Walsall leatherworker wins Community Catalyst of the Year Award 2025

Lauren Broxton has won the Community Catalyst of the Year Award, supported by the Marsh Charitable Trust, including a £1,000 prize awarded at a special presentation at Wentworth Woodhouse on Monday 17 November 2025

The award celebrates someone who goes above-and-beyond to promote the benefits of heritage crafts within their community, whether that be a local community or a community of interest. Typically, they will be committed to widening participation, and their way of working will create a groundswell of enthusiasm that brings others along with them.

In the last year, Lauren Broxton has mobilised communities and industry leaders to halt the proposed closure of the Walsall Leather Museum, repositioning it as a vital hub for education and innovation. Her work is dedicated to overcoming barriers, and she has trained nearly 30 young people in leatherworking, encouraging them to find heritage in their own diverse backgrounds. Lauren is now founding a social enterprise to secure the museum’s future and is planning a UNESCO bid to safeguard Walsall leatherworking for generations.

The runners-up were textile artist Alice Burnhope, a socially-engaged textile practitioner who uses heritage craft to empower vulnerable and under-represented communities by transforming making into a tool for healing and belonging, and Arabic calligrapher Razwan Ul-Haq, an acclaimed calligrapher who brings the heritage craft of Arabic Calligraphy to diverse, underrepresented communities.

The Marsh Charitable Trust runs a portfolio of awards with a number of nationally and internationally recognised partners to celebrate the outstanding contributions of people who are committed to social, cultural and environmental causes.

Photo: Lauren Broxton, winner of the 2025 Community Catalyst of the Year Award, and David Clarke, Heritage Crafts Chair. Photo by Robert Wade.