Do you have an idea to improve something in Cornwall?
What if you could access the right kind of financial, business and design support...
...to turn that idea into a reality?
You could create a lasting difference for you and your community.
Mentors
If you would like to become a mentor and help people to co-develop their ideas, please contact us.
Done the way we do things at Leap though, design is all about positive change. Leap set up in '04 and alongside clients and colleagues, has been changing the world through design ever since.
We do it with you, not for you. We listen, talk, try to understand and try to explain; we keep a clear head. We know loads about the environmental impacts of design's processes, but we know loads about people too. We can sort you out a business card or help rebrand your whole business. We can give you an online holding page or a global retail site. We consult, advise and plan.
We do all this and more, because we love to and because it matters. And because we love that it matters.
3idog are specialists in creative interior design with a passion for a sustainable approach. Steve, one of the founding directors of 3idog Ltd believes that good interior design is all about the client, what they need and aspire to. Developing business through design, 3idog works closely with all of the stakeholders using a co-design approach to create unique solutions.
Steve is highly experienced with a degree in Interior Architecture and 15 years experience in commercial interiors. He has been responsible for many award winning schemes in the retail, hotel and leisure industry including chain restaurants, department stores and multi million pound hotel developments.
3idog is also involved in the community projects and the education sector, having run workshops and mentored pupils to help develop their ideas and transform them into tangible projects.
With a background in creative arts and working with communities, Lois is interested in creating activities and events for people to take part and join in. Lois is not only keen to unite people by doing things together but also takes a creative approach to finding solutions.
Lois is a Fellow of The School for Social Entrepreneurs graduating with in the first cohort in Cornwall in 2010 and graduated with an MA in Fine Art: Contemporary Practice at University College Falmouth in 2009.
Lois has spent time exploring socially engaged business ideas revolving around community building. Focussing on ‘The Good News Company' she committed her time to spreading others' good news for general goodwill and community empowerment through different methods and presenting ‘The Good News Show' on Penwith Radio.
Lois is currently working on a number of creative design projects which strive to enable people to feel empowered as a group, bringing people together, uniting through creative action and strengthening community spirit.
Jane graduated in business studies and holds numerous post-graduate qualifications in finance. Since graduating, Jane has held a variety of management positions in the retail and recruitment sector, and eventually settling in the finance sector.
Jane joined the Cornwall School for Social Entrepreneurs in 2009 where she began to put the building blocks in place to set up Smart Savings, an ethical financial services company. Smart Savings goal as a Social Enterprise is not private profit, but the financial stability of the local community.
Jane is very proud of the ethical services offered by Smart Savings in personal finance, business finance training (including grant funding), debt counselling and claims management. Smart Savings projects have already proven social and economic impact, with their personal finance training literally changing the lives of people who have been struggling financially due to unemployment and debt.
Smart Savings has received funding through the National Lottery, Community Grants, UnLtd, and Unlocking Cornish Potential, and has a formal partnership with PCDT to deliver accredited money skills courses. Jane is now asked by Cornwall School for Social Entrepreneurs to regularly deliver expert sessions on grant funding and witness sessions about her experience of setting up a Social Enterprise.
For more information about Jane and Smart Savings, please visit www.smartsavings.org.uk
Will is a veteran of Kneehigh Theatre, a Cornish bagpipe player and a brave storyteller.
No longer the deputy head at Treyew primary school he now describes himself as a "freelance human being and part-time educational consultant".
Will founded the LA's ‘Sense of Place' project providing creative, cross-curricular, Cornish resources for teachers. He won the Delabole Slate Audience Award with his first film ‘Daralla Jooan Choy an Horr', and won the Celtic Media Festival award for his second film ‘Tom and the Giant'
His ‘Tales from Porth' breakthrough learning materials for the Cornish Language also won the SW Media Innovation award; ‘A man with his finger in many pasties!'
Kathryn is Director of Social Design agency Sea Communications and Senior Producer for DOTT (Designs of the time) Cornwall. She is currently working on the Designing Communities project and Cornwall's Big Design Challenge.
She is experienced in project managing digital media projects, having previously worked as Senior Account Manager for Euro RSCG Circle on key digital accounts such a Orange PLC and Zurich Financial Services.
She is a creative thinker with a marketing background and a good knowledge of business & community issues across South West England. She has a passion for working with community groups and young people to help them communicte thier ideas and co-design solutions to social issues.
Helena graduated from University College Falmouth with a degree in Spatial Design and has worked on freelance projects with interior design consultancy Collective Studio, and London based Tonkin Liu Architects where she worked on The Fresh Flower Pavillion for The London Festival of Architecture.
At SEA she is currently Assistant Producer on our two DOTT Cornwall projects - New Work & Designing Communities where she is responsible for design research, project management and creative idea development. She is passionate about working with communities to co-design solutions to real social and economic problems and is incredibly insightful about the fabric of Cornwall.
