engaging learning experiences and peer networks that help civil servants gain new skills; and by addressing systemic blocks to collaborative working between government professionals.

Read about ConCon6: biannual learning festival

2017
Mentor and cohort crit to Year Here Fellows while they test solutions to society's toughest problems.

Guest lecturer on Design Products, Design as Catalyst at the RCA.

MC at Enrol Yourself learning marathon power-up day.

Participant in Lunch Taken Over at BalinHouseProjects, conversation and publication on topics like the artists’ role in the community, home as civic space, modes of exhibiting for wider audiences and alternative forms of education.

Participant in the Social Design Getaway - a retreat open to anyone working in the social sector, wanting to find new ways of deliver social impact and looking for a reflective and inspiring break. 

Mini learning programme masterclass at Learner Experience Design Meetup

Lunch time talk about how to create a learning organisation at GoodLab in partnership with Enrol Yourself

2016
Student tutorials: Design Products masters programme - RCA

Keynote speaker: The Role of Making in the Civic Economy - Maker Assembly, Manchester

Participant: Distributed Manufacturing roundtable - RCA, London

Featured article: The Designer of Communities - RedJotter blog

Speaker and facilitator: Lifelong Learners, learning beyond the institution - Enrol Yourself

Workshop lead: Theory of Change for makerspace managers - Open Workshop Network

A Learning Marathon is a 6 month self-directed learning 'accelerator'. You pursue your goals from within a diverse, committed peer group - with access to the collective networks, skills and support.

I joined the pilot group from Sept 2016 - April 2017.

My research question was: how can a micro hotel be an engine for equitable social and economic development?

www.enrolyourself.com

A micro hotel supporting local makers and neighbourhood projects.

Exploring the potential of tourism and travel as an economic engine to support participatory neighbourhood activities.

READ THE RESULTS

www.oursyours.org

@oursyoursE1

Blurring the boundaries between private and public space.

This booklet was produced as part of the micro-hotel project OursYours, which was designed to test whether a neighbourhood business could be an engine for equitable local development.

This part of the research focuses on the potential social impact that can come from creating new types of social spaces by opening our homes and welcoming neighbours in new ways.

Read or download.

Edspace is a community and co-working space for people transforming education. 

We believe that radical innovation, backed up by robust evaluation of what works, can improve the life chances for millions of people around the world.

We are the focal point for a growing community of education organisations and entrepreneurs.

www.edspace.io

Role: Manager

+ Business plan and P&L - £300k turnover co-working business
+ Lead gen campaigns - created education ecosystem map
+ Space - led design and fit out
+ Product development - built membership levels and value
+ Community - devised and ran events programme
+ Social impact - launched 1 Mile Project with RocketFund, participant in UCL future of work research

We've discovered that many people want to live in a participatory city … and we want to build it with them.

www.participatorycity.org

Participatory City is building new types of inspiring neighbourhoods, that improve the lives of everyone living there.

Role: Development partner, 2015
 

Documenting the findings from The Open Works project and building the evidence base for the Participatory City. In partnership with Lankelly Chase Foundation.

The Open Works research project aimed to test if a platform approach could scale up the new type of ‘participation culture’ that has emerged over the last 6 - 10 years. It aimed to discover if a high density of this type of micro participation activity, built into the fabric of everyday life, has the potential to aggregate and combine to achieve lasting long term change, both for individuals and for neighbourhoods.

Read or download the report

Role: Researcher and writer

Skills: Collective analysis, questionnaire design, abductive reasoning, grounded theory, coding, graphic design, visualisation, copy writing, impact measurement.

The Open Works project was inspired by the innovative work of hundreds of people who are finding new and ingenious ways to reshape the society and communities in which they live. 

A small, living prototype system was built in order to test the idea that a density of this new type of activity would have positive social, environmental and economic impact. This was done in West Norwood, London, in 2014/15, in partnership with Lambeth Council.

The Open Works team co-created a network of 20 practical projects with 1000 local residents. These projects were inspired by ideas from across the world that offered the potential to support a new and more sustainable way to live our everyday lives.

These 20 projects created new and engaging opportunities for sharing knowledge, spaces and equipment; for families to work and play together; for bulk cooking, food growing and tree planting; for trading, making and repairing and for suppers, workshops, incubators and festivals.

