Meet the team
UKCCA Board
Tony Isles • Chair
Tony has been on the UKCCA Board for 20 years and was appointed as Chair at the 2022 AGM. He has been actively involved in the carnival arts industry for over 20 years, as both a carnival arts practitioner and a member of the Rampage Carnival Band. Tony has also been involved in the delivery of carnival classes and activities to promote health and wellbeing, including leading socaerobics classes. Tony is the Recovery College Manager for East London Foundation Trust, covering the Bedfordshire and Luton area. Tony has been part of the fabric of Luton for many years working and volunteering in a variety of roles from front line staff to managing services, including Education, Community Development, Addiction, Black History Month, and Youth work.
Richard Renwick • Treasurer
Richard has been on the UKCCA Board since 2012, and until September 2023 was the Chief Executive of Tuntum Housing Association. After leaving Leeds University in 1978 with a BA (Hons) in Economics, Richard spent 4 years training to become a Chartered Accountant. In addition, Richard has worked as a freelance Management Consultant, a Regulator with the Housing Corporation and as a senior officer in the Ethnic Minorities Unit at the former Greater London Council (GLC). In the past, Richard has held the positions of Chair and other portfolios on various boards within the voluntary sector including housing associations, representative bodies and training agencies. He is currently Chair of Nottingham Carnival and The East Midlands Caribbean Carnival Association (EMCCAN). He is also a trustee of the Nottingham Council for Voluntary Services (NCVS). In 2007 Richard was awarded the MBE for his services to social housing and the Caribbean community in the East Midlands.
Louise Allen • Vice Chair
Louise joined the UKCCA board in 2022. A Human Resources Professional with over 15 years of experience, Louise has worked across various sectors - public, private, membership organisations and charities. She has developed people-related strategies and policies, supported various organisational change projects and programmes and accreditation initiatives. Louise enjoys the spectacle of Latin America & Caribbean Carnivals. She has had the fortune of taking part in the annual Luton International Carnival in recent years as a volunteer and on the road playing pan.
Nick Owen - Trustee
CEO of one of the UK’s foremost young people's charities The Mighty Creatives, Nick was awarded an MBE for services to arts-based businesses in 2012 and has been committed to developing international cultural education for over 30 years.
The heart of his career is rooted in the political theatre and arts education sectors in Leeds, London, Liverpool and the East Midlands. Inspired by the work of Black Theatre Co-operative, Talawa Theatre and Tara Arts Group, he became Chair of Brouhaha International in Liverpool for several years before re-engaging with the carnival communities of the East Midlands.
He has collaborated internationally to collaborate with many partners in Bulgaria, India, Serbia and South Africa amongst others. Whilst appreciating the role of place and hyper-locality in the power of culture to transform peoples’ lives, he also recognises the critical importance of engaging with international practice with local audiences through dialogue, sharing and mutual learning.
A regular publisher, recent publications include Expressive Arts and Design in The Early Years Foundation Stage: Theory and Practice (SAGE), Placing Students at the Heart of Creative Learning (Routledge) and Outsider | Insiders: becoming a creative partner with schools, International Handbook of Creative Learning, (Routledge).
Roberto Rudie - Trustee
Raised in Church End, North London, Roberto Rudie was born into a lineage of leadership within his Ghanaian heritage. The most prominent people in Roberto’s life were his father and uncles. His father and uncle owned Ghana’s largest transportation company, King of Kings. Following their example from an early age Roberto was taught leadership and people skills alongside the importance of education. He used this knowledge and skills to start his own business in his 20s, making his first £1,000,000 at the age of 21, money which he lost as he failed to understand the importance of financial prudence.
Undaunted, Roberto continued to pursue his business ambitions and now operates one of the UK’s fastest growing, black-run businesses, AIX Capital, a privately-owned hedge fund based in Central London. AIX holds investments in a variety businesses, ranging from tech, manufacturing, media, fashion, and mental health.