After graduating as an advertising copywriter at Falmouth College of Arts Mark established MPAD in 1999. He has gained a strong reputation amongst the Cornish business community as a well-connected and creative public relations and marketing professional.
A mentor for the successful Unlocking Cornish Potential scheme, which places talented graduates with growing businesses in Cornwall, he is also a keen supporter of the Prince's Trust.
Mark, who founded the Hub, Cornwall's young business persons' network, is a director of Cornwall Chamber and a member of the Low Carbon Cornwall Private Sector Leadership Group.
Named as Best Individual in the 2009 Cornwall Sustainability Awards, in his spare time Mark runs Sunday league football club, MPAD United, who he successfully guided to promotion in 2009/10.
Dion Star is an Independent Designer & Art Director, based in Cornwall. With a Masters degree in Graphic Design, Dion has great experience in the development and delivery of an idea.
A collaborative approach to his studio practice has allowed for opportunities to work with film directors, sound designers, writers, poets, artists, photographers, illustrators, animators & musicians.
Dion has a rich and varied background, including vast experience in events management and consultancy. He has previously worked as a mentor on community based projects, and is currently working as a lecturer at University College Falmouth on the Graphic Design BA (Hons) degree course.
James lives and works in Cornwall and specailises in designing affordable housing on projects throughout Cornwall. He is listed on the Architects Registration Board of the United Kingdom and a Member of the Royal Institute of British Architects, James joined the Practice in 1999 after working in London bringing with him valuable experience of large scale developments. He trained at the University of Westminster gaining a distinction and became an RIBA Silver Medallist. He went on to work with Inskip & Jenkins Architects, working on a Millennium Project at Somerset House. James also worked for internationally acclaimed architects, MacCormac Jamieson Prichard.
James has gained valuable experience of working on a number of key flagship projects and has recently been instrumental in the design of the nationally acclaimed Broadclose Housing Project for 173 new homes which received the 2007 Housing Design Award for Best Affordable Housing Scheme. His involvement in affordable housing also includes a number of major housing projects including Northey Road Regeneration project for 93 new homes in Bodmin and the Redevelopment of PRC Homes for 355 houses in North Devon. James has also undertaken a number of smaller rural affordable housing schemes throughout Devon and Cornwall.
At Guild of Sage & Smith we believe design can help to overcome any challenge; be it commercial, social or environmental.
Perhaps the best way to explain how we work is by unpacking our name. There are three unique principles to the business: Firstly, it comprises a flexible and growing network of associates who share the same enthusiasm for excellence – hence a guild of like-minded people. Secondly, its design process is fundamentally built around design thinking; historically a sage is someone who possessed or showed profound wisdom. The third principle is that, whatever the output of the design process, it deserves to be beautifully crafted: and smith denotes a person who is skilled in creating something with a specified material. Guild of Sage & Smith represents all three principles working together.
We approach every project with an open mind, so wherever possible the end result emerges naturally from a rigorous design process. It sounds pretty obvious, but it means we don’t label ourselves specifically as ‘graphic’ designers, or ‘web’ designers, or ‘interior’ designers… simply because different problems get solved in different ways. Our solutions have included brands, printed material, interactive experiences, workshops, events, products and physical spaces.
Neil heads up every project at Guild of Sage & Smith, and works closely with everyone involved; not just those who pay for the work, or those who do the work - but those who should ultimately benefit from it. Neil is a committee member of the South West Design Forum, and was Chair of the Cornwall Design Forum between 2008 and 2010. He’s a member of D&AD, the International Society of Typographic Designers and The Typographic Circle; a Fellow of the RSA; and a board member of various community-based groups in Cornwall. Neil has also taught at both the University of Gloucestershire and University College Falmouth.
Boex 3D Creative Solutions is a fresh-thinking, energetic and experienced design company run by twin brothers, Sam and Will Boex.
We are passionate about excellent design and relish the challenge of finding innovative and stylish solutions to complex problems. The way that people view and interact with the environment around them fascinates us - as a result, we are proud to have produced some highly original and award-winning projects across a range of sectors, from furniture design to innovative healthcare interiors.
Established in June 2004 by Sam, who already had a successful 5-year career in the design industry and a 1st-class degree in 3D Design, Boex 3D Creative Solutions has gone from strength to strength. We are passionate about inclusive design, involving end-users throughout the development process to co-design innovative and intelligent solutions. We are experienced in leading exciting and original participatory workshops with varied client groups of all ages and abilities.
Casper is director of design consultancy Wax RDC Ltd, an active member in his local community (Transition Town Farnham; Farnham Local Food; University for the Creative Arts ... ) and has presented to groups around the world to help them understand challenges and develop solutions (UK, Ireland, China, Brazil).
