E R I C A
P A R R E T T
575 Wandsworth Road
National Trust
Community Outreach Programme
In 2024, Erica joined the team at 575 Wandsworth Road to grow the community engagement programme, inspiring creativity and connection with the communities of Lambeth and Wandsworth.
Westbury Art Club
Erica runs a free monthly art workshop on her estate with her neighbour Brian, for their neighbours to experiment, chat and make beautiful creations. It is supported by Lambeth Council and runs in an empty flat on the estate. In January 2025, Chocolate Films made a documentary about them as part of a series of short films called Voices of Wandsworth.
Mary Ward Centre Community Outreach Programme
For nine years Erica worked in the community outreach team co-ordinating adult education classes in arts, health and wellbeing with community partners across London. Working with 50 community organisations a year, both big and small including Mind, Age UK, British Museum, Opening Doors London, Crisis, Toynbee Hall, Camden and Newham Councils and St Mungos as well as with parents groups in schools, homeless hostels, care homes for elders, community centres and sheltered housing, offering free adult education to those not able to access college education.
Ageing Better Camden
Ageing Better Camden was a Big Lottery funded programme led by Age UK Camden to tackle social isolation and loneliness amongst older people. Over four years, Erica led a Digital Inclusion project, reaching over 570 local residents through engaging classes. These included basic digital skills, photography walks, digital history walks, community blogs, wildlife photography city farms, tech tea parties in sheltered housing, iPad sing-alongs in care homes, even conversing about technology with hard to reach elderly drinkers in pubs! Classes dispelled fears of technology, enabled students to regain confidence and helped students form friendships beyond the classroom.
Healthy Minds
For three years, Erica produced a programme of creative classes for Mind including Photography Walks, Singing, Fused Glass and Kiln Fired Painted Glass aimed at supporting the wellbeing of it's clients during the pandemic.