Sally Bacon, Founder member Cultural Learning Alliance (Co-Chair)
Sally was Executive Director of the Clore Duffield Foundation for 23 years, where she led the Foundation’s wide-ranging grant-making activity across the cultural, education and social sectors – distributing in excess of £150m – and developed a series of collaborative sector support initiatives. She led the R&D which culminated in a proposal to create a Cultural Learning Alliance in 2009, and subsequently founded the CLA. She ran the consultation process and chaired the steering groups which led to the creation of two leadership development initiatives: Clore Leadership (for the cultural sector); and Clore Social Leadership for the wider charity community and was an ex-officio board member of both charities until 2021. She also led on building – and providing guidance for – a UK-wide network of learning spaces within cultural organisations. Before joining the Foundation, Sally studied for a PhD in English literature and the visual arts, worked as Education Officer at the Poetry Society, and as Children’s Books Editor and Children’s Programmes Manager for the National Trust. She is a writer and editor and has written several books for children. She has been a school governor, a charity trustee, a member of the Advisory Council of the Creative Industries Federation, and a Museum of the Year judge. Since 2021 she has been a board director of FrameWorks UK, which provides communications research and support to reframe social issues. Sally was awarded an OBE in 2017 for services to cultural learning.
Derri Burdon, Chief Executive, Curious Minds (Co-Chair)
Derri is the Chief Executive of creative education charity Curious Minds. As the Arts Council England Appointed Bridge organisation for the North West, Curious Minds works to place creativity and culture at the heart of schools and other services for children and young people.
She originally trained as a teacher and taught English in further education colleges. She went on to work for ten years as part of Bolton Council’s Educational Improvement Service where she was responsible for leading several high-profile education and regeneration initiatives including: Find Your Talent, Inspiring Communities, Bolton UFA and Sunflower Clubs.
School wasn’t her favourite place as a child but despite this (or likely because of it) Derri is passionate about improving learning outcomes for all children, especially the most disadvantaged and vulnerable. In her current role, she is driven by the passionate belief that rather than attempting to ‘close the gap’, we should be filling it brim-full with enriching and inspirational cultural and collective experiences that the most fortunate families take for granted.
A proud Blackpudlian with Irish roots, she graduated from the University College of St Martin where she studied English Literature and Drama. She is a Governor of a secondary school in Wigan and is Chair of the newly formed CIO ‘Blaze Arts’.
Tina Ramdeen, Associate Director of Young People, The Roundhouse
Tina is the Associate Director of Young People at the Roundhouse leading the organisation’s work with young people, and a Trustee for Camden Spark – Camden’s Local Cultural Education Partnership. As a cultural education specialist working within formal and informal education, public and voluntary sectors, Tina is passionate about providing equitable access to high quality creative opportunities, progression pathways to diversify the creative industries, and empowering young people to use creativity to affect social change.
A graduate of the Northern School of Contemporary Dance with a Masters in Youth Work and Community Development, Tina advises cultural organisations on policy and practice relating to working with young people, and supports organisations to embed youth governance structures; enabling young people to influence decision-making within local and national cultural institutions.
Andria Zafirakou MBE, 2018 Global Teacher of the Year & Associate Deputy Headteacher, Alperton Community School
Andria Zafirakou, a teacher at Alperton Community School in Brent, won $1 million when she was crowned the 2018 Global prize winner of Best teacher in the world.
Andria was born in north-west London to Greek-Cypriot parents and state-educated in Brent and Camden. She is an art and textiles teacher in Brent on the outskirts of London, one of the world’s most ethnically diverse places. She is passionate about education and changing the lives of young people and underserved communities through creativity.
She has worked her entire teaching career of 14 years at Alperton Community School and was promoted to Deputy Head of Art within a year of her arrival. She is now Associate Deputy Headteacher leading on staff professional development.
Using the prize money awarded by the Global Teacher prize, Andria founded a charity called Artists in Residence (AiR) with an aim to improve arts education in schools.
Andria has also been named in the top ten of The Evening Standard’s 1000 Londoners List, a list of the most influential people in London. She also sits on the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Leaders Council.