Meet The Team

The people behind the wheel......


Amy Smith - Mission Control

The lady behind the organising! Working for Junction Arts - Amy has been hard at work for the last few weeks bringing the logistics of the event together! Liaising between the UK and Holland, as well as the numerous EMPAF groups involved.





Paul Steele


Paul Steele is the Managing Director of Junction Arts, a participatory arts organisation established in 1976 in North Derbyshire. Junction Arts work mainly in rural and ex-industrial communities opening up access to the arts. Our projects are diverse, celebrating our heritage and embracing new and emerging technologies. Paul has worked in the arts and creative industries for over 10 years and whilst at the Community Media Association was part of the community media movement that led to community radio becoming a licensed broadcasting sector.  Paul is with the trip till Sunday.




Andy Barrett

Andy Barrett is an artistic director of Excavate, writing and producing over thirty community plays across the East Midlands since 2000. His writings also include a cloning meets country and western musical which The Times selected as a pick of the year under the title 'most deranged idea that actually worked'; an English / Mandarin script performed in collaboration with the Sichuan Opera Troupe of Chengdu; the first ever version of Ibsen's 'The League of Youth' to be performed in the UK; and an adaptation of 'Robinson Crusoe and His Farther Adventures' for BBC Radio Four. He is currently working on a new play 'The Second Minute' for the Nottingham Playhouse based on letters sent to and from men of The Sherwood Foresters regiment during the First World War 




Michelle 'Millie' Ferguson




Michelle works in  association with The Mighty Creatives, East Midlands Bridge (EMBridge) organisation, funded by Arts Council England Priority, led by The Core, Corby is a part of The Mighty Creatives’ EMBridge Locally Based Partner (LBP) programme, a network of organisations across the East Midlands using EMBridge investment to explore new ways for children and young people from under-represented groups to shape their local arts and cultural offer, while also increasing the number of opportunities to take part in creative activity in areas of low arts engagement.




Sophie Mackreth

Joining us on Sunday to replace Paul, Sophie Mackreth has been Youth Arts Development Worker at High Peak Community Arts for nearly 5 years, developing a full youth programme of largely film and performing arts opportunities for the young people of the High Peak.  She has worked alongside the staff team of Alison, Jan, Rick and management committee to co-lead the organisation in new and challenging directions, always focusing on those with the least access to arts and culture.  Sophie has been working in community arts since 2003, gradually specialising in Youth Arts and successfully secured the National Youth Agency’s Hear By Right Award for High Peak Community Arts in 2013, recognising the quality of meaningful participation by young people at the heart of the organisation.