Using his design, creative, interpersonal and business expertise, Casper supports community groups, students, entrepreneurs and business to develop their great ideas into practical solutions that are sustainable both financially and environmentally. Casper is experienced as a competition judge of others' ideas but also presents Wax's work to clients and ‘Dragons Den' style panels - placing him as a well-qualified mentor for both you and your ideas.
Casper will work with you to understand and develop your idea into an inspirational success story for you and your local community.
Dr Jo Henley is an environmental scientist, educator and designer. She has been Director of Sciart Solutions for 5 years - a company which specialises in creative environmental science communication.
With an MSc in Marine Science and a PhD in science communication through visual media, Jo is an expert in making sure environmental messages are accessible to target audiences. Jo works throughout Cornwall with organisations such as the National Trust, the Wildlife Trust and local communities, on projects with themes such as mining heritage, biodiversity, fishing and climate change.
Jo also works extensively in the education sector, delivering creative science and outdoor education workshops for schools and is a lecturer in Marine and Natural History Photography at University College Falmouth. With a passion for everything environmental, Jo enjoys the challenges of working with all ages and interest groups.
Following 20 successful years in the creative industries Colum now runs his own London based design management practice BEING where he advises and mentors clients in the public, private and charitable sectors on how best to achieve their corporate goals through the better use of design.
His previous roles running leading design agencies and in-house head of design positions at Homebase and the NHS, coupled with an education in both design and business (he holds an MBA from the University of Westminster), give him the perfect skills and experience to understand the potential of design to effect the lives of everyday people and the bottom line of businesses.
David is an urban design /public space planner and designer living in Cornwall. He is an advocate for community planning and facilitates place-making, public space design and housing design and planning and believes in making design understandable, approachable and fun.
Recently involved with designing a slave trade memorial garden in Liverpool, a town centre regeneration plan in Shropshire and on masterplanning rural housing and employment areas in South Devon, David works for clients including local authorities and government and is experienced in team management, community design and pitching of proposals.
He has a family and 2 mad dogs.
I currently support schools to improve and innovate, focusing on social enterprise learning and I am involved in the development of the Social Enterprise Qualification. My responsibility is to work closely with the social enterprise business sector to endorse and refine the qualification - ensuring that the needs and skills of the business community are reflected in the qualification.
My previous experience in RIO [formerly Creative Partnerships] includes: initial research and implementation of the creative partnership programme in Bristol in 2002; project managing various creative programmes including a regional development programme across the south-west supporting young people to work alongside and mentored by industry professionals in the digital media and film sector; strategic curriculum development with Wiltshire FE College around work related learning and the future world of work; research programmes for NESTA and DFE - testing and piloting innovative new approaches and skills to work-related learning for 11 - 19 years old, through social enterprise and the future world of work .
I am passionate about all aspects of visual arts and culture and love the innovative thought processes that lie behind them. In my current work I thrive on bringing people together to think creatively about the future of social enterprise.
I have worked extensively in the south west over the last 25 years for Rotork Engineering Company, The Royal Photographic Society and Arts Council - Year of the Artist. I was awarded an Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Photographic Society in 2000. I also do freelance work.
I am also a founder member of New Cut Projects Photographic Agency - curating, researching and organising events around photography and lens based media. I have just curated a photographic exhibition from ‘teenager to adulthood' for Knowle West Media Centre, Bristol.
I am currently a Visiting Lecturer at the University of the West England [UWE] on the BA Photography Degree Course, as well as a panel member of UWE Ventures support network for post graduates - supporting enterprise and innovation. I am also a member of the Royal Society of Arts Fellowship for Social Entrepreneurs Network.
Be more persuasive and enjoy it!
Julia Schofield developed a personal approach to public speaking whilst Director of the NHS Support Federation; addressing sizeable public meetings two or three times a week, lobbying government ministers, chairing national press conferences, fundraising, writing and broadcasting. Since then, running her own SME in Cornwall for ten years (recently sold) she collected a further range of collaborative business and marketing skills.
She offers a Public Speaking Consultancy Service, suitable for entrepreneurs, sole traders, new businesses, fundraisers, students, those recently promoted and everyone facing the challenge of a presentation or speech; even the Father of the Bride!
Good results are quickly achievable even for those with rock-bottom confidence when speaking to groups, despite their many other skills.
Practical support in an informal setting with easily remembered professional techniques and advice on restructuring if needed, makes all the difference to confidence and a more persuasive impact.
Julia is also one of the main organisers of Porthleven Food, Music and Young Person's Festival.
www.publicspeakingcornwall.co.uk
The School for Social Entrepreneurs (SSE) exists to provide training and opportunities to enable people to use their creative and entrepreneurial abilities more fully for social benefit. SSE supports individuals to set up new charities, social enterprises and social businesses across the UK.
Make it count!
As an incentive to get people to submit ideas we've launched a Big Give Collection for ShelterBox and will be adding 10p for a challenge, 20p for an idea and 5p for every comment received.
