About Pedestrian
About Pedestrian
Pedestrian is a leading arts organisation and charity specialising in music and arts education based in the heart of Leicester’s bustling city centre. Since 1998, we have built a strong track record of delivering high quality creative activity that has seen us complete over 14,000 workshops.
We provide education, training and outreach projects for young people in adverse and challenging circumstances, vulnerable adults and communities in Leicester, Leicestershire and across the Midlands. Our participants are often socially excluded, not in education, employment or training (NEET) or experiencing disadvantage.
We believe that with the right levels of support and timely intervention everyone can achieve their goals, we call this ‘Pioneering Potential’.
We have three main areas of work:
- Alternative Education Provision (AEP)
- Early Intervention & Outreach
- Progression & Training
Creativity is a key part of our lives, at Pedestrian we offer the chance for everyone to explore this through music, dance, photography, street art and many other art forms regardless of who they are and where they come from.
All of our artists and tutors are specialists in their own fields, have an Enhanced DBS check every two years and have annual safeguarding training.
As a small charity, we rely on public funding, donations and income from our programme to enable us to support some of the most vulnerable people in our community. To help us continue our work, please visit Support Us.
We aim for our programmes and projects to have a long lasting social and personal impact for people and communities. Find our how and why our work has changed peoples lives.
Ethos & Mission Statement
We want to live in a world where:
- No person is deemed a failure, lost cause or not good enough.
- People are respectful and everyone has the same access to the arts and culture.
- People have a space to build core skills and knowledge to thrive in society.
- People feel empowered to achieve their aims and goals by broadening their horizons through access to high quality creative activity.
- Creative thinking and the arts are seen as essential tools and fundamental to people’s everyday lives.
- People care about the barriers faced by others and seek to remove them.
Who we are
Hema Badger-Mistry
Director (Currently on Maternity Leave)
Paul Snape
Interim Director
Danny Aldred
Education Development Manager & DSL
Debbie Longley-Brown
Project Development Manager
Kylie North
Project Curator and Co-ordinator
Selena Blakeley
Projects & Administration Assistant
Working in partnership
Our work is only possible because of the positive partnerships we have developed and nurtured over the years. It is an essential part of our work and enables us to achieve our overall mission. We’ve partnered with artists, communities, local authorities and organisations within and beyond the arts sector.
“Working with Pedestrian is amazing. Partnering up offers our young people so many brilliant creative opportunities they wouldn’t be able to get from us alone. Their projects get young people passionate about trying new things, uncover skills they never knew they had, and open doors to the arts, raising aspirations for all sorts of creative careers and pathways.”
Reuben Thomas, Leicester LGBT Centre.
Working with partners has allowed us to develop an ambitious programme working locally, regionally and nationally. It’s helped us reach new people, strengthen our reputation, unlock new funding and make lifelong friends.
Our history
Pedestrian was conceived in late 1997 as a vehicle for providing training to 11-24 year olds in the creation of music using vinyl records and turntables, or Turntablism.
In 1998, the organisation was formally constituted as a not-for-profit. A successful Awards for All grant enabled the establishment of premises in Northampton, seeing over 150 young people pass through its doors in its first year.
Support us
We couldn’t do what we do without the help of individuals, businesses and community groups, who with their generosity and imagination find ways to support us.
Find out more about the different ways YOU can support our work with disadvantaged people.