Arts Derbyshire

Introducing The Arts Derbyshire Trustees – Debi Hedderwick

Arts Derbyshire is supported by a team of trustees. The Arts Derbyshire board of trustees’ work supports our goal of enriching people’s lives through the arts. As well as supporting Derbyshire’s art scene through Arts Derbyshire, our trustees also have personal links to the creative sector, with many of them being artists themselves. Although you may have read about our trustees already here, in this series we want to introduce you to each Arts Derbyshire Trustee and let them tell you about their story and relationship with the Derbyshire arts scene.

In this article, we would like to introduce you to our Trustee Debi Hedderwick.

Debi Hedderwick is an independent dance artist who works as a facilitator, choreographer, educator and mentor in community, education and well-being settings. After a decade of practise across the UK, she moved in 1992 from London to Wirksworth and resolved to build an inclusive community practice centred in the Derbyshire Dales. Debi works with people of all ages, from toddlers to older adults, specialising in the co-creation of dance theatre with young people, and in creative dance work with people with complex needs and those with mental health issues. She aims to inspire others through participation, making and performance, and to support participants’ creativity, communication, self expression, personal and social confidence, and holistic well-being. 
Debi’s dance theatre pieces co-created with young people and adults, both professional and non-professional, have been performed at Edinburgh and Brighton Fringe Festivals, Wirksworth Festival, Deda and UK other venues, and in France, Germany, Hong Kong, Israel, Taiwan, South Africa and Japan. 
Debi is a co-founder and creative director of Learning Through Arts, a participatory arts organisation, founded  in 1999, which works in partnership with the statutory and voluntary sectors, and with artists from all genres, on long scale and large format projects and programmes with participation as a core aim. Debi was the Programme Director for Wirksworth Festival for 7 years, and since that time has developed and directed 5 annual Community Celebration Events for the Festival involving hundreds of Wirksworth people in many different roles.

Why are you a Trustee with Arts Derbyshire?

I’ve been Chair of Arts Derbyshire since the organisation became an independent charity in 2019. In this role, I bring my passion for participatory arts — along with my belief in the many benefits of creative involvement, my experience in inclusive work, innovative practice, and inspiring engagement; to the organisation. Arts Derbyshire’s mission to enrich lives by fostering a vibrant, connected, and resilient arts ecology aligns perfectly with my own work and core interests. I also enjoy contributing to the wider strategic vision and the practical planning that supports artists and organisations across the county.

Having worked independently for so long, yet strongly believing that collaboration and partnership are the best ways to create and sustain great work, I find my role as Chair of the Board a natural fit. It’s a pleasure to work alongside such an experienced and knowledgeable team, and I find it both motivating and inspiring to see how much we can achieve together whilst expanding participation and amplifying the reach and impact of the arts.

In my spare time, I love creative writing, reading, music, going to the theatre and cinema, outdoor swimming, sailing, dog-walking, and learning Welsh!

 

Now we’re in a position to signpost artists to fundraising opportunities, offer a platform to showcase creativity and help define the future of the arts in Derbyshire. Artists understand the collective value that connecting with other creatives can bring and our New Horizons meetings are going from strength to strength. We have so many exciting plans up our sleeves, watch this space!

Visit our Meet the Trustees page here for an overview of our board. Follow our Introducing Our Trustees series to find out more about each individual Trustee’s story and what Arts Derbyshire means to them.

Other articles in this series

Meet the Board:

  • Sharon Brown
  • Alice Marshall
  • Kalila Storey
  • Daniel Oakley
  • Sanjoy Sen
  • Simon Hobbs

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