rebecca@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her
Rebecca works 4.5 days a week, usually Monday – Thursday

As Director at NewBridge, Rebecca provides overall organisational leadership, strategic development and programme oversight, and oversees operations, finances and fundraising, working alongside artists, communities and partners. She has worked at NewBridge since 2014 and became Director in 2018.

She is the Co-Chair of Artist Network North East (formerly CVAN), an advocacy and development organisation for the visual arts who work across the region to support existing activity, effect change, and raise the profile of the North East nationally. She recently co-edited Issue 26 of Art Licks Magazine, and has previously worked on independent projects with Bait and BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, and at AV Festival, Vane and Project Space Leeds.

frances@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her
Frances works 4.5 days a week, usually Tuesday – Friday

Frances provides creative, strategic and operational leadership across NewBridge's artistic programmes, working closely with the Director and wider staff team. Delivering a programme that is artist-led and experimental in its approach, produced with and for artists and local communities.

She previously worked as a Producer and Acting Head of Programme at Collective, Edinburgh; was a co-founder of artist led space Rhubaba Gallery and Studios, Edinburgh; a trustee for sex-worker rights organisation Scot-Pep; and is part of the Feminism Art Maintenance group, an international research project exploring perspectives on womxns organising.

nat@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her
Nat works 3 days a week, usually Tuesday - Thursday

Nat works closely with the Director, our funders, and partners to monitor and evaluate NewBridge’s development, activities, and impact to ensure the effective delivery of our projects. Nat also plays a key role in managing fundraising and reporting efforts across the organisation, supporting the continued success of our programmes.

Nat brings a rich background in trusts fundraising and grant-making for charities and arts organisations. As both an artist and musician, Nat offers a unique creative perspective that resonates with NewBridge’s ethos.

dan@thenewbridgeproject.com
he/him
Dan works 4 days a week, usually Tuesday – Friday

Dan helps oversee the Collective Studio and Practice Makes Practice. He is an artist who usually works with other people across visual art, music, design and socially-engaged projects. He has been involved in running several artist-led collectives, project spaces and studios in Manchester and is most interested in longer-term, process-led ways of working.

hannah@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her
Hannah works 3 days a week, usually Wednesday – Friday

Hannah works to support the network of initiatives and organisations who are part of our ongoing For Solidarity project. She runs regular events and promotes the community work done locally that exists outside of restrictive economic models. She has been a member of NewBridge for 7 years and, amongst other creative projects, hand-crafts clothing using organic and recycled fabrics under the name Scout & Rae

izzy@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/they
Izzy works 4 days a week, usually Tuesday – Friday

Izzy is Create/Disrupt Project Manager. Izzy works with diverse communities to engage people in artistic & creative experiences. As someone whose path to becoming an arts worker was defined by quality arts participation and experiences rather than institutional training, she is committed to promoting and facilitating this right for artists from all backgrounds and cultural perspectives. Their practice is rooted in values of community, belonging and creating a space for historically marginalised people to be perceived as valuable knowledge holders.

Izzy is a freelance EDI and Belonging Specialist, Researcher and Writer and also works for GemArts.

ruby@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her
Ruby works 4.5 days a week, usually Monday – Thursday

Ruby manages the studios and building and is the first point of contact for any hire enquiries. She also provides organisational and administrative support across NewBridge membership and volunteer programmes. Ruby worked in people-focused and facility management positions for a number of years prior to joining the NewBridge team in 2020. She is a graduate in Photography and continues to develop her practice outside of her role at NewBridge.

dangoodman@thenewbridgeproject.com
he/him
Dan works 3 days a week, usually Monday – Wednesday

Dan helps shape and deliver our Neighbourhood Programme in collaboration with NewBridge members, community groups, residents, and partners. He supports longer-term projects that invite people to come together, connecting the many communities that form in and around NewBridge. Alongside our dedicated Community Facilitators; Jackie Wood, Hana Azahed, and Kaltouma Hassabalah, Dan holds space for our regular activities in Shieldfield, including Coffee Mornings, Saturday Socials and Memory Cafe.

Dan is an artist-curator based in Newcastle upon Tyne. He works across exhibition-making, facilitation, and collaborative projects that foreground co-production and access. As part of the 2024-2025 NewBridge Programme Committee, Dan led on The NewBridge “Open” Open.

bookshop@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her
Maya works 3 days a week, usually Wednesday – Friday

Maya oversees the day to day running of both sites, which includes researching stock and connecting with independent publishers. She programmes events across both NewBridge Books and the Reading Room, with a focus on an artist-led programme that showcases art-writing, experimental publishing, and knowledge sharing.

Maya is also an artist whose practice is routed in blending writing and visual arts into some kind of ‘aesthetic fiction’. She co-runs Albion Row Studios alongside Hannah Christy and Sabina Sallis.

izaak@thenewbridgeproject.com
he/him
Izaak works 3 days a week, Monday, Wednesday & Thursday

Izaak oversees the planning, management and delivery of the Youth Programme across development, operations, administration and communication. Working closely with Lib and Raffa to design an engaging programme of activities that not only meets the needs of young people but has their voice and vision at its centre.

