Pete is Cultureword’s Chief Executive. He has a PhD in Creative Writing from Lancaster University and is a prize-winning playwright, poet, novelist and essayist. He was awarded a Society of Authors Travelling Scholarship Award in 2024 in which year he also became a Fellow of the Royal Literary Fund.  He has 30 years’ experience of delivering creative writing workshops for Global Majority writers.  

Ella Otomewo is a poet and performer who thrives on collaboration. She has an MA in Poetry from Manchester Writing School at MMU. Ella is the New Writing Coordinator at Cultureword and is the main facilitator of Identity Writers Group.

Radhaika Kapur has held roles in project management, communications and producing at various Manchester arts charities since 2019. A poet with an MA in English Literature, Radhaika has been writing and performing for over 10 years, with her pieces featuring in UK and US publications.

Mahboobeh Rajabi is a Digital Literature Coordinator at Cultureword as well as a creative entrepreneur and producer. Her work explores the intersection of storytelling, history, and technology to bring underrepresented narratives to life. With a background in digital media and community engagement, she is passionate about Hard Pressed, a project mapping radical publishing presses in Manchester and building on the legacy of the Commonword Archive. Mahboobeh is committed to using digital tools to connect past and present through creative expression.

Laura has over 20 years experience of working with vulnerable children across Manchester. This has included management roles with alternative education providers, in youth offending and in secure children’s homes. She currently promotes diversity in children’s literature and runs a pop-up book shop that reflects this. She is also working on a feminist reinterpretation of the Harlem renaissance.

Muli Amaye is a novelist and short story writer. She gained a PhD in Creative Writing at Lancaster University, UK. Her interests very much centre around women, memory, migration, diaspora and belonging. She has taught creative writing in tertiary education in the UK, Northern Iraq and Trinidad and Tobago since 2006 and has worked in the community for over 20 years. She still gets inspired and excited at the opportunity to teach and learn. Her debut novel, A House With No Angels, was published by Crocus Press in 2019.

Bethan has over 30 years experience of community development work in inner city communities in the Northwest of England. She currently works for the NHS in Manchester as a Health Development Coordinator, bringing health and social care professionals, local organisations and communities together to create healthier, stronger neighbourhoods.

Over the years she has worked with a variety of community associations and has a particular interest in fostering and adoption as well as access to the arts for people with learning disabilities.

Amy Stuart has worked in the Media industry for over 15 years.  She commissioned and managed a variety of content and campaigns for BBC Childrens, Factual and Sport  working on brilliant shows and events such as Green Planet, Horrible Histories and the Olympics.

Having completed a BA Hons in Creative Arts at Bath Spa University she has maintained a love of creative writing, which is why she’s so proud to be part of Cultureword