susan coles
Susan Coles has travelled along the winding and always inspiring visual art education path for many years, through Foundation and Fine Art degree studies at Cardiff College of Art, to a PGCE in Newcastle, and an MA in Fine Art and Education at Northumbria University.
After working as a teacher, then subject leader and faculty leader, she became an Advanced Skills Teacher, and eventually a freelance adviser, consultant, and advocate for the subject, regionally, nationally and internationally. Advocacy has been through both official channels and also (independently) in organising campaigns and opportunities for engaging people’s voices. Susan has served as President of the NSEAD (National Society for Education in Art and Design) and is an active Council and Forum member, representing the All Party Parliamentary Group on Art, Craft and Design in Education, of which she is secretary.
chris owen
Chris Owen studied History of Art at the University of Cambridge, and supervised undergraduate students in the History of Art department at Cambridge, before embarking on a career teaching in art schools within further and higher education. Chris taught for 11 years at Swindon College in Wiltshire, before joining Leeds College of Art & Design, where he first led the Historical and Critical Studies Department before becoming Assistant Principal. In 2007, he moved to the University of Derby as Assistant Dean and Head of the School of Art & Design. He joined Anglia Ruskin as Head of the Cambridge School of Art in 2011, a post from which he retired in 2019. Chris possesses a Masters degree in Education (MEd). His research interests are in the history of British Art, and the pedagogy of Art and Design Education. Chris’ book, Drawing in the Dark: Henry Moore’s Coalmining Commission, was published by Lund Humphries, in 2022.
Anne Morten
Anne Morten, a recently retired headteacher with thirty five years’ teaching experience in a variety of schools, at home and abroad, joined the Board of Trustees in October 2020.
She started her teacher training and career at the Institute of Education in Singapore. She continued her teaching career and education when she moved to Liverpool in the eighties, gaining her Post Graduate in Education from University of Liverpool and Diploma in Education from the University of Manchester. Her first headship was in St Helens in 2004, followed by a second in Cambridge in 2010. Since retiring in 2020, Anne became a governor in a primary school.
Although her degree is in Mathematics and the Arts do not feature prominently in her personal education, she has championed Arts education in the schools she taught in. She saw how children’s lives could be transformed (and their outlook broadened) through the Arts, with children growing in confidence and self-esteem and, crucially, taking an active part in their own learning.
She ensured high quality arts provision in the schools she taught in by skilling the teachers through a comprehensive professional development programme. The opportunities and learning experiences in Art were continually monitored and evaluated. This included working closely with several external organisations, such as Museums, Art Galleries, Theatres and Orchestras. Engagement in local and national projects, such as ‘Take One Picture’, Heritage Project and Artsmark further deepened the children’s understanding and developed their skills. She has always found it rewarding to see excitement for learning as the children’s cultural capital develops.
Outside the classroom, Anne likes travel, hiking, history and drama.
Kate williams
Kate Williams works as a consultant specialising in providing business support to charities.
Kate trained as a musician at Bath Spa University College and has a degree in Music: Sound and Image.
She has been a venue manager and programmer for small scale venues across the UK, run a rural touring scheme, and was Commercial and Sales Manager at Corn Exchange Newbury before relocating to South Wales to be the General Manager for Theatre producers Theatr na nÓg.
Having previously been a trustee she is now providing regular finance and fundraising support to People Speak Up, a social, mental-health, arts and wellbeing charity and financial management for Carmarthenshire Association of Voluntary Services.
Kate is a reiki practitioner, keen crafter, enjoying knitting and sewing and occasionally dabbles in painting and photography.
Kate first became involved with AccessArt as the Membership Administrator and is delighted to be able to continue her involvement now as a trustee.
AccessArt Founders
Paula Briggs
Sheila Ceccarelli
Paula Briggs and Sheila Ceccarelli, founded AccessArt in 1999.
Both Paula and Sheila trained as sculptors, before establishing their first organisation Cambridge Sculpture Workshops. As the potential for the internet grew as a powerful visual tool, they established AccessArt as a leading and innovative creator of visual arts education teaching and learning resources.
Paula and Sheila live in Cambridge with their respective families. Sheila stepped aside as Director in 2020. Paula continues as Creative Director.
