Head over to our Impact Page to read this year’s Report
We review our activities, community consultation and hint to our 2026 plans.
Thank you to all that participated, fed back and supported us in this transitionary and reflective year!
We are recruiting for our next Festival Director!
Part-time
£22,360
Hybrid
SouthWestFest is south Westminster’s cultural community charity, delivering year-round projects that culminate in an annual Festival. The Director will:
– steer strategy
– fundraise and develop income streams
– manage freelance staff and volunteers
– develop the programme
– and more!
You can find our 2024 Impact Report here which has more insight into our typical work
We’re really excited to find the best person for this role, could it be you?
Please email any questions to chair@southwestfest.org.uk and director@southwestfest.org.uk and one of the team will respond to your queries.
Deadline to Apply – 23:59PM Sunday 16th November 2025
If shortlisted you will be invited to an interview on Thursday 27th November 2025.
All applicants will receive a response.
We look forward to hearing from you!
Join us at our AGM in November!
Review our 2024 accounts, discuss the findings of our consultation and hear the announcement of our new Festival model
Thursday 13th November | 5pm
Online Meeting & In-person at Westminster Abbey
RSVP to receive location details/online link here
This will also be an opportunity to say goodbye to Dodie our Festival Director!
Drinks and snacks provided
It is with a heavy heart that we are announcing that our Festival Director Dodie Finamore will be stepping down from her position at the end of December.
Dodie has worked with the charity for 7.5 years, first as the Coordinator and then as the Director, dedicating her time and energy to the local community and will be sorely missed.
From Dodie: ‘Working for the Festival has been such a rewarding part of my life, I am ready for a change but I will miss south Westminster! We have new plans incoming and I’m excited to develop these and prepare them for new leadership who will continue and develop our powerful impact locally.’
We will be opening recruitment shortly, and are excited to find our new Director – so do check back and share the opportunity with your networks.
We’re kicking off April with a callout for your input into shaping the future of SouthWestFest!
Our focus of 2025 is to gather as much feedback from you so we can create the most useful and exciting Festival model going forwards. Whether you’re a resident, worker or student we want to hear how our charity can best help you!
Residents/Workers/Students Survey – Fill Out the Form Here
Local Organisations/Businesses/Groups Survey – Fill Out the Form Here
Read more of our stories, opportunities and news by clicking here
You can now read our full Impact Report on our 2024 Festival!
A summary and review of the years activities and impact.
Thank you to everyone that fed back to us, and everyone that participated and made this year happen.
Read more of our stories, opportunities and news by clicking here
For 21 years, SouthWestFest has been a celebration of creativity, culture, and community spirit. Participation has been at the heart of our success, from local venues hosting activities to local organisation organising events; to countless people volunteering and thousands of residents attending the broad festival programme. In order to continue providing these vibrant, inclusive, and meaningful experiences that we all cherish, our board of Trustees has decided to take a pause from producing the festival in 2025.
This pause will allow us to take a step back from production to engage deeply with our community, and explore new ways to ensure the festival remains sustainable for the future. We believe that by taking the time to reconnect with local people and partners, to really listen, we will be better placed to understand new needs, evaluate our approach, and build capacity to come back stronger and better than ever in 2026.
Don’t worry, we aren’t going anywhere, Dodie and the team will be actively working with residents and organisations throughout the year to develop a new model that meets local needs and wants, so we can continue to be an asset delivering for the community.
All of us at SouthWestFest deeply value your continued support, we know it is vital for our shared success. We look forward to working together in this time of reflection, outreach and strategy, and as always, we welcome your ideas, feedback, and involvement as we plan for the next chapter of our charity.
If you’d like to volunteer to be part of this exciting year of development and change drop us a line at director[at]southwestfest.org.uk. We are actively seeking to build a Volunteer Engagement Team.
We will be sharing our progress, findings and opportunities throughout the year. If you’re not already, we encourage you to sign-up to our mailing list here, as well as follow our Instagram page, where all our news will be shared.
You’re welcome to email any queries over to director[at]southwestfest.org.uk, best wishes,
SWF Team
Read more of our stories, opportunities and news by clicking here
Neighborhood Project of the Year, Westminster Council
