John Ayling

John Ayling is one of Creative Alternatives' arts facilitators. He is an experienced ceramicist and has worked in a great number of community settings. John run pottery classes, as well as pottery wheel workshops and clay workshops in his studio in Liverpool and in schools and colleges around the North West and North Wales. Website: http://www.johnaylingpottery.com

Dr. Jessica Bockler

Jessica is the programme's Arts Officer. She is an experienced community theatre practitioner, performer and project manager with expertise in Consciousness Studies and Transpersonal Psychology, the psychology of human potential. Her creative works are nurtured by ancient and modern sources of self-exploration, from martial arts and meditation practices, to expressive movement, to the work of Polish theatre director Jerzy Grotowski. Jessica has a PhD in Psychology and Theatre Studies, in which she explored the psychosomatics of self-expressive performance. Website: http://www.jessicabockler.co.uk

Selina Dunne

Selina Dunne is one of Creative Alternatives' arts facilitators. She is a qualified Art Therapist who has used creativity alongside Psychotherapeutic techniques within her Therapist role with Children with Learning Disabilities and Adults suffering with Mental Health difficulties. Although, with her work with Creative Alternatives Selina is not fulfilling a role as an Art Therapist, she strongly believes that with any artistic expression there is enormous therapeutic benefit, offering individuals the opportunity to discover new aspects of themselves, and begin their own journey of self-healing. Selina runs her own Community Arts Facilitation Service, offering Schools and Community Groups creative workshops to enable expression, exploration and self-development. The workshops are tailor made for each individual group, offering a bespoke person-centred service from planning stage to the delivery of service. Website: http://www.whimsicalarts.co.uk.

Abi Horsfield

Abi Horsfield is one of Creative Alternatives' arts facilitators. She is an enthusiastic and dedicated community theatre arts professional with extensive skills in facilitation and performance. Over the last twenty years she has worked in over twenty countries across three continents with people of all ages an abilities using theatre and other art forms to enable people to share what is important to them. She is a firm believer that everyone has a story that needs to be told and needs to be heard. As well as facilitating workshops, scripting and directing work, Abi is a performer in her own right and sometimes on a dark night you can catch her in a wig and false eyelashes singing, hosting and compeering at Cabaret Heaven. 

Sian Hughes

Sian Hughes is one of Creative Alternatives' arts facilitators. Sian has been working in Arts in Health for a number of years through workshops, residencies and commissions. Latterly, she worked in a 6-year residency in Glan Clwyd Hospital North Wales where the brief was to engage patients and staff in creative activities as part of a holistic approach to health, wellbeing and recovery. When this ended, she joined Creative Alternatives. She is thoroughly enjoying working in a team and exploring a huge range of exciting art forms and projects as part of Creative Alternatives core workshops. Sian loves seeing how participants develop these ideas further by creating their own work.

Sian also runs workshops for similar organisations in North Wales, as well as running programmes that explore her particular field of expertise – the Cyanotype process. Website: http://www.sianhughes.net

Anisa Saleh

Anisa is the programme's Referrals Officer and joined Creative Alternatives in October 2010. She has a background working in homelessness and supported housing, providing person centred planning and other support interventions to a wide range of service users. She has worked with young people on a variety of participatory arts projects, both regionally and nationally, and is passionate about how the creative arts can make a difference. She is also a qualified Relational Dynamics Coach and works with a range of individuals, offering professional and personal development solutions to unlock potential, increasing positive change and transformation. Anisa has a degree in Psychology and is a Person Centred Planning facilitator and trainer.

Sarah Jane Richards

Sarah is one of Creative Alternatives' arts facilitators. She graduated from Leeds Metropolitan University with a Fine Art Degree in 2004. During this time she studied painting in the Cypress College of Art and as an exchange student in Universitat de Belles Artes, Barcelona. Since graduating she has exhibited across England and Wales and in Cologne. As a Director and Studio Manager of Arena Studios and Gallery from 2005 - 2010 Sarah was charged with the day to day running and overall direction of the studio group and gallery. Sarah's professional practice centers around painting and involves the multiple laying of forms, gestures and planes of colour to create internal and external landscapes with architectural references. Sarah's work can be seen on high profile public art projects which include Go Penguins Liverpool 2009, Lions of Bath 2010 and Rhino Mania, Chester 2010. Sarah facilitates workshops and art activities for young people and adults across the North West encouraging personal artistic development and a deeper awareness of the visual arts.

Philip Wroe

Philip is the Community Partnerships Manager within Sefton Council's Arts & Cultural Services and also has responsibility for the general budgetary and strategic management of the Creative Alternatives programme. Among his responsibilities includes the organisation of Sefton's community arts workshop programme, outreach and educational activity, arts and health initiatives and festivals, exhibitions and events programming.