The Jynnji Project team

Naomi initially trained in Physical Ed Sport and Leisure to BTEC level, after obtaining her City and Guilds in Motorcycle Engineering, and before graduating with an Open University  Bachelor's Degree in the Humanities. Huge achievements given her families second generation multi cultural context, living well below the poverty line, within a minority religious sect that prevented access to secular society on all levels, until her teenage years.

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Aged 14 Naomi left home, spent 2 years homeless and then created a local music project, with her brother, within the record unemployment area they lived in.  The project offered cheap practice and recording space, and generated more local & regional venues into presenting live music for local talent.

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She was then selected to be part of a pilot youth training scheme. The scheme was special in that it supported young people into alternative, creative and artistic career opportunities. Naomi trained in theatre set construction and design, and received 4 hours music tuition weekly in 2 instruments. This led to an Arts Council funded year long contract with the Everyman Theatre Liverpool for Naomi, after completing her training.

 

 A training contract with the Northwest Archaeological Trust (NAT) followed, requiring assisting on digs, and compiling and writing reports for NAT on Halton Castle and Norton Priory in Cheshire.

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Naomi gravitated towards the Social Care and Social Support sectors early in her working life, obtaining her NVQ level 3 in Promoting Independence during her first 2 years of moving into the Social Care Sector.

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Seeking to better understand the nature of therapeutic and progressive mental health support strategies and working practices, Naomi sought to work closely with challenging autistic adults, with the long term street homeless and sex working populations around Bath and Exeter, working at the pioneering Simon House in Bath, and with Exeter Drugs Project. In Exeter Naomi managed a case load over 100 rough sleepers, and  had a capped keyworker case load of 10 ‘revolving door’ clients with mental health and substance misuse issues, on top of their long term homeless status. She found her clients achieved the most positive outcomes via creative, artistic and performance based opportunities, and that such opportunities provided both safe space, and indirect methods of assisting her clients indirectly sort out more directly pressing negative issues.

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It was at this time that Naomi discovered the joy of learning swinging trapeze, in the capable hands of Mr Michael Wright, internationally renowned ballet dancer, and circus flyer, at Circomedia in Bristol. What began initially as a way to keep fit, let off steam and have fun quickly became a route into additional semi-professional performer career opportunities, starting with opening Swindon Literature Festival on trapeze. At the same time Naomi’s Health and Social Care opportunities moved through Geriatric Mental Health into Palliative Care in an Oncology context.

 

Her patients in the latter group and her stumbling across the work of ‘Dr Circus’ Reginald Bolton Phd led to some life changing decisions, she ran away to join the circus full time and to date has enjoyed 14 years as a full time performer and aerial circus coach, based in Cornwall.

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Since 2016 she has directed 'Airfish Circus Community Arts Collective', a group made up of Professional and Semi Professional Circus performers, and enthusiastic amateurs, or in her words ‘ordinary people doing extra-ordinary things’.

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Naomi was ‘head hunted’ by Cirque Du Ciel (CdC) charity to become their Manager 4 years ago and in that time she has revitalised this organisation exponentially, in terms of the resources, provisions, and diverse project works CdC now offers, this is also true in relation to the Charity’s financial position prior to her taking up the post.

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Under her management the ‘Circus ‘Works Devoran’ was created and resourced.  She has ensured the charity weathered the 'Covid' storm, proactively, providing support to both the Cornish Circus Professional community, via provision of a Covid safe training space, and the wider local community via operating a food bank through out the pandemic.  Naomi also facilitated distribution of £20K in total hardship / crisis/ emergency funding’ provided by Cornwall Community Foundation to support local people in need over the last 18 months, due to the amazing work of Leigh Yates, who is also on the Jynnji Project Development Team.

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Naomi is a valuable asset to the Jynnji Project Development Team, in terms of helping to build the team, with her wide ranging network of local creatives and socially conscious organisations and people. She has done much in terms of capacity building in relation to the project with other local organisations and creatives.  Much too in terms of assessing and measuring the project's 'Social Value'.  She continues to reach out to other potential collaborators and users, as well as potential funders and investors.

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