Meet the Culture Central Team

Cassie is Chief Executive of World Book Day, the charity encouraging a love of books and reading. She was previously Head of UK Theatre, and Director, Media and Stakeholder Relations at Arts Council England. Cassie is a Fellow of the RSA and works with Speakers for Schools and Creative Access.

Cassie remembers the excitement of seeing Tony Hart do a draw-along event at the open-air theatre at MAC. Take Hart was her family’s favourite programme, and they were so inspired they made their own ‘The Gallery’ at home.

Geraldine is CEO of Compton Verney, the beautiful art gallery and park in the Warwickshire countryside. Prior to this she spent 12 years at the Royal Shakespeare Company as Director of Events and Exhibitions and then Director of Creative Placemaking and Public Programmes. She is passionate about ensuring everyone has access to creativity.

Geraldine’s first cultural experience was Sooty and Sweep at Sheffield Crucible! She was then lucky enough to see some great shows at Leicester Haymarket in the 1980s as a teenager.

Indi Deol is the Founding Director of the UK's largest online British Asian magazine DESIblitz. He also runs Aidem Digital CIC, a social enterprise and digital media agency. Indi sits on Aston University Business School's advisory board and the West Midland Combined Authority Cultural Leadership Board. He completed Goldman Sachs' 10,000 businesses program and was a finalist for Ernst and Young's Entrepreneur of the Year award. Indi loves exploring new places, listening to music, and cinema. His life motto is "no pain, no gain".

Indi’s first memorable cultural experience was watching bhangra dancers perform at a family wedding, at the tender age of 6!

Ian Hyde is the Chief Executive Officer at Ikon Gallery, Birmingham. Previously Ian was a freelance consultant in operations and strategic planning for a number of UK festivals and arts organisations including Boardmasters, NASS Festival and the London 2012 Olympic Games amongst others. Ian is also Chair of Birmingham LGBT, the region’s leading charity advocating for and supporting LGBTQIA+ communities.

Ian’s first memorable cultural experience was at primary school playing the xylophone for the school percussion group. This led to the saxophone when at secondary school and then to music GCSE leading to festivals, concerts and gigs from then on.

Dr. Ian Manborde is Equalities & Diversity Officer at Equity, the UK trade union for performers and creative professionals with over 47,000 members. He leads on all aspects of policy, strategy and communications to address discriminatory barriers to gaining work and ensuring dignity at work.

Ian is from Moss Side in Manchester and is part of a Jamaican family. His first memorable cultural experience was enjoying the sights and sounds the annual Caribbean festival in Moss Side. This still takes place and is now known as the Manchester Carnival.

Sipho Eric Ndlovu is a Birmingham-based performance artist, writer, facilitator and producer. Working within education, academia and disability arts, Sipho aims to create inclusive spaces as an advocate for arts and culture.

Sipho’s first memorable cultural moment was attending a Stratford retreat to create performance art over a week. It was very pertinent to his early career.

Karen Patel is an Associate Professor in the College of English and Media at Birmingham City University (BCU). She is currently Director of the Centre for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in the Arts (CEDIA), and co-lead of the Creative Industries Research Cluster at BCU. Karen’s research interests centre on diversity and inclusion in the arts, with her most recent projects focusing on professional craft, in collaboration with the Crafts Council. She is author of the book Craft as a Creative Industry, published by Routledge in April 2024.

Karen’s first memorable cultural experience was at her first primary school in Netherton, Dudley, at the age of 6. She remembers making a clay pot, painting it purple and glazing it. She still has the pot! Her craft skills have not developed much since, instead she prefers speaking to people about craft as part of her research.

Laura Worsfold is a visionary leader with over 30 years' experience in strategic cultural planning, marketing and communications, partnership development, and operations management. She has been instrumental in managing organisational change and delivering complex projects in the cultural and public sectors, including large-scale capital builds and audience development initiatives.

Laura currently leads Severn Arts, an arts development charity primarily focused on engaging children and young people in the arts.

Laura remembers her great-auntie Dot took charge of introducing she and her brother and to culture from a very, very young age. Her first memory is of Dot taking them to the Natural History Museum, followed by a matinee of The Sound of Music and tea (ice-cream!) at Lyons Tea Rooms in London. Laura said: “I followed her example and have always been a champion of culture and creativity ever since, but strictly from behind the scenes, I was never destined to perform!”

Madeleine Kludje is the Deputy Artistic Director at The Birmingham Repertory Theatre, where she leads on Door and Studio programming and Talent Development. An alumna of the Regional Theatre Young Directors Scheme and National Theatre Directors Course 23 and Clore Leadership Pulse. Madeleine is passionate about fostering diversity in the theatre industry and creating pathways for a more inclusive sector. She is also a member of the West Midlands Artist Development Network and the Black Creatives Network.

Madeleine's recent directing work includes the Black British Theatre Award-nominated Swim, Aunty, Swim! (Belgrade), Sky Comedy Rep, Grimeboy, Park Bench Plays (The Rep), City of a Thousand Trades (Birmingham Royal Ballet & the Rep). Committed to cultural enrichment in the West Midlands, Madeleine is eager to bring her experience in artistic leadership, community engagement, and talent development to Culture Central, where she looks forward to contributing her strategic insights to support its continued growth and impact.

Madeleine first cultural memorable experience was being in the school play in infant school, which set off her love for theatre and performance from a very early age.

NAMYWA, music industry artist and songwriter, is the founder of GIRL GRIND UK CIC. With a BA Honours Degree in Applied Performance from The Birmingham School of Acting, part of Birmingham City University and nearly a decade of music industry experience, working with communities of young people, women and teen girls, LGBTQ groups and adults living with multiple physical and learning disabilities, Namywa brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her role as the founder of GGUK.

Namywa is a visionary leader who is determined to make a difference in the industry by amplifying the voices of marginalised women and girls and supporting creative entrepreneurs to reach their full potential.

A BBC 1Xtra 2023’s Future Figure and shortlisted finalist in the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce Future Faces Awards 2020 (nominated as a Future Face of Arts and Culture). As a musician, Namywa is 1 of 25 Black British Musicians supported by Help Musicians & MOBO Awards, NAMYWA is also one of 51 artists funded by the ‘Sustaining Creativity’ from PRS Foundation, Spotify & Girls I Rate in 2020.

Parminder Dosanjh has worked in arts and media development for over twenty years after graduating in Fine Art and Arts Management. She has developed, produced and directed a number of ground-breaking projects locally, nationally and internationally.

Her work with the BBC included profiling new writers on BBC Radio 4; curating a multimedia exhibition in Sichuan China; and live reporting on radio about arts and culture. During her time at Arts Council England, Parminder contributed to the National Creative Case for Diversity and Cultural Olympiad, developing diverse talent.

In her current role as Creative Director of Creative Black Country, ACE’S Creative People & Places programme, Parminder leads an arts programme which encourages high quality socially engaged arts practice. She is a board member University of Wolverhampton, and The Black Country Museum and currently sits on the External Reference Group of Arts Council England’s 2020 – 2030 Strategy.

Parminder’s first memorable cultural experience was hearing tabla and sitar at the local Sikh temple as child. The mediative music rhythms captivated her and left her wanting to explore more music.