Meet The Team
Beth Gevell BEM
Founder & Director
Born to support and create, I am hugely passionate about enabling young people to cope with the real and diverse challenges of life. Using kindness, compassion, empathy, honesty, gentleness, sensitivity, humility and fun to enhance the quality of their personal lives and show there is joy in living.
To head Arts for Life Project and to make a difference to young people is my passion and joy and one that I couldn’t do without my incredible team.
Amanda Blake
Family Support
I am passionate about enabling young people to be their authentic selves. I have lived experience of neurodivergency, and while on this continuous learning journey I want to share my experiences and knowledge to support and help our AFLP families with a listening ear, and space to just be.
Luke Gevell
Team Leader
Three words to describe me are empathetic, free-spirited and adventurer. My passion in life is to be able to support and encourage young people, so my work at Arts for Life Project is my dream job. With a previous history of mental health and challenges I feel in a good place to offer my wisdom, knowledge and most of all my support.
Veronica Dolling
Wellbeing Practitioner
With over 20 years experience of supporting children with their individual and unique challenges, largely in school settings, I feel privileged to now be part of the wonderful AFLP family. I believe providing a safe and accepting environment that allows for freedom of expression helps young people build confidence, develop resilience, and learn to love themselves.
Lucy Heywood Jones
Project Manager
I found AFLP after many years as an area manager for a children’s drama school. I know, first hand, the importance and power of The Arts and I am a passionate about promoting confidence, self-esteem and development in young people. On a personal note, my brother has learning challenges and I wish our family had had access to this amazing project.
Zoe Miranda
Clinician
Creative, kind and fun are the words which best describe me. I have a gentle approach to therapy and include sand, play and puppet therapies to create a safe environment which allows our young people to express emotional issues that they find difficult to put into words. AFLP combines Therapy and Fun
Debbie Sharp UKCP MBACP
Clinician Lead
Empathic, warm and kind, I try to be innovative in my approach; to include a sense of fun and the joy of discovery; adapting my approach to each individual’s needs. I hope to increase young people’s emotional robustness by providing tools which allow then to realise that it is ok to feel and to have emotions that may seem overwhelming and all-engulfing.
A highly qualified Integrative Child Adolescent Psychotherapist and Adult Counsellor, I am keen to ensure that all my CPD is up-to-date. My qualifications include: Level 6 Supervision, level 2 Working On-Line and Remotely, Diploma in Dyslexia, Autism and Mindfulness, Level 3 Autism, Level 2 Adverse Childhood Experiences, Diploma in Cognitive, Behavioural Therapy.
Seth Gillman
Outreach Clinician
Offering a safe, accepting, non-judgemental space to the young people I work with, I use my creativity to engage and support them to explore their inner selves and the physical and emotional world they inhabit.
As AFLP’s Outreach Counsellor, I am based at the Southbank International School. For the past 15 years I have worked with a variety of people of all ages in my private practice and in a wide variety of settings and agencies in both voluntarily and paid-for roles. I hold a PG Diploma in Counselling and am a Registered Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.
Brandon Canning
Community Mentor Manager
At AFLP I am able to combine my experience of working as a primary school PE with my grounding as a teenage, semi-professional football player and coach, to help young people grow and learn. Using each child’s uniqueness an creative ideas I coach them to reach their goals and become ambitious young adults.
Cassidy Jodie
Community Youth Mentor
Three words to describe me would be fun, creative and patient. Having volunteered with Arts for Life for the last four years, I am now delighted to be an official part of the team. Each young person is unique and I love to find their 'special power' using the creative arts. I love drama and have enjoyed bringing my passion and sharing my knowledge with our young people.
Sophie Mattes
Community Youth Mentor
Thoughtful, determined, soft and funny are all words to describe me. Being hard of hearing and coping with multiple health issues, my passion in life is supporting others who find life challenging. I am calm, understanding and feel blessed to be part of the Arts for Life Project family.
David Price
Life Coach/Mentor
I have a passion for adventures and pushing myself out of my comfort zone. At AFLP I love to use my skills as a life coach & mentor to help young people & adults to identify their life goals, to develop a plan for how they will get there and to support them in their journey. My best feeling comes from helping someone achieve something they never thought possible.
Andy Perrin
Parent/carer Therapist
I am a father of three, one of whom was diagnosed as neurodivergent, so I’ve seen first-hand the ongoing challenges young people face - this journey awakened a passion in me to help others.
I have a diploma in hypnotherapy and basic counseling and am training for a Level 5 professional diploma in psychotherapeutic counseling. Previously I coached children’s football for several years and spent time as a charity trustee. I believe in trying to make a difference where I can and am grateful to get this opportunity with AFLP and contribute to their amazing work.
Our Trustees
Penny Ericson
Chair
I am a mum, career market researcher, and a passionate advocate for any activity that engages young people whether through sports, arts or other community group, in order to boost mental health.
AFLP has provided so much support to my child and others I really want to help it to flourish in the future.
Jeff Rollason
Trustee
I am a father of 3 children, the oldest of which was diagnosed ASD. Arts for Life was right away something Lucy really engaged with so I was willingly sucked into helping the charity. I have run AI Factory Ltd for 20 years, so am able to bring in some technical and business experience to benefit the Charity.
Emma Mathews
Secretary
I live in Pinner with my husband Russel, and two lovely young people, who have a mix of autism, PDA and ADHD, which keeps life interesting! AFLP has offered our family a wonderfully supportive and safe place to be, a place to socialise and express themselves where they feel accepted, included and encouraged - even when it’s hard for them to join in.
Dahlia Basrawi-Deeno
Trustee
I was blown away by the real benefits AFLP brings to young people’s everyday lives. The ethos of 'putting their arms around the whole family' really resonates, so often the network around a young person is forgotten. I bring over 15 years' experience in corporate learning and development to assist with all aspects of the training and learning.
John Cadman
Trustee
I have 25 years HR experience, predominantly in the print industry. As a family man who has not had the need to draw upon AFLP’s services, I have great admiration for the charity’s work. I hope that I can bring an external perspective to the organisation as well as offering HR expertise.
Jonathan Grosskopf
Trustee
I ask challenging questions and sometimes question plans to ensure they are relevant and practical in solving today's and tomorrow's problems. For nearly 50 years, I have been a chartered accountant; I want to use those experiences and my expertise to assist this charity in reaching its full potential of becoming a beacon of excellence and financial probity and helping as many disadvantaged young people as possible.