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About

Helping every young person in East Sussex access high quality arts education

Exchange - the East Sussex Arts Education Network (formerly Hastings Rother Arts Education Network) is a charity founded on the belief that all children and young people in East Sussex, regardless of background, deserve access to high-quality arts education that nurtures creativity, wellbeing, and future opportunities.

student artwork that reads "All schools should be art schools" and "express yourself"
Artwork created by The Hastings and Rother Arts Champions for The Manifesto Show

What we do

Working with partners across East Sussex, our focus is on using local resources for local schools, creating sustainable projects that embed culture into young people's everyday lives. We bring together schools, cultural organisations and artists in meaningful, lasting relationships.

First established in 2013 as the Hastings and Rother Arts Education Network (HRAEN), we have spent over a decade delivering projects and programmes with and for young people ranging from drama and poetry workshops, performances, commissioning toolkits and resources that help bring creativity into the classroom, and partnering with programmes like Talent Accelerator and Culture Shift to help young people access and discover early career opportunities in the arts.

In 2025, we shifted from being an entirely volunteer-led local network, to a county-wide charity with a small, dedicated staff team committed to delivering our mission, and we are so excited for this new chapter.

Our Vision for East Sussex

We envision a future where:

  • Every young person in East Sussex feels valued, inspired, and safe to express themselves creatively.
  • Schools and cultural organisations are well connected and collaborate seamlessly to provide continuous arts provision.
  • Artists and teachers receive the support and development they need to excel.
  • Arts education is recognised as essential to young people's development and future success.

“It was through dance lessons at school that a world of opportunity and freedom opened up for me. Experiencing and participating in the arts can genuinely change the direction of someone’s life and it is in our schools that these first encounters should take place.”

Hofesh Shechter

Who we are

Clair Rowe

Development Director

Rachel Karasik

Administrator

Kim Byford

Chair of trustees

team photo

Sophie Neill

Trustee

Becky Reed

Trustee

Kate Regester

Trustee

Ben Urban

Trustee

Marc Woodhead

Trustee

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