Your basket is currently empty!
February 2025
Dear Friends,
Although it’s only February, things are already buzzing with creativity and connection at Ark T! Our programmes are in full swing, from Her Space and My Space to the Art Nest and Community Lunches. With successful funding bids, new projects, and inspiring workshops, there’s plenty to share.
To our staff, trustees, volunteers, funders, and the whole Ark T community—thank you. Your support, kindness, and creativity keep us going, and we can’t wait to see what the rest of 2025 brings.
❤️
The Ark T Team
P.S. Don’t forget to save the date for our next Community Lunch on 3rd March!
Celebrating Big Wins – Funding Updates
We’re delighted to have secured a generous grant from the Mabs Mardulyn Trust to help support The Art Nest in 2025, along with smaller grants from the John Thaw Foundation, Good Food Oxfordshire, the Maggie Black Trust, and OCF’s Living Essentials Fund. Excitingly, we’re now part of the Big Give’s Arts for Impact campaign, with donations matched up to £5,000—our first match funding campaign which will kick off on 18 March!
We’re awaiting decisions on other key grants and will keep you updated.
Exciting News! Holiday Activity Fund Application Submitted
Our brilliant Programmes Manager, Vanessa, has just submitted our application for the Holiday Activity Fund from Oxfordshire County Council! The application form is quite something – so please send Vanessa grateful vibes!
If successful, this will help us run our fantastic Creativity Camps for children on free school meals. Picture hands-on cooking classes, inspiring cultural trips, and loads of art and creativity workshops.
Fingers crossed, and we’ll keep you updated!
Community Lunches – Art, Music & Good Company
Our 3rd February Community Lunch was a vibrant gathering, featuring a colourful clay marbling workshop by artist Emily Marston and live music from Luke Newby-Smith. Thank you to everyone who joined us!
Don’t miss the next one on 3rd March at 12 noon, 242B Barns Rd—we’d love to see you there!
🍲 Community Lunch on 3rd March – Everyone’s Welcome!
Join us for our next Community Lunch on Monday, 3rd March, from 12:00 – 2:00 PM at 242 Barns Rd, Oxford, OX4 3RQ. These ‘pay-what-you-feel’ lunches are all about bringing people together over a delicious meal, fostering connections, and building a supportive community. There’s always a creative activity that you can join in with too. There’s no need to book—just come as you are, and enjoy good food and great company. We look forward to sharing this time with you!
Templars Square Art Project – Nostalgia and New Beginnings
On 29th January, we held a “Nostalgia and New Beginnings” Art Project at our Welcome Space in Templars Square Shopping Centre. This community-driven event explored themes of cherished memories and hopeful new starts through collaborative art. The art created will be used to inspire new decorations to freshen up Templars Square Shopping Centre to celebrate its 60th birthday. A huge thank you to Templars Square, Dawn from the Boundary Brook Community Projects for their generous support, which helped us purchase fantastic art supplies to fuel creativity.
Exciting Potential Collaboration with the Bell Group
We’re delighted to share that we’ve been welcoming representatives from the Bell Group to Ark T. Catherine met their team at the Match My Project Day, and it was clear that we share many of the same values. We’re looking forward to collaborating together with this great company!
A Heartfelt Farewell to Dr. Vicky McGuinness
As Dr. Vicky McGuinness steps down from her role as Head of Public Engagement at Oxford University’s TORCH, we want to express our deepest gratitude. Vicky has been an integral part of our collaborations with Oxford University, helping to build partnerships that enriched our programmes and strengthened our community. Vicky will always be part of our Ark T family.
Learning Together – A Special Visit from Dr. Isabelle Butcher
We were honoured to welcome Dr. Isabelle Butcher from the Department of Psychiatry at Oxford University to one of our recent staff meetings. Dr. Butcher shared insights from the latest research in adolescent mental health, sparking important conversations about how we can better support young people through our programmes. We’re incredibly grateful for her time, knowledge, and dedication. Here’s Dr Butcher on the left!
A Literary Gift from Blackwell’s Giving Tree
Thanks to the generosity of Blackwell’s customers, we’ve received over 160 donated books through their Giving Tree programme! These books have formed the foundation of a new Little Library in our Welcome Space, creating a cosy, accessible spot for everyone in our community to enjoy. A huge thank you to Blackwell’s and everyone who contributed—your kindness will inspire readers of all ages.
Dance Party Alert – Support Our HerSpace Programmes!
We’re excited to announce that Dancin’ Oxford and the Oxford International Women’s Festival are hosting a fabulous Dance Party at Oxford Town Hall, with part of the proceeds supporting Ark T’s Her Space programmes! This event promises an evening full of energy, movement, and connection.