Roberto is an ambassador for the mental health organisation Think About Mental Health, inspiring others through his own personal experiences of managing depression. Roberto also supports the Martin Luther King Jr Initiative which aims to empower young black people across the globe. He works with The African Nations Football Association, an organisation which builds infrastructures and supports aspiring footballers’ families in grassroots communities. AIX Capital is also working with the world’s leading filtration system, NKD, providing clean water to schools and villages in poor communities.
Roberto also heads Ad Labs Digital. This company provides strategic marketing and sponsorship as well as a sustainable NFT service for commercial and not-for-profit businesses and individuals, all services designed to place power back into the hand of leaders, artists and creatives.
Raheem Lindsay - Trustee
Raheem Lindsay’s journey in the world of carnival began in 2009 when he was chosen as Carnival Prince for the band, Education 2000. This experience ignited his passion for carnival, and he was honoured to compete in the Huddersfield and Leeds Carnival Competitions, where he proudly secured 3rd Place Prince. His costume, a stunning creation called “Yes We Can” that portrayed Barack Obama becoming the first black president of the United States was designed and made Colin Spalding and Steve Hoyte from Rampage Mas Band. This was Raheem’s first taste of the artistry and craftsmanship that goes into every aspect of carnival.
Raheem Lindsay is the proud leader of Phoenix Mas Band, a dynamic, multi-ethnic carnival band based in Huddersfield. Founded in 2022, Phoenix Mas Band is open to everyone aged 7 and above, bringing together people from diverse backgrounds to celebrate the rich traditions of Caribbean carnival. Since the band’s inception, they have had the privilege of participating in numerous UK Carnivals, including Huddersfield, Derby, Nottingham, and Leeds, where their vibrant costumes and high-energy performances have made a lasting impact.
Carnival is more than a passion for Raheem; it’s a way of life that connects him deeply to his Trinidadian roots. He is passionate about costume making, a form of artistic expression that allows him to blend tradition with innovation, creating visually stunning pieces that tell a story and bring joy to those who wear them. Teaching the Kirklees community, particularly the younger generation, about the cultural significance of carnival and the art of costume making is something Raheem holds dear. He takes great pride in seeing the excitement and pride on the faces of young people as they learn about the shared heritage of carnival. For Raheem, carnival is a celebration of identity, community, and creativity, and he is dedicated to preserving and sharing this vibrant tradition with the world.
Senior Management Team
Claudette Whittingham • Executive Director
Claudette is an Events Manager specialising in event and project development, and management within the carnival creative industries. She has 20 years’ experience working in the creative sector. Since 2002 she has specialised in the carnival industry. As a volunteer, Claudette supported the reintroduction of Sheffield Carnival from 2017-2019, undertaking the strategic positioning of the event, fundraising and delivering marketing and promotional activities. Claudette has delivered a range of roles in the creative sector including Event Manager, Office and Finance Administrator and Business Development Manager for Notting Hill Carnival, Production Manager for Notting Hill Mas Bands Association and Fundraiser and Event Manager for the Sunsplash Music Festival.
Claudette has extensive experience of UK government policy development, specialising in social justice measures to address poverty, social improvement, and in-work progression. She previously specialised in area regeneration consultancy, with a focus on fundraising, working with a range of agencies in London including the Greater London Enterprise, London Docklands Development Corporation, Stratford Development Partnership and London East Training and Enterprise Council. She is also an author and worked with 2 child editors on her children’s book which is all about carnival!
Maria Nepaul • Finance Manager
Working for various property management companies across central London, Maria has 10 years’ experience in both commercial and residential property accounting. She has 7 years’ experience as a sub-contractor for various clients from the construction, real estate and hospitality sector, which include preparation of sole trader profit and loss accounts from incomplete records, self-assessment for both sole traders and partnerships, management accounts and corporation tax returns for limited liability companies. She has experience in preparing both creditor and debtor reports through reconciliation of the control accounts and chasing debtors for outstanding payments through effective credit control management. Maria provides insights on the financial health of the charity by ensuring that the charity meets its statutory and compliance obligations, which include the preparation of monthly management accounts, periodic submission of VAT returns, and the provision of financial information in support of fundraising applications on behalf of UKCCA.