Board Development

• Programme overview
• Chairs & CEOs/Artistic Directors' Training Day
• How to apply
• Impact Evaluation of Awaydays
• Testimonials
• Key personnel
• Contact details

Our Board Development Days are run by a key team, including:

Prue Skene CBE
Course Leader

Prue Skene is Chair of Free Word and a Trustee of the Nureyev Foundation and the Stephen Spender Trust. An experienced arts administrator, she was responsible for Rambert's administration from 1975-1986 and then became Executive Producer of the English Shakespeare Company (1987-90 and again in 1992), producing that company's successful THE WARS OF THE ROSES world tour. She was Director of the Arts Foundation 1993-98 and since then has worked as a freelance consultant for, amongst others, Arts Council England, the National Theatre, Dance UK and the Rayne Foundation.

Her non-executive appointments have included President of the Theatrical Management Association (1991-92), Chairman of the Dancers Resettlement Trust (1988-92), Trustee of the Centre for Visual Arts in Cardiff (1996-2000), NESTA (2006-07) and Friends of the V&A (2004-2010), a non-executive Director of Royal United Hospital NHS Trust (1999-2003) and of Bath Theatre Royal (1998-2003), and Chairman of the Arvon Foundation (2001-2005) and Rambert Dance Company (2000-2009). From 1992-2000 she was a member of the Arts Council of England and was Chairman of its Dance Panel (1992-96) and its Lottery (subsequently Capital) Advisory Panel (1996-2000). She was awarded a CBE in 2000 for services to the arts, especially dance.

Prue is Governance Associate for the Clore Leadership Programme: she developed and now leads the Board Development Programme and gives regular governance sessions for the Short Course programme.

 

Tom Wilcox 
Financial Expert

Tom is a Director of Counterculture Partners Limited, a specialist strategic and financial consultancy providing finance/accounting, governance, business and strategic planning, capital projects, HR, IT and organisational development services to the arts, creative enterprises and charities. Tom's clients include Tate, the Institute of Contemporary Arts, Nottingham Contemporary, Photoworks, Brighton Photography Biennial and the National Media Museum.

Tom started his career in higher education, and then trained as an accountant with PriceWaterhouseCoopers' charity/public sector department, where he undertook audit and consultancy work for a wide range of clients including the Crafts Council. He subsequently moved to financial and general management positions at Arts Council England, The Poetry Society, Siobhan Davies Dance Company and finally Whitechapel Gallery; where he finished in the role of Managing Director after almost seven years at the Gallery, with a £13m expansion having been completed in April 2009.

Tom is a Chartered Company Secretary, a Fellow Member of the Association of Accounting Technicians and holds a Diploma in Charity Accounting from the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales. He has a history degree from the University of London. 

With a strong interest in the visual arts and the public realm, Tom is a board member of Autograph, a member of the board of the trading subsidiary and pro bono advisor to the trustees of Hepworth Wakefield, and an independent member of the Audit and Governance committees of the London Borough of Waltham Forest.

Tom is a visiting lecturer at Campbell's College and was previously a visiting lecturer at Goldsmiths College, Chelsea College of Art and Byam Shaw School of Art.  Tom has written numerous articles in journals on issues affecting the industries he works in and contributed to the NCVO's updated Good Trustees Guide.

Sara Robinson
Freelance Creative Producer, Consultant and Coach

Sara's expertise is in participatory and rural arts, governance, strategic and professional development.  Beginning as a youth theatre director, she moved into project managment in community arts, consultancy and research and then became Director of Ludlow Assembly Rooms for five years, before leaving to become one of the inaugural Clore Leadership Fellows.  Currently she facilitates Board Away Days and residential leadership courses for the Clore Leadership Programme, and undertakes research, evaluation and strategic development for a wide variety of cultural organisations.

She also coaches individuals working in the sector and is the Vice Chair of Hebden Bridge Town Hall.  Recent clients include National Theatre Wales, BBC Performing Arts Fund, The SAGE Gateshead, North West Rural Touring Consortium, Hartlepool Borough Council, Northumberland Strategic Arts Forum, North East Cultural Leadership Programme, Music Beyond Mainstream and Youth Music.


Lesa Dryburgh AMAC, FRSA
Head of Communications, The Manchester Partnership.
Communications Strategist, Facilitator, Coach & Clore Fellow.

Founder/Director of Stop The Pigeon Lesa Dryburgh took up an exciting full-time job opportunity in November 2012 as Head of Communications for The Manchester Partnership. To work with staff across Manchester City Galleries, Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester Museum and the Manchester Museums Consortium - to develop audiences and build on Manchester's national and international reputation as a centre of cultural innovation.

Lesa Dryburgh set up her own company ‘Stop the Pigeon' in 2002, to support creative companies, project and people with effective communications. She is based in Manchester and has worked across the UK.

She is a regular facilitator and coach on Short Courses and Board Development days for the Clore Leadership Programme - strengthening leadership in the cultural sector and keeping abreast of arts sector challenges. She also works with executive teams, staff and stakeholders to plan communications strategies to develop resilient companies in a climate of extreme change.

Lesa's background spans twenty five years in the cultural sector. She's most often been involved in start-up projects and companies or supported established organisations turn unexpected corners - to develop audiences, engage communities and increase national and international profile. Recent portfolio work includes as Lead Communications Consultant with National Theatre Wales (2009/2011), believed to be the first national cultural organisation in the UK to launch with an online community and live global digital broadcast.

Previous work includes: Communications Director Bathing Beauties® International Art and Architecture Competitions for Michael Trainor, Lead Artist Lincolnshire Coast (2006 - 2009); Communications Director (p/t) Octagon Theatre, Bolton (2002 - 2007); Head of Marketing and Public Affairs Contact Manchester (1999 - 2002); Marketing and Press Manager Royal Exchange Theatre (1996 - 1999) and Communications Consultant for a wide range of clients from 2002 - 2012 including The Lowry; Urbis and Community Arts North West: Exodus Refugee Arts Partnership.

She was England's North West Fellow on the Clore Leadership Programme 2007/2008 and is a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts and an Accredited Coach with Performance Coach Training Ltd and Relational Dynamics.

She loves yoga, badminton, Zumba and international cultural tourism. Her favourite travels have included road-trips from New York to San Francisco and from Johannesburg to Cape Town and catching the bullet train from Tokyo to the Naoshima art island in Japan.

Keith Arrowsmith
Charity Law

Keith Arrowsmith is a partner with JMW Solicitors, based in Manchester and MediaCityUK.  He works with clients in the arts and heritage sectors throughout the country.  His legal work includes contracts and licensing, intellectual property issues and charity law.  He is a board member for the Children's Media Conference, CCSkills, the Ministry of Stories and the Creative Industries Development Agency.  He is also a theatre producer with Mr Bugg Presents.

He lectures for the Manchester Metropolitan University.  He wrote the Methuen Amateur Theatre Handbook in 2002, and is now a regular contributor the The Stage newspaper.


Julia Twomlow
Museum director, Clore facilitator, PhD research fellow

Julia has been a performer, venue and project manager, creative industries consultant, Clore Fellow, and since 2008 Director at the Leach Pottery museum and studio in St Ives. Her particular interests are in folk arts and her expertise is in leadership and business models for cultural organisations which allow them to be creative and people focussed at the same time as being financially sustainable.

Since 2006 Julia has worked as a regular facilitator for the Clore Leadership Programme Short Courses and, more recently, the Board Development Programme. She is Chair of the Cornwall Museums' Group and a registered mentor for the Museums' Association and is currently studying for a craft history PhD with University College Falmouth, looking at workshop practice, training and the philosophy of craftsmanship.