Role: Project lead, 2014-2015

Skills: Systems design, theory of change, developmental evaluation, project and venture models, idea incubation, rapid prototyping, community building, space design, civic branding, communications, collaborative partnerships.

In a changing world, libraries could be used for so much more than they are today, creating reasons for even more people to love them.

www.openbookproject.cc 

The Open Book project is building on a growing number of projects around the world where people are bringing together ideas and spaces in imaginative and surprising ways. 

There are book-lined laundromat cafes with washing machines; mysterious pirate stores with writing programmes for young authors; libraries that lend all the tools needed to invent, prototype or repair; shared maker spaces and workshops; learning networks which connect neighbours or swap skills for barter items; spaces for seed swaps or recipe swaps; libraries hosting co-working hubs and business support ... 

They are beautiful and inspiring spaces in which to spend time and meet others.

They re-combine resources we already have including time, ideas, skills, spaces and materials. 

And all of them make new things possible. 

Role: Project partner, 2015

Skills: theory of change, project development, community building, exhibition design, graphic design, report production, learning programmes.

Global research into emergent new participatory culture.

www.communityloversguides.org

The Community Lover’s Guide to the Universe is an international, crowd-sourced book series, surfacing and sharing innovative participatory projects from around the world. It aims to profile examples and experiences of many amazing people and their innovative projects - people who are actively and creatively making community together.

Each edition is produced collaboratively, with a local editor researching and gathering project examples, and project initiators writing chapters on their experiences and insights.

There are 16 published editions and 2 more currently in production.

Role: Co-editor in chief

Skills: research, copy writing, book publishing, community building

Trade School is a self-organised learning space that runs on barter. Anyone can teach anything they are passionate about or skilled at - experience, practical skills and big ideas are all valued equally. No money changes hands, instead teachers say what they’d like in exchange for giving their class, and pupils sign up by agreeing to bring a barter item from the list.

www.tradeschool.coop

The barter mechanism means there is no financial barrier to attend a class and learn a new skill. The open offer to teach creates opportunities to share and practise underused skills. The informal atmosphere and exchange creates new social connections.

There are over 60 Trade Schools globally. Since co-founding Trade School London we have supported Trade Schools to launch in Westminster, Croydon, Willesden, Barbican, West Norwood, Brixton, Loughton and Norwich.

Role: Trade School London co-founder, global Trade School coop partner, 2012 - current

Skills: project launch and development, marketing and communications, collaborative relationships, shared value propositions, innovative mixed space use, event management, social media.

The Common Room aimed to transform St Lawrence’s church into a new type of shared space, made and shaped collectively by the community, and run on the principles of collaboration, connection and resourcefulness.

With a co-operative membership model people have access to the space, to meet people, experiment with ideas and start new projects and businesses.

Role: Project partner, 2012- 2013

Skills: theory of change, concept development, space design, economic modelling,  

FARM:shop is an innovative prototype of urban food growing. How much food can we grow in a shop in London? With chickens on the roof, mushrooms in the basement, aquaponics and floating salad beds in the front room and traditional polytunnel growing in the back yard.

I designed activities and events to bring people into contact with urban food growing and food in new ways and develop partnerships to prototype urban food growing on an economically viable scale, with additional social value.

Role: Events and community building

Skills: event management, communications, community building, urban food growing systems, partnerships.

Fuel for learning involves everyone. This pilot project investigated how wider community involvement might work together with a school in a new way for improved health and educational attainment.

Read the report.

By re-inspiring parents about learning, opportunity mapping and connecting existing resources we started to test the move away from a service-led school breakfast club, to a collaborative systemic method of ensuring every child has a healthy breakfast before school.

Role: Project lead

Skills: project design and implementation, collaborative relationships, report production, exhibition design, investment.

Collaboratively re-designing the RSA Fellowship

Role: Research Manager, 2006-9

Skills: research, recruitment, membership development, partnerships

_ _ _ _ _ 

Reconnecting food producers and consumers at Slow Food

Role: Membership Director 2009-10

Skills: recruitment and retention, community building, local group development, partnerships, data management, forecasting and reports.