Culture East Sussex Board
The CES Board works together to deliver the vision and mission of CES and ensure that the cultural sector creates opportunities and possibilities for everyone. They do this by managing the CES Culture Priority Pipeline, discussing topics of relevance and interest, and advocating for the sector.
Applying to the board
Applications to the board are now closed and will reopen in Autumn 2026.
For information on how members are appointed to the board, please review the CES Recruitment Policy. [277.7 KB] [docx]
How the Board is chosen
Depending on the category, individual places are either:
- chosen by an open competition
- proposed by certain organisations in consultation with the nominations committee, or
- co-opted.
Board members serve for a three-year term and can be re-elected every three years. On appointment, all Board members will receive an induction pack and will be required to complete a declarations of interest and protected characteristics form.
Culture East Sussex seeks to increase the diversity of its board to reflect the diverse cultural sector and population of East Sussex. You can view the makeup of the board here [44.4 KB] [pdf].
Who is on the Board?
The CES Board is made-up of up to 35 members. This includes representatives of cultural organisations, independent artists and freelancers, representatives from East Sussex County Council, Eastbourne and Lewes, Hastings, Rother and Wealden District and Borough Councils, Team East Sussex, the education and public health sectors as well as co-opted members to improve representation of people with protected characteristics under the Equalities Act, and other national or county bodies that support culture in East Sussex.
Current CES members are listed below. Please note members that are listed together hold a shared membership.
Joe Hill, Towner Eastbourne (Chair)
Joe has been director at Towner since 2018 and has led them through winning Art Museum of the Year in 2020, their centenary year and Turner Prize in 2023.
Julia Roberts, Culture Shift (Vice Chair)
Julia is CEO at Culture Shift, who deliver a diverse portfolio of projects, working with a wide range of beneficiaries including children and young people, disabled people, their families and carers. Julia is a theatre specialist with a portfolio of experience which includes working as a Performing Arts consultant for the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, Creative Agent for Creative Partnerships Sussex and Surrey and Programme Manager and Live Arts Creative Producer for Carousel; a disability arts organisation based in Brighton.
Ami Bouhassane and Antony Penrose, Farley's House and Gallery
Ami and Antony are Co-Directors of Farleys House and Gallery Ltd which manages the Lee Miller Archives and The Penrose Collection.
Antony Penrose is the son of the American photographer Lee Miller and Roland Penrose, surrealist artist and biographer of Picasso, Miró, Man Ray and Tàpies. Antony has written numerous books, articles and two plays on the subject of his parents and their associates. The movie LEE to be released in 2024 starring Kate Winslet as Lee Miller is based on his biography The Lives of Lee Miller. He lectures widely and is a curator of photography, an artist and film maker in his own right.
Anthony Kalume, Diversity Lewes
Anthony is the Director of Diversity Lewes, a community organisation with a mission to celebrate diversity in its broadest sense and change the current mindset. He is also a curator at Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft with global connections, curating in Chicago, Berlin, and Kenya.
Darrell Gale and Joanne Bernhaut, East Sussex County Council Public Health
Darrel Gale is the Director of Public Health at East Sussex County Council.
Joanne Bernhaut is a Consultant in Public Health who has worked in East Sussex for 18 years. She am committed to supporting the population of East Sussex in relation to improving health and wellbeing and reducing inequalities. Currently her work areas include health and housing with a focus on homelessness prevention and supporting people into skills and employment; the built and natural environment in relation to health and wellbeing; climate change and health; supporting local communities to lead on improving their health and wellbeing through strengths based approached; and arts and creativity for health.
Joanne has a keen interest in supporting those least able to advocate for their own health and wellbeing, including gypsy roma traveller families, asylum seekers and refugees, people who are homeless, those from ethically diverse communities and people who identify as LGBTQ+.
She is committed to supporting and further exploring how as a county we can maximise opportunities to improve health and well-being and reduce inequalities through arts and creativity and other cultural routes.
Dawn Badland and Sally Lampitt, Applause Rural Touring
Dawn is Executive Director of Applause Rural Touring, and has 20 years worth of experience in Arts Management. Applause is a cultural charitable organisation that collaborates with people across Kent, Sussex, Essex, and the wider region to create opportunities for creative experiences in their local communities.
Sally is deputy director at Applause Rural Touring.
Davina Christmas and John McPherson, Arts Council England
Davina is Senior Relationship Manager, Strategic Partnerships at Arts Council England.
John is a Relationships Manager at Arts Council England, working with National Portfolio Organisations (NPOs) and creative industries in East Sussex.
Kate Adams and Helen Charlton, Project Artworks
Kate Adams is an artist, advocate and activist. She is Director & CEO of Project Art Works and has curated many responsive, collaborative projects with neurominorities, families, care services, artists and galleries. Kate co-founded Project Art Works in 1997 to explore an expanded concept of art that was and continues to be influenced by Paul Colley, her son, who has complex support needs. Their work embraces personalised studio practice, peer support and award-winning films, art actions, installations and exhibitions. Kate’s practice disrupts preconceptions about what people can and can’t do, who they are and how they live, revealing other ways of being in and seeing the world.
