OUR HISTORY
A BIT OF BACKSTORY
The Big House was founded by Maggie Norris, an actor, writer and director, as a response to her long-standing work with ex-offenders. She was shocked to find out that while only 1% of children in the UK have been in care, 40% of youth offenders and 70% of sex workers have a care background. So she set up The Big House in 2012 in order to support young people leaving care, and to break this cycle of disadvantage that they may find themselves trapped in.
EARLY ON
Phoenix was the first show ever staged by The Big House in 2013 and it was a huge success, receiving much critical acclaim. It was the culmination of the first Open House Project -a 12-week programme that uses drama and long term support in order to address the fundamental issues which act as barriers to independent living. 80% of young people who take part in our OHPs go onto Education, Employment and Training.
THE BIG HOUSE MEANS BUSINESS
The next five years saw a series of site-specific productions, including shows in the basement of the Rio Cinema, underneath Smithfield Meat Market, a Hawaiian restaurant and The Royal Court. We set up The Big House Means Business, which employs our members to lead workshops and performances influence the social care sector and train corporate partners. We have been commissioned by companies all over the UK, in Paris, Sweden, and Hong Kong.
THE BIG HOUSE GETS A HOME
In 2018, we moved into our own home – two renovated frame factories in Islington. It has since been the heart of our dynamic community, where we have staged productions, thrown parties, galas, dinners, careers fairs, and, most importantly, young people can walk into a safe environment as and when they need.
TEN BIG YEARS
In 2022, The Big House celebrated its ten-year anniversary and a decade of transforming young lives. We threw a big Open Day celebration for our members, friends, and neighbours. Bloomsbury published an Anthology of five of our plays.
IMPACT
OUR
MISSION IS WORKING
The Big House is now a dynamic community of over 500 young people.
Our members work at Netflix, BBC, and Amazon. TBH fights endlessly to improve access to opportunities, targeting the public sector, health services, hospitality and events, as well as the creative industry. Our young people are leading voices in their fields, striving for social change.
And some engage with us for more than ten years. They continue to join our workshops, in-house opportunities, celebrate together and mentor their peers.
“I now feel so powerful, so sure of who I am and what I want” – TBH Member
PEOPLE
Julie Dark
Julie is a strategic leader with extensive communications and marketing experience within the creative industries (BBC, Guardian, ITV, Technicolor) and in Arts education (University of the Arts London). She has established communications infrastructures and lead complex projects within challenging high-profile environments in the UK and internationally.
Julie is passionate about theatre and music, both as a performer and a spectator. She is also a fervent advocate for greater equality and inclusion in society.
Julie Dark
Chloe Evans
Chloe Evans is a HR Professional and since graduating from her Psychology and Drama degree, Chloe has been working in non-profits with a particular focus on helping those who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. Chloe’s interest in theatre stems from the impact theatre has had on her own life, and from this, Chloe has had a passion and drive to ensure theatre is accessible to all; particularly young people from deprived socio-economic backgrounds. Chloe has previously sat on the Almeida Theatre’s Youth Board, and The Park Theatre’s Youth Board, before joining The Big House, and hopes to continue bringing young people and community together, through the medium of theatre.
Chloe Evans
Claire Wilkinson
Claire Wilkinson is a solicitor with 30 years of legal experience and is the General Counsel and a Director of Payden & Rygel Global Limited.
During her career Claire has served on various industry professional standards groups with a focus on Environmental, Social and Governance factors and founded the Private Equity Lawyers Forum. Her charitable work centres around survivorship, domestic violence and social mobility.
Claire has a BA degree in Modern Languages from the University of Durham and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Risk, Governance and Compliance from the University of Manchester.
Claire Wilkinson
Wendy Scott
By day, a graphic designer for SAGE Publications for over 20 years.
By night, a graphic designer who loves all types of music and all things Carnival – designer, player and masquerader for Mangrove Steelband; food – love eating out and cooking; watching FAR too much TV (blame Netflix and Amazon Prime)!
I was introduced to the Big House in an explosive way when a scene was performed at one of our company meeting and now becoming a trustee for the Big House is exciting and a pleasure. I look forward to helping and supporting such an amazing organisation that encourages and inspires the excellence of young people.
Wendy Scott
Kiren Shoman
Kiren works in academic publishing with a focus on student learning. She is originally from Belize and has extended family in Palestine as well as the UK. She has degrees in sociology with development studies and gender studies, and is energised by issues around anti-racism, postcolonial/independence struggles and diaspora. Kiren holds a lead role in her organisation’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion work and is passionate about the organisation’s role in ensuring belonging and inclusion for all at work.
Kiren Shoman
Lesley Seary
Governance Lead.
Lesley has worked in the public sector for over 30 years and is a former Chief Executive of Islington Council who’s passionate about the people who work and live in Islington and making their lives better. She is now a Non Executive Director of two hospital trusts, Barts Health and Barking, Havering and a Redbridge University Trust. Lesley is also a governor of the Redbridge Adult Education Institute. She discovered The Big House while working at Islington and is excited to be supporting such an amazing organisation.
Lesley Seary
Mark Goodin
Finance Lead.
Mark is an Associate Director on the Corporate Credit Risk team at Royal Bank of Canada in London. He has over 14 years’ experience in the finance industry working in various roles at Royal Bank of Canada, and prior to that Scotiabank, Santander and Wachovia.
He has a Master’s degree in Finance and Banking from the Universidad de Alcala in Madrid, Spain, and a Bachelor of Science in Physics and Mathematical Economics from Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia, USA.
Mark Goodin
Robert Meteyard
Safeguarding Lead.
Robert has worked for over 30 years in services that support young people looked after away from home. He began his career as a residential social worker and then as an aftercare worker. Before retiring from social care in 2016 he was the Strategic Manager for the Leaving Care Service in the London Borough of Islington. He was chair of the London Leaving Care Managers forum which aimed to benchmark and share good practice between London leaving care teams.
Robert Meteyard
Humphrey Edginton
Chair of Trustees.
Humphrey is the head of legal and compliance at Asper Investment Management, an investment management firm specialising in sustainable infrastructure investments. Humphrey believes passionately in the ability of theatre to transform lives. As a student he directed, produced and acted in plays, taking one to the Edinburgh fringe festival. Nowadays he enjoys theatre from the comfort of the stalls and by supporting The Big House.
Humphrey Edginton
Ziyad Marar
Ziyad Marar was born in the Middle East and moved to London with his family at the age of 10. He is executive vice president and global publishing director of SAGE, a leading academic publisher, where he is responsible for overall publishing strategy. He regularly speaks and writes articles in support of the social sciences.
He has degrees in psychology and philosophy and is the author of three books: The Happiness Paradox (Reaktion, 2003), Deception (Acumen, 2008) and Intimacy: Understanding the Subtle Power of Human Connection (Acumen, 2012).