Host Ica Headlam speaks with Sadiki Harris from Black Thrive Lambeth about how the organisation supports Black communities in Brixton through a backbone model that props up grassroots work rather than trying to do everything itself. They talk about real co-production, community assemblies that get people's voices in front of council, and why leading with wellbeing instead of crisis actually shifts how people show up. They discuss Project Hill, stories of people who've moved through serious trauma without letting it define them, and why it matters that Black organisations employ Black people. Sadiki shares the Black Man Toolkit coming this year, a practical guide for young Black men navigating life after systems stop supporting them, and how Black Thrive is looking to Scotland carefully, working with organisations already doing the work rather than imposing a London model.

Find out more: Black Thrive Lambeth: www.blackthrive.org.uk

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Host Ica Headlam speaks with sisters Rhea Lewis (Project X Dance) and Jeda Pearl (Scottish Black and POC Writers Network) about supporting Black and POC artists in Scotland. They chat about growing up in a creative household in Edinburgh, how 2020 completely shifted their approach towards artist development and care, and the ongoing challenges of exploitation and tokenisation in the creative industries. The conversation gets into what real support actually looks like – from proper commissions to rehearsal spaces to mental health support for artists making work about trauma. They also celebrate both organisations receiving Creative Scotland's Multi-Year Funding, which is a massive deal. And they dream about creating Black cultural centres in Scotland with archives, libraries, rehearsal spaces, and cafés – taking inspiration from London's Black Cultural Archives whilst imagining a community-owned Scottish approach with satellite locations across the country.

Find out more:

• Project X Dance: www.projectxdance.com (sign up for their artist newsletter – for Black & POC artists only)
• Scottish Black and POC Writers Network: www.scottishpocwritersnetwork.com

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Host Ica Headlam speaks with Kim Loliya, founder and director of Black Psychotherapy in London, about culturally attuned mental health support for Black and Global Majority communities. Kim discusses how they've grown from a solo practice to a team of 31 practitioners, the problems with Eurocentric therapy models, and why mainstream NHS provision often fails racialised communities. The conversation explores generational trauma, the fears many hold about accessing mental health services (including higher rates of sectioning and restraint), and the power of community healing through care circles. Kim also shares their vision for abolishing Western therapy models in favour of more indigenous approaches to healing, the importance of anti-oppressive practice embedded throughout training curricula, and Black Psychotherapy's work from their shipping container therapy space in the heart of Brixton. This episode examines what real healing looks like when it's designed for us, by us.

Find out more: Black Psychotherapy - www.blackpsychotherapy.com

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