• Date: Thursday 6 March
• Location: Oxford Town Hall
• Time: Doors Open at 6.30pm. Finishes 9pm.
• Tickets: £5, £7 at the door.
There’ll be live DJs ( including DJ Euton Daley and DJ Charlotte Trichard – who rocked our Winter Lights Party) and celebrity dancers Tia Denton and Lakica Grace. It’s over 18’s only as there’s a paid bar!
Come along, have fun, and support a great cause—we’d love to see you there! Book here:
🖼 Equality and Human Rights Exhibition – Everyone’s Welcome!
Our Human Rights Exhibition opened this week in the Welcome Space. Featuring powerful artwork from participants of our Her Space and The Art Nest programmes, the exhibition explores themes of fairness, inclusion, and identity. Highlights include vibrant pieces from Exploring Equality Through Art and stunning Year 6 wooden stools inspired by artists like Yayoi Kusama and Sonia Delaunay.
Through creative reflections on human rights, our young artists celebrate kindness, courage, and diversity. Don’t miss this inspiring showcase! Huge thanks have to go to our Creative Practitioner Groovy Su – pictured below – for all her hard work and creativity.
Exhibition: 11th February 2025 – 27th March 2025
Groups: Youth Council, HerSpace, MySpace, Art Nest and Art Nest Afterschool Club
Location: Ark-T’s Welcome Space @ Templars Square, Shop 101 , Oxford, OX4 3XH
Times: Mon- Thurs 10am- 3pm.
Connecting at Match My Project Day
Our CEO, Catherine, recently attended the Match My Project day at Oxford City Council, a fantastic opportunity to connect with potential partners, explore new collaborations, and showcase Ark T’s work. It was inspiring to see the energy and commitment from organisations across Oxford, all working towards creating positive change. Thanks so much to Nayeem Miah of Oxford City Council for the invitation!
Thank You to Charity Mentors, Sir Tim Stevenson, and Kelly Jennings-Robinson
A heartfelt thank you to Charity Mentors and Sir Tim Stevenson for their invaluable support of our CEO, Catherine, as she settled into her new role. Catherine had her final mentoring session this week, where Sir Tim shared his wisdom and insights gathered across his distinguished career. We’ll be sharing those insights so that everyone can benefit! We’re also deeply grateful to Kelly Jennings-Robinson for her dedicated leadership at Charity Mentors Oxfordshire. As she steps down to focus on her studies, we wish her all the best and thank her for the lasting impact she’s made.
Spring Impact Training – Getting Scale Ready
We’re halfway through our “Getting Scale Ready” training with Spring Impact, thanks to funding from UK Youth. This programme is equipping us with the strategies and tools to expand our reach and amplify our impact. We’re eager to apply these insights to support our community even more effectively.
Ark T as a SWEP Venue
We are very proud to serve as a SWEP (Severe Weather Emergency Protocol) venue, providing a safe, warm space for people experiencing homelessness when temperatures drop to 0°C or below. This vital service has been triggered frequently over December and January, offering shelter, support, and a sense of security during the harshest weather conditions. We feel extremely privileged to be part of this programme – providing space for 12 homeless people whenever the temperature reaches 0°C.
Advisory Board
We’re excited to announce our new Advisory Board. The purpose of the Advisory Board is to bring together a group of passionate individuals who love Ark T to help guide and support our work – without having all the responsibilities of being a trustee (thank you trustees!). We’re so pleased to welcome Ark T long time volunteer, participant, and former trustee, Shakeel as our first member. We look forward to introducing more brilliant voices soon. If you’re interested in getting involved, we’d love to hear from you! We’re particularly interested in hearing from people who have grown up with Ark T!
New Art Nest Logo
We’re excited to share that Art Nest has a brand-new logo! Designed to reflect the warmth, creativity, and safe space it provides for children, our new look brings a fresh identity to this much-loved programme.
Behind the Scenes at Ark T
There’s always lots happening behind the scenes to keep Ark T running smoothly. Our team has been streamlining our finances, renegotiating contracts (like reducing our Vodafone costs to a third while securing reliable broadband – well done Tony), and starting to prep our accounts for early submission (thank you Myrna and Sheila). We’re also overhauling our employee handbook to better support our team. Plus, a strategic away day with the brilliant Jeremy Spafford is on the horizon to help us shape Ark T’s future.
Looking Ahead – What’s Next?
- Our Welcome Space is thriving, but we need more funding to ensure it stays open consistently—watch this space for updates!
- The Big Give Campaign in March—our chance to double our donations!
- Exploring new strategic collaborations, including Oxford Opera, TORCH, and the Bell Group.
- Recruiting new trustees—if you know someone passionate about arts, community, and making a difference, send them our way!
