Our People

CO-FOUNDER

Rachel has a degree in Drama and Theatre Studies and a Postgraduate Diploma in Acting. After time as a professional actor, she settled at Chicken Shed Theatre Company working as a performer, assistant director and tutor, also gaining her teaching qualification. She has previously led a large Performing Arts Department in an FE college.

Since setting up Act on It with Helen in 2004, highlights have been communication skills training, with a staff team in situ ….in the penguin enclosure… and developing a local organisation in Sierra Leone to deliver Act On It’s pioneering teachers’ professional development programme.

Setting up Act On It from scratch has often been a crash course in taking on new roles and implementing new skills. She is now skilled and experienced in partnership working, bid writing. and project development, implementation and management.

CO-FOUNDER

After growing up in the North of England, Helen went to London and trained as an actor at East 15 Acting School and has an M.A. in Arts Management from Sussex University. Helen worked as an actor before finding a role in teaching at the BRIT School, where her passion for drama was shared with the young people she taught. Helen went on to build her professional career in education and lead a vibrant Performing Arts department at Lewes College where she progressed to Curriculum Manager for the sixth form college and as Artistic Director during the merge of the college provision.

In 2004, Helen took the bold step to bringing her skills, and her lived experience together to set up Act On It, with her trusted friends and colleagues, Rachel and Peter. She was and remains committed to using drama to improve the lives of others. Helen believes work should make you happy, and Act On It has been a brilliant undertaking and a voyage of discovery!

DIRECTOR

Kim Jackson has maintained a range of careers and interests in performing arts education, acting and directing for over thirty years. He now works entirely freelance combining all the areas of his expertise and experience dynamically and creatively. This is in professional theatre; directing as Kim Gillespie, and in corporate and business settings, in training, coaching and consultancy and as an assessor and examiner. He is an experienced trainer and Applied Theatre Practitioner working in corporate and community settings and also has wide experience of presenting training and information videos.

He is Artistic Director of Tangled Web Productions which specialises in new writing and re-interpreting classic texts. His own writing for the company has attracted two research and development grants from the Arts Council. He has two other published plays. He also works as a freelance theatre director and is a past member of Equity’s Theatre Directors Committee.

DIRECTOR

Angela brings a wealth of knowledge and experience from her successful career as a primary school teacher. Angela’s passion was ‘early years’ and she went on to set up and manage two school-based nursery units. Angela progressed to work with Birmingham Local Authority in an advisory capacity, supporting, training, and providing professional development opportunities for practitioners in a variety of educational settings.

More recently Angela worked as a visiting tutor for P.G.C.E. students. Angela has become very involved with a local women’s charity, where she runs a weekly ‘creative’ drop-in group. This provides vulnerable women with the opportunity to come together, develop their creative skills, build confidence and friendships in a warm and supportive environment.

Angela trained with the NSPCC to become a volunteer counsellor for Childline. This has given her a unique insight into the difficulties that many young people are struggling with today.