Helen Charlton, Development Director joined Project Art Works in 2019, having previously worked across social care and cultural sectors in project management, professional development, audience development, marketing, communications, and fundraising. She currently leads on fundraising across programmes and capital development at Project Art Works.
Kathleen Soriano and Rebecca Drew, Hastings Contemporary
Kathleen is the Interim Director at the Hastings Contemporary. Kathleen Soriano is an independent curator, strategic consultant and broadcaster. Chair of the Liverpool Biennial, on the Advisory Council of 2 Temple Place, and a specialist advisor to the National Trust. With over 35 years’ experience in the art world, she has been responsible for contemporary and historical exhibitions, collections and public programmes at the National Portrait Gallery, London and the Royal Academy of Arts, where she was Artistic Director (2009-14), as well as at Compton Verney Art Gallery, where she was previously Director.
Rebecca is the Operational Manager at Hastings Contemporary.
Kim Byford, De La Warr Pavilion
Kim Byford is Head of Skills at the De La Warr Pavilion, heading up Talent Accelerator within the Coastal Catalyst a partnership with Brighton Dome. Previously at Bexhill College where she was Head of Performing Arts and Associate Principal (Community). In this role she took a wide-angle view of the College’s relationships within the local community as well as forging relationships with the arts community to ensure clear career progression routes for young people.
Kim was part of the steering group, with Rother District Council, De La Warr Pavilion and Flatland Projects, for the development of Beeching Road Studios, a new creative hub for Bexhill. She understands the local context for young people and is committed to supporting them to fulfilling creative careers.
Kim has had a long career post-16 education working in a variety of Colleges and Sixth forms across the country since 2000. She is committed to introducing children and young people to new experiences, believing that this builds confidence which increases achievement across the curriculum and raises aspiration. Previously she has taken students to perform in Venice, receive conservatoire actor training in Prague as well as a host of performances in festivals and venues.
Laura McDermott, The Attenborough Centre, University of Sussex
Laura McDermott has been Creative Director at Attenborough Centre for the Creative Arts since the refurbished arts centre reopened in May 2016. The space (formerly Gardner Arts Centre) is an interdisciplinary arts hub connecting University of Sussex to Brighton & Hove and the wider national and international arts and research community. Previously, Laura worked as a Creative Associate with public art producers Situations on The Tale.
Linda Salway and Trudie Godfrey, Coastal Schools Partnership (East Sussex)
Linda is an educator, arts strategist, project manager, workshop leader and Pilates and yoga practitioner. She is passionate about creative education and inclusion for all.
She holds an MA in Arts and Cultural Management alongside her teaching qualifications, and is presently Head of Partnership at Eastbourne College where she established the Arts Award programme as a key part of the broader curriculum. Linda is Executive Chair of the Coastal Schools Partnership.
Linda has worked as a theatre education director and young people’s theatre producer. She was arts manager for Waverley Borough Council from 1997- 2005 and the co-ordinator of Arts Partnership Surrey.
Linda is a Gold Arts Award assessor, Chair of trustees for Lewes Live Literature, an RSA Fellow and a trustee of Culture Shift. She has also been a board member of Creative Future and a governor of Alfriston School.
Trudie is the Coastal Schools Partnership (East Sussex) Administrator. She has worked within school administration for the past 20 years, offering a professional work ethic with the flexibility to move between varying roles on a daily basis.
The administrator for the CSP since its beginning in 2014, Trudie is responsible for the joint planning and logistics of uniting multiple schools and professional partners together to create meaningful experiences for young people to thrive.
Linda and Trudie were part of the Eastbourne ALIVE Project Board during the lead up to, during and following the Turner Prize, focused on the Year 9 mass intervention project. They continue to work closely with Towner.
Lorna Ford, Rother District Council
Lorna is the Chief Executive of Rother District Council. Before joining Rother District Council, Lorna worked at Ashford Borough Council for four years and 17 years at Canterbury City Council in Policy, Communication, Transformation and Economic Development roles.
Nathaniel Hepburn, Charleston
Nathaniel is director at Charleston in Firle and the newly opened Charleston in Lewes, and previously director at Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft. Nathaniel has been the Chair of the tourism marketing organisation, Sussex Modern, since 2019. Sussex Modern led of the Sussex Wine: A Plan for Growth which was published in 2023.
Nichola Watters and Melanie Powell, Wealden District Council
Nichola is the Head of Planning Policy, Economy and Climate Change including the Culture, Tourism, and Economic Development teams.
Melanie is the Senior Economic Development and Culture Officer at Wealden, and the East Sussex Chair of the South East Creative Economy Network (SECEN).
