Over the past financial year, we have successfully provided low-cost studios to local creatives, offering 8 workspaces of single and shared occupancy that enabled 16 artists to sustain their practice. By charging £15 per square foot per year - exactly half of the London market average of £30 - our pricing strictly aligns with London’s Affordable Artists Studio Network (LAASN) definition of affordable workspace. This directly lowers the economic barriers to cultural participation, ensuring that working-class, financially underrepresented, and emerging artists have a secure space to work in the borough. We also renovated our communal areas to create a dedicated, multi-use gallery and project space. Our studio holders have used this shared resource for fashion shoots, workshops, exhibitions, and large-scale sculptural work. This infrastructure has fostered a collaborative peer network between our community of artists, mitigating the isolation often felt by independent creators and allowing them to scale up their creative ambitions. Following these renovations, we launched our free public programme of exhibitions and events in March 2025. Between March and September, we hosted 13 free public exhibitions, each drawing between 30 and 50 visitors, cumulatively generating a cultural audience of over 500 people. Over this period, 78 artists had the opportunity to showcase their work, including debut solo shows for 3 individuals. By offering free cultural experiences, we have enriched the local civic landscape in Lewisham, making contemporary art genuinely accessible to residents who might otherwise feel excluded from commercial gallery spaces. Furthermore, providing debut exhibition opportunities has given young, emerging talent the vital public exposure and professional validation needed to launch sustainable creative careers. This public engagement was further strengthened by hosting five community workshops, two film screenings, and a public book launch. As part of our community outreach, we partnered with Goldsmiths University’s Schools Studio Programme and hosted students for a day from Prendergast School, Christ The King: Emmanuel, Lewisham College and Southwark College. This allowed local 16-18 year olds the opportunity to see what an artist studio looks like and meet our community of artists who offered practical advice, demystified careers and progressions within art, and inspired young people aspiring to a career in the creative industries.

Our stakeholder network comprises three primary groups: our resident studio holders, exhibiting artists, and the broader public audience within Lewisham. We employ distinct consultation methods for each group to ensure our activities remain responsive to their needs. Resident Studio Holders (Primary Stakeholders) Consultation Method: Bimonthly group meetings alongside ongoing informal feedback channels. Action Taken: During these consultations, studio holders requested a more streamlined and transparent system for booking the newly renovated communal project space. In response, the company implemented a centralised shared calendar and a formalised email reservation system. This action resolved scheduling conflicts, maximised the utility of the space, and gave artists an easier way to host their own workshops, shoots, and exhibitions. Exhibiting Artists Consultation Method: Post-exhibition debriefs and qualitative feedback following each of our 13 public shows. Action Taken: Exhibiting artists overwhelmingly expressed that the opportunity provided vital professional development and significantly expanded the audience for their work. They noted that our management of the exhibitions was organised, supportive, and stress-free. In response to this positive feedback, we have committed to maintaining this high level of hands-on curatorial support and are actively exploring ways to offer further professional development resources in the coming years. Public Audiences and the Local Community Consultation Method: Informal audience feedback during events, alongside tracking attendance metrics. Action Taken: While formal survey consultation with the public has been minimal this period, sustained attendance figures (averaging 30 to 50 people per event) demonstrate a clear local demand for free cultural programming in Lewisham.

No remuneration was received

No transfer of assets other than for full consideration