Izaak is also an experienced facilitator and theatre maker who is passionate about championing the voices of LGBTQIA+ communities.

lib@thenewbridgeproject.com
they/them
Lib works 3 days a week, usually Monday, Wednesday & Thursday

Lib works between The NewBridge Project and Dwellbeing Shieldfield to deliver meaningful youth activity for children and young people as part of the Shieldfield Youth Programme. This involves getting out and about meeting young people and their families, running weekly activities, monthly skills workshops, trips, and events.

Lib is an artist and performance maker from Newcastle, who joined the NewBridge team in July 2023 as a Sessional Youth Worker, having first met the Shieldfield Youth Programme young people whilst working with them as an artist for Band Camp in 2022. Alongside their work at NewBridge, Lib works freelance as a facilitator and artist in various settings including running Little Builders at The Farrell Centre.

youth@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/they
Lerato across 3 days, usually Monday, Wednesday & Thursday

Lerato works with the young people of Shieldfield. They support detached work, our usual weekly sessional delivery, activities, trips and events, as well as delivering exciting projects with artists and the wider Youth Programme team as part of Dwellbeing Shieldfield and The NewBridge Project, in line with the values of both organisations.

Across their career, Lerato has extensive experience working with young people; beyond their work with us, Lerato is a DJ and dancer, who’s always trying new ways of being creative!

comms@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her
Meaghan works 4 days a week, usually Tuesday – Friday

Meaghan leads and supports all communications efforts at The NewBridge Project, working across print media, the website, social media, and press outreach. She ensures that NewBridge's diverse and exciting programmes reach and inspire new and existing audiences.

Meaghan brings a wealth of experience to the role, with marketing and communications experience in both the public and private sectors prior to joining The NewBridge Project.

admin@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her
Jesse works 4 days a week, every other Mon/Saturday, and usually Wednesday – Friday

Jesse provides administrative and practical support across the whole team, working within all our programmes, systems and communications. The front-of-house component of her role means you will often find Jesse in the bookshop or gallery spaces, welcoming visitors and acting as a point of contact for enquiries. 

Jesse is also an artist and writer. She tells stories, sometimes making images and objects to perform with.

communities@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her

Jackie works weekly for Monday Coffee Morning and once a month for the Saturday Social.

As one of our Communities Facilitators, Jackie supports the running of our Coffee Mornings and Saturday Socials. Through this she welcomes visitors to our building and builds relationships with our communities. As part of her role she is responsible for setting up, delivering and evaluating our regular activity.

Jackie is an artist, was a previous member of The Collective Studio develelopment programme, and was the founder of our coffee mornings. She also runs popular workshop sessions as part of our Memory Cafe sessions in partnership with Forum Cafe.

communities@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her

Kaltouma works weekly for Monday Coffee Morning and once a month for the Saturday Social.

As one of our Communities Facilitators, Kaltouma supports the running of our Coffee Mornings and Saturday Socials. Through this she welcomes visitors to our building and builds relationships with our communities. As part of her role she is responsible for setting up, delivering and evaluating our regular activity.

Kaltouma is an artist, chef and community leader based in Shieldfield. Kaltouma specialises in Sudanese cuisine and caters for numerous events in the local community. She also works for community co-operative Dwellbeing, where she leads a collective of local chefs made up from women who have moved to Shieldfield with similar experiences to her own.

communities@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her

Hana works weekly for Monday Coffee Morning and once a month for the Saturday Social.

As one of our Communities Facilitators, Hana supports the running of our Coffee Mornings and Saturday Socials. Through this she welcomes visitors to our building and builds relationships with our communities. As part of her role she is responsible for setting up, delivering and evaluating our regular activity.

Hana is a chef, artist and Shieldfield resident. She recently undertook a 6-month residency with NewBridge where she shared cultures from her home, Ghadamas, a Unesco World Heritage Site, through cooking amazing Libyan food, and working in collaboration with the Shieldfield Youth Programme and Ceramics studio.

finance@thenewbridgeproject.com

We are currently working with Nic and Bev from Figures and Forms on our bookkeeping and accounts.

Please note, our bookkeeper Niamh Cunningham is not currently at work.

Niamh works for charities in Newcastle, including Creativity Culture & Education, Fertile Ground Dance Ltd and Ballet Lorent. She also acts as trustee and treasurer for two other charities.

grace@thenewbridgeproject.com
she/her
Grace works 2 days a week, usually Tuesday morning, Thursday & Friday morning

Grace provides high-level organisational, administrative, and production support to Rebecca and Fran, the Director and Programme Director, to increase their capacity.

Grace first joined NewBridge in 2017 on the Collective Studio, became a member of staff in 2019 as the Admin & Marketing Coordinator, before leaving to undertake her PhD in 2021. Since then she has remained a studio holder, and taken up regular freelance work with NewBridge, which led to this new role when the need arose.