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Rebecca Hanna-Grindall becomes chair of trustees at Ministry of Stories
East-London based charity Ministry of Stories has recruited the Southbank Centre’s director of arts, planning and producing Rebecca Hanna-Grindall as its new chair of trustees.
Co-founded by author Nick Hornby in 2010, Ministry of Stories exists to help young people discover their confidence, imagination and potential through the power of their writing. The charity said it “champions the writer in every child through its innovative writing programmes and small-group mentoring”.
Hanna-Grindall has more than 20 years of experience in producing and arts administration, having worked with organisations such as the BBC, the Royal Court Theatre and Fuel Theatre. She joined the Southbank Centre in 2011 as a producer, where she produced more than 30 site-wide festivals across all art forms, including annual children’s festival Imagine, the London Literature Festival, disability-led festival Unlimited and South-Asian festival Alchemy.
In 2020, she stepped into her current role as director, where she now oversees the planning, producing, event management, rentals, partnerships and administration teams, as well as being a safeguarding lead.
She takes over as chair of trustees from Michaela Greene, director of partnerships and impact at Roundhouse, who has served on the board for nine years and as chair of trustees for three.
Hanna-Grindall said: “I’m delighted to be joining Ministry of Stories as their new chair. It’s an exciting time for the organisation and I feel honoured to be part of this next chapter. I’m greatly looking forward to working with Rob, Laura, the team, trustees, supporters, volunteers and talented participants to build on their many successes and help us continue to grow and deliver significant impact for the local community and beyond.”
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Rob Smith, director of Ministry of Stories, said: “We couldn’t be happier to welcome Rebecca to this role. She has already proven to be a brilliant asset, bringing a wealth of experience in creative and engaging programming for children and young people, plus bags of enthusiasm, creative thinking and commitment.
“I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Michaela Greene, who over the last nine years has guided us with great leadership, humour and a valuable blend of vision and pragmatism. As the organisation has grown, Michaela has been instrumental in ensuring we remain rooted in our Hoxton community, but with a vision and ambition that reflects the world-class work our children and young people create.”
At the end of each school term, Ministry of Stories puts on a showcase of work produced by the children and young people. This summer will see “its most ambitious project to date”, the charity said; DreamState, described as a “pop-up experience that invites visitors of all ages to discover interactive zones exploring themes from nostalgia and relaxation to celebration and creativity” , is coming to The Ditch and Shoreditch Town Hall from 28th July to 2nd August, with time slots available throughout the day.
“DreamState brings to life original work by 112 writers – all of whom are children based in Hackney aged between six and 15 who attend Ministry of Stories weekly community writing labs,” organisers continued. The experience will last around 45 minutes and free tickets are now available to book at shoreditchtownhall.com/whats-on/dreamstate.
