Experience Wellington’s Chief Executive, Pat Stuart has announced Dr Sarah Rusholme as the new Director Children & Young People based at Capital E, cementing Experience Wellington’s commitment to this audience.
“We are delighted with this appointment. Sarah is an accomplished leader who is passionate about, and committed to, ensuring that young participants in visitor experiences feel welcomed, included and important. She will lead Capital E through its next phase of development which has an emphasis on building relationships and developing partnerships to increase its reach and influence as a leading provider of creative experiences for, with and by children and young people.” Pat Stuart said.
“I’m very excited about this opportunity and looking forward to building on our success with this audience.” said Sarah. “We know that New Zealand’s youngest citizens need to be creative, curious and confident and Capital E’s approach, to involve children as peers, has marked it out as a leader in this field.
“I’m proud to be leading the Capital E team, and it’s going to be great being back in a role where I can see and hear our audience each and every day. My family has soaked up Capital E experiences for ten years. I know it’s an inspirational place that captures the capital’s curious, creative, innovative spirit; and it never fails to put children and young people at the heart of everything it does.”
Sarah is currently Head of Strategic Development at Experience Wellington and led the development of Experience Wellington’s strategy for children and young people. She has worked with many organisations across the Wellington region to increase the participation of young audiences. Sarah was the first Director, Carter Observatory following its refurbishment by the Wellington City Council in 2009 and is originally from the UK where she worked at the National Space Centre.
Sarah will start her new position on 10 October.
Experience Wellington and Capital E Experience Wellington, is a registered charity and a Council Controlled Organisation established by Wellington City Council to develop and manage Wellington’s cultural and arts assets. It is a unique combination of visitor experiences that collaborate and draw upon each other’s strengths, skills and knowledge to deliver excellent visitor experiences that contribute to Wellington’s economy and to its liveability and reputation as a centre of excellence for arts, culture and creativity. Our visitor experiences are: Capital E, City Gallery Wellington, Wellington Museum, Space Place at Carter Observatory, Cable Car Museum and the Nairn Street Cottage.
Capital E’s focus is on young people and their creativity. Capital E programmes explore and enhance creative thinking and action, providing both the awareness of possibilities, and the means to make them reality for children taking part. It includes the National Theatre for Children, MediaLab, OnTV Studio, Events, and the Capital E National Arts Festival.