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My name is Lewis Gaston, I am a third-year student at the º£½ÇºÚÁÏ currently undertaking a degree in media and communications combined with Spanish.

I hope to find work within the field of political communication while also involving myself with communities at a grassroots level.

I believe community-led initiatives to be the foundation of social change and I truly believe it all starts with a small step in the right direction.

My name is Arabella Hanover and I am currently in my final year of an undergraduate degree in International Media and Communications at the º£½ÇºÚÁÏ.

Working on this project with Leicestershire County Council and Culture Leicestershire has been a thoroughly rewarding experience.

It has allowed me to explore the richness of local cultural heritage while contributing to a project that brings together community, creativity, and young people.

This opportunity has strengthened both my academic interests and my passion for community-focused cultural work.

Hi, my name is Amy.

I’m a third-year/final-year Film and Television student at º£½ÇºÚÁÏ.

I am also an artist, animator, business owner and a scriptwriter.

My biggest passion is story writing, and my dream is to create a cartoon that can win people’s hearts.

Media cultivates and helps us shape our identity; it would be amazing if my work could change other people’s lives.

I am one of the team members that worked on the ‘Empowering Young People as Cultural Decision-makers in Leicestershire’ project.

I am so unbelievably proud of everyone I had the honour of working with and hope our project helps Culture Leicestershire.

What they are doing is truly inspiring and I wish them all the best.

This project was so fun and rewarding and I can’t thank everyone enough for allowing me to be a team player.

My name is Anna Morley, and I am currently a final-year International Media and Communications student at the º£½ÇºÚÁÏ.

Throughout this research project, I have involved myself in meaningful conversations and given personal contributions.

These experiences have been both rewarding for myself and important for Leicestershire County Council and Culture Leicestershire in understanding how to engage the youth.

This project has boosted my interests in cultural community-based work, and built upon my practical skills.

I am a final-year International Media and Communications Studies student at the º£½ÇºÚÁÏ.

I was born and raised in Northampton, with a few years living in Bournemouth before setting my eyes on a place at the º£½ÇºÚÁÏ - leading to years of study for the necessary iGCSE and A Level qualifications.

I have a deep appreciation for competitive activities and as such have represented the University as part of the American Football society, and I hope to continue to contribute to other fields during the remainder of my academic career at the university.

Most recently, I am eager to contribute to a group effort to aid Leicestershire County Council in their future endeavours as I seek to further strengthen my skills as an academic and professional.

Hello, my name is Ela, and I am currently in my final year studying International Media and Communications Studies at the º£½ÇºÚÁÏ.

Throughout my degree, I have explored a range of modules, including a Public Relations and Politics module, which has deepened my passion for mediatised politics and inspired the focus of my dissertation this year.

Over the summer, I gained valuable experience interning in the marketing and corporate communications divisions of an Asset Management firm.

This opportunity not only provided me with insight into the corporate world but also allowed me to further develop my interest into how media, finance and politics intersect.

Druan Shah is a finalist in the Department of Cultural, Media and Visual Studies at the º£½ÇºÚÁÏ.

He is expecting to graduate in July 2026.

During his undergraduate degree, Druan has studied a wide range of modules including Media and the Environment, Politics and Visual Culture, New Media and Digital Culture, Political Communication, Public Relations and Propaganda, and Communication and Technology.

Alongside these modules, Druan has also studied languages, with a focus on French and Spanish.

I am part of the Senior Leadership Team for Culture Leicestershire.

I am passionate about finding new ways for our services to be an integral part of the cultural ecosystem of Leicestershire and beyond.

I am driven by ensuring local peoples' voices are at the forefront of how we shape our plans.

My most recent achievement is using my 20 years of experience in the sector to lead a successful Arts Council National Portfolio (NPO) organisation bid for 2023-26.

This has enabled the service to thrive and grow.

I believe that the work we do changes lives and I am very proud to be a part of it.

Savita Vaid is the Founder and Managing Director of Go-Getta CIC; a leading provider of youth work, alternative education and young people’s projects in Leicestershire.

Savita kick-started her career in music, moving into delivering media and knife crime initiatives with ‘at risk’ young people.

In 2011, she went on to work within the public sector with care leavers and looked after children, followed by managing a local authority project providing employability support to young people furthest away from the labour market.

A former foster carer, Savita utilises her lived experience in her role as a Safeline Associate Trainer; devising and delivering bespoke training on issues impacting children in care.

She has a vested interest in shaping services to reach and support the most vulnerable and disadvantaged young people in our society.

When not pursuing all things “youth work”, Savita enjoys spending quality time with her toddler and watching true crime documentaries (not simultaneously of course!)

Pippa Vidal Davies is the Volunteering Manager at Culture Leicestershire, Leicestershire County Council.

Pippa has spent over 20 years championing the incredible power of volunteers in cultural spaces across the East Midlands and abroad, all inspired by her first volunteering adventure at age 12, restoring an 18th-century naval hospital.

Together with the Culture Leicestershire team, she creates opportunities for people to be the givers and recipients of transformative experiences through volunteering.

Pippa welcomes all those who would like to find out more about the volunteering opportunities on offer at Culture Leicestershire.

The opportunities range from regular, longer-term volunteering to micro-challenges that only take minutes.

Daniel H. Mutibwa is Principal Investigator of Visioning a Creative and Cultural County (VCCC) academic-policy impact project which is a strategic partnership between the º£½ÇºÚÁÏ and Leicestershire County Council.

This strategic partnership is developing a bottom-up Cultural Strategy for the Council aimed at boosting inclusive and sustainable engagement with culture, heritage, and creative industries’ offerings across Leicestershire and beyond.

To better support Cultural Strategy work along with Leicestershire County Council's other key, interrelated, place-based priorities and missions, one strand of VCCC work is developing annual student placements that contribute to achieving VCCC's research, knowledge exchange, and policy impact objectives in inclusive, meaningful, and sustainable ways.

See Daniel's full profile