Meet the
TEAM
Daryn Hufton-Rees
Chief Executive Officer & Chair of Trustees
Daryn has been with Zinc now for over 10 years. He is our CEO and Chair of Trustees. He has been able to utilise his background in management consultancy, specialising change and change management, to oversee the amazing progress that Zinc has made. From a small single issue closed charity to an education centre, community hub, theatre, safe space and an asset to the local community.
Daryn would like to think that the transparent, collegial atmosphere that operates within the team has spread and now characterises Zinc as a whole.
Management
Sonia Cakebread
Chief Operations Officer
Sonia has been involved with the organisation for over 30 years, working her way from being a participant to being in charge!
Many people will say, if Sonia doesn't know the answer, then no one will?
She is a trained actress, having toured all over the UK in many productions. But working at Zinc is where her passion is. She runs workshops in Drama, Art, Graffiti and Animation. As well as delivering programmes that support people getting back into employment, education, training or volunteering. Programmes that support independent living and courses that support and encourage mental wellbeing. A lot of her courses use cooking as well the arts in order to provide transferable skills, whilst achieving all important basic skills.
Red is her colour, you will recognise her by her bright red lipstick! if she isn’t wearing it, maybe you need to ask her if she needs a hug!
Mike Jones
Head of Education
Mike Joined Zinc in 2022 as our head of education. He has worked with students with additional needs since 2008 and just before joining the Zinc team he worked as the operational manager for a small therapeutic school in Chelmsford teaching GCSE subjects to students with multiple and complex issues.
Before delving into SEN Mike worked as a professional actor. Focusing mainly on musical theatre in both UK tours and West End Productions.
Mike has made it his mission to make sure that Zinc Education not only delivers a high-quality service but is also one of the most fun places to study and work. You can often spot him in a crowd by his tasteless Hawaiian shirt and his loud delivery of a pretty dodgy dad joke. Mike likes to treat a problem like a constipated mathematician would. He works it out with a pencil.
Graeme Seymour
Chief Finance Officer
Graeme is the Finance Manager at Zinc and one of the longest serving members of the team. Graeme started as an apprentice many years ago and has worked his way up to his current role. Graeme currently works remotely from home in Doncaster although you can still spot him around the building several days a month.
Graeme works one to one with one of the students from Zinc Education, mentoring him in the mysterious art of finance.
Zinc Centre - Staff
Julia Cakebread
Outreach Project Worker
Julia has worked at Zinc for 12 years. She started off helping out on an open day serving hundreds of coffees and now she is a project worker working with lots of groups around Essex.
Julia loves history and making people laugh.
Rosemary Duncan
Bookings Facilitator
Rosemary has had a very exciting and interesting career as a quantity surveyor, working for the local authority, mostly in the housing dept and Building/Renovating many properties for 30years. The last 10 years of her career she worked for London Underground as a Project Manager which involved all types of building work.
After she retired she became bored. So she rang Zinc to see if they had any vacancies. She joined us in February 2022 and her role is very varied. Mostly she is on reception or showing potential clients what rooms they can hire including the theatre.
" I just cannot believe how lucky I am to be working here. The people are all amazing, especially the Students. Its a pleasure and very rewarding to come to work everyday and I do not think I will every retire."
Anthony Barret
Facilities Manager
Anthony started working here in 1999 as our facilities manager and is by every definition a very handy man. He knows every inch of this building inside and out including all of it's Victorian quirks and oddities. He can turn his hand to plumbing, carpentry, gardening or decorating.
If you can't find Anthony anywhere, just look for the feet sticking out from underneath something that is broken and nine times out of ten that will be him.
Zinc Education - Teaching Staff
Ryan McDonagh
Project Manager
Ryan McDonagh is a Team leader for the Zinc Education staff. He is a creative guy who loves all things nerdy and art related. Ryan has over 5 years working with S.E.N within a range of ages.
He is currently in the final year of his illustration degree and is experienced at planning and coordinating an art curriculum across an SEN school structure. He has also run multiple art related clubs and groups.
In his spare time Ryan runs Dungeons & Dragons clubs when not woodworking and commission drawing / painting. He believes the world should be artier and he is determined to make it happen.
Laura Blake
Project Facilitator
Before joining us at Zinc Arts Laura worked as a full time nanny and worked in operating theatres as a health care assistant, as an aid to both scrub nurses and surgeons whilst they complete their procedures.
Laura loves working at Zinc as she gets to fulfil her passions for educating, gardening, art, music, dance, and theatre (stage not medical). She is also a professional singer and in her spare time she runs her own 1940s/50s style Rhythm and Blues band called Laura B and her Band.
Louise Rogers
Project Facilitator
Louise is an enthusiastic, creative, community artist at Zinc. She specialises in craft, anything messy and paper mâché. She can make anything the team needs.
In her spare time she likes to watch films and live music with her family. She puts her Art History degree to good use, by teaching with an art experienced work ethic that helps Zinc students creatively learn and thrive.