For over two decades, I’ve supported cultural initiatives that enhance local communities. My clients come from a range of sectors, including arts, heritage, the built environment, and creative industries. However, they all strive for the same objective: to bring about positive change for both people and the places they care about. Whether you are a cultural institution, an arts organisation, or a creative hub with a mission to make a meaningful impact within your community, I am eager to connect with you.
“Working with Deepa over the past two years has been an absolute pleasure, as she provided invaluable support to our evaluation team. She has demonstrated outstanding evaluation and communication skills. Her strongest skill set lies in her ability to logically structure complex and dispersed information; and to collate and disseminate the information in visually attractive and precisely communicated reports, infographics and presentations. From developing evidence led theories of change, to designing monitoring frameworks, surveys and reports, I highly recommend Deepa for anyone seeking high quality evaluations.”
“We were delighted to work with Deepa on our ‘Mapping Creative Hubs in Essex Report’, one of the first key deliverables from our Cultural Strategy. The report is already being used to help and inform our creative sector with projects and funding approaches and will be invaluable moving forward as we plot our own work against its findings and recommendations. It was a pleasure to work with Deepa on the report whose in-depth knowledge of report writing, data collection and analysis and consultation was vital to its success, as was Deepa’s calm, friendly and professional approach to delivering the project.”
“I worked closely with Deepa on a project, mapping the creative hubs and creative practitioners in Jakarta back in 2022. It was my first time working with Deepa but I have heard many positive things about her past work with other British Council colleagues and had been eager to work with her too. Deepa is extremely professional and has consistently delivered, even when the project faced setbacks or challenges she was able to be flexible without discounting the quality of her work. She has been a pleasure to work with and I cannot recommend her enough to other clients/partners.”
I assessed the impact of exchange programmes between Scotland and European countries from 2019 to 2023, with Ellen O’Hara and Lynsey Smith. Given the constraints of the budget and timeline, the research involved a survey and focussed stakeholder conversations. This approach surfaced tangible outcomes such as new collaborations, publications, networks, and residencies resulting from the exchange. It also highlighted the value people derived from international collaboration and its lasting impact on their creative practices.
I had the pleasure of collaborating with Historic England on their ambitious HSHAZ initiative, a £95 million scheme aimed at revitalising over 65 high streets across England. My role involved developing an evaluation framework and tools to capture the impacts of the culture and community programme. My approach prioritised incorporating feedback from stakeholders to ensure that the initiatives being rolled out would be relevant and effective for them.
Building upon the new Cultural Strategy, I enjoyed delving into the vibrant creative landscape of Essex. Commissioned to map the county’s creative hubs, I conducted a literature review, developed a database of creative hubs, and engaged stakeholders through surveys and conversations. The report provided recommendations to foster creativity, innovation, and economic growth. It also shared insights from Essex’s talented creatives, showcasing their unique contributions to their communities.