Peter Chivers, Create Music
Peter Chivers is the Director of Create Music, the county's music education hub, engaging with thousands of young people weekly. He also serves as Director of Future Creators and Good space, two strategic programmes promoting volunteering experiences and cultural education partnerships locally and nationally.
Phoene Cave, The Musical Breath
Phoene Cave is a creative producer and project manager, performer, trainer, clinical supervisor and HCPC registered music therapist whose experience ranges across multiple organisations and diverse communities. Her pioneering work in singing for lung health began in 2008 at the Royal Brompton Hospital London. As Director of The Musical Breath she has trained 320+ singing leaders worldwide.
Previously, Phoene's work includes Head of Music Services, Music Therapist at HMP Bronzefield, Arts Therapies Placements Development Lead at East London NHS Foundation Trust, Consultant on a feasibility trial into the efficacy of singing for lung health and joint author of multiple research papers. Creative producer and lead artist for TRANSIT an Arts Council England funded site-specific residency at Towner Eastbourne.
Polly Risbridger, The Bright Foundation
Polly Risbridger is a seasoned arts leader with a passion for, and track record of, bringing artists and communities together in high quality, innovative creative experiences. She is currently the CEO of Hastings based arts education charity, The Bright Foundation. Founded by Academy Award winning costume designer, John Bright, the charity offers an inspirational programme of creative learning and events in film, theatre, and visual arts, inspired by their collections of antique toys, puppets and early cinema. Polly developed, launched and continues to run the organisation, venues and programmes which launched in June 2022.
Prior to this Polly was the Chief Executive and Artistic Director of East London Dance, having grown her career within the organisation over 18 years from Project Manager to Creative Producer to taking over as Director in 2013. Through her role at East London Dance, Polly developed an ambitious dance programme for the Cultural Olympiad as part of the London 2012 Games; led a £3.8m capital project in partnership with UD Music to establish The Talent House – a creative engine room for dance and music artists and young people; and co-produced a 4 year talent development programme and spectacular production, East Wall with Hofesh Schecter Company which saw 150 professional and nonprofessional dancers and musicians perform in the moat of the Tower of London to audiences of almost 10,000 people as part of LIFT.
Polly has also sat on the Board for Protein Dance and Dudley Infant Academy, and was selected by Here East as an East London Innovator in 2018.
Ross Boseley, East Sussex County Council
Ross is a Specialist Support Manager in Adult Social Care at East Sussex County Council.
Sarah Tye, Lewes District Council and Eastbourne Borough Council
Sarah is Head of Communities and Strategic Partnerships for Lewes District Council and Eastbourne Borough Council.
Steph Fuller, Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft
Steph has been Director at Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft since 2018. Ditchling Museum opened in 1985 to celebrate the rich artistic history of the area. Steph is also a member of the Disability Arts Online board, and previously worked as a senior manager at Arts Council England.
Stewart Drew, De La Warr Pavilion
Stewart is the Director of the De La Warr Pavilion in Bexhill-on-Sea. Primarily established as a visual arts organisation, DLWP has a reputation for innovative gallery and engagement programmes, commissioning new work, delivering large-scale installations, challenging interdisciplinary programmes and a high quality live programme. The organisation plays an important role in providing a platform for artists at all stages of their careers to develop their work, as well as being a catalyst for culture led regeneration of the region. Stewart is also the Chair of 1066 Country Marketing, and Chair of East Sussex and Brighton & Hove Music Hub.
Tim Slaney and Anooshka Rawden, South Downs National Park Authority
Tim Slaney joined the South Downs National Park Authority in 2011 as the first Director of Planning, and served as Interim Chief Executive Officer in 2023/24. He set up and led one of the country’s busiest planning teams adopting a unique partnership arrangement with other planning authorities. Prior to that, he worked at the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead as Head of Planning and Regeneration.
Anooshka Rawden is the Cultural Heritage Lead for the South Downs National Park Authority. She currently sits on Arts Council England’s UK Museum Accreditation Committee, and the National Lottery Heritage Fund London and South Committee. Anooshka’s background is in museums, and includes collections management and programme management, with stand-out experiences including having cared for the collections of the Society of Antiquaries of London. Anooshka has previous acted as vice chair of the Society for Museum Archaeology, where in 2020 she co-edited the first revised standards for the care of museum archaeology collections to be updated since 1992, and has mentored young people as part of Museum Futures.
Victoria Conheady, Hastings Borough Council
Victoria is the Deputy Chief Executive and Director of Place at Hastings Borough Council.
Secretariat team:
Sally Staples, East Sussex County Council
Sally is the Team Manager for Culture and Tourism at East Sussex County Council.
Saffron Phillips, East Sussex County Council
Saffron is the Project Coordinator (maternity cover) in the Culture and Tourism team.
Applications to join Culture East Sussex will open in Autumn 2026.