CASE STUDY

Maggie has one foot in Bolsover (where she now lives), and one in Mansfield (her hometown).  

She has had a life-long love of the arts, including a career in theatre production and technical stage management at the likes of Bristol Old Vic. 

Images: (top) Maggie today, at one of her favourite haunts (Capo Lounge) and (bottom) a younger Maggie (seen bottom centre) with colleagues from the Production Team at the Palace Theatre Westcliffe near Southend,  her first professional job after leaving drama school

After living away from the area for many years due to work, when Maggie returned a few years ago she was blown away by her first taste of a First Art event, The Full Shebang Festival.  

Imagine my amazement at this fantastic event and it was in my hometown.  

I was immensely proud of how professional and organised it was but even more so as a severely partially sighted person. Thought had been given to all aspects of accessibility including me as someone who can see a little and find crowds disorientating.” 

Maggie suffers from a genetic condition that means she has no peripheral vision. But she’s determined not to let that stop her doing the things she loves. Quite the opposite. 

This has made me feel more proactive about improving events for people with sight loss.” 

As a member of the sight loss charity My Sight Notts and Nottinghamshire Sight Loss Council (SLC), Maggie has been able to work with organisations like First Art to create a greater awareness of the implications of sight loss and take steps to removing barriers.

It’s thanks to Maggie that First Art has been working in partnership with SLC, supporting us in our commitment to making the arts accessible as possible.  

As well as being an active participant in other First Art projects, Maggie has gone on to become a First Art trustee.