Archway, N19, Professional Creatives Network

Hello and welcome to the information page for the Archway, N19, Professional Creatives Network, founded by me, Susannah Fields, local professional freelance photographer, in collaboration with Florence Kettle, from the Creative Enterprise Zone, Archway and Barry Causton, Local Economies, both from Islington Council.

We want to welcome you to a networking event, to meet local professional creatives and keep up with local creative events and initiatives.

If you are self-employed, a freelancer, a small business, artist, or employed in the creative industry, or are connected to the creative services or practise, and you live, or work, around the Archway, N19 area – or nearby; please come along for a drink (network is free, but please buy your own drinks from the bar downstairs to support the pub), introduction and to get to know your creative neighbours…..

If you wish to stay connected to the Archway Creatives Network, please email me your phone number, which can be added to the WhatsAPP Group.

Or/And send me your email, which will be passed to Florrie from Islington Council, who can add you to her creative mailing list.

Please let me know if you also want to be added to my own mailing list (but that is for my photography business, so I will not add you unless you ask me to).

You can also email Florrie from Islington Council’s Creative Team direct: Florence.Kettle@islington.gov.uk

You can follow me and my work on Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/susannahfields] and look out for information (via WhatsApp and email lists) for future Creative Meetings.

Thanks, Susie

LAST EVENT:

NEXT EVENT:

The next meeting will be confirmed. Probably April 2026.

Venue: TBC

Don’t worry if you’re alone, Florrie and I will look after you and introduce you to new people.

Agenda: TBC

Time: 6pm – 8pm ish

🌟See you soon! 🌟

TBC – if you are interested in attending a future event, please contact Florrie at Islington Council, to be added on the email list announcing the next event, AND to hear about creative news in the Archway area – Florence Kettle.

_____________________

Why start this Network?

I have lived in Archway more years than I care to divulge and yet, although being a sole trader and freelancer who loves to mix with other creatives, I never met any in my local area. How crazy is that?

For a long time I thought it would so great if there was somewhere local where people, like me, could get to meet each other with a view to building long terms connections, sharing advice and knowledge, perhaps passing on work and collaborating on projects together and generally being supportive.

But, on my own that was not easy to figure out how find everyone. And then, through various circumstances, I got to meet Barry Causton, Local Economies – Archway, from Islington Council, who thought the idea was great and coincided brilliantly with some new creative initiatives the council was starting work on….

I was subsequently introduced to Florence Kettle, whose mission it is to work with creatives of all kinds in Archway, to retain and grow the area’s identity as a creative hotspot. Archway has been designated a Creative Enterprise Zone by the Mayor of London, meaning that Florence and others at Islington Council are working on various initiatives to support creativity in the borough and promoting all the wonderful work that goes on in the area.

This network is a great way to connect everyone with opportunities for business support, training, showcase events, space and more as well as a fun and social way to meet other likeminded people in our neighbourhood.

Who is this Archway Creative Network for?

We want to welcome professionals who work in the creative industries, whether self-employed, freelancers, small businesses, creatives employees, services to creatives, or artists who live or work in and around the N19 area. We don’t mind if you are a sole trader, tiny start-up or actually a resident who works for someone else in the city, as long as your work is creative in nature – or part of the creative world – and you are ready to mingle, learn, network and engage with your local creative community.

Example of typical guests – professional freelance photographer (like me), small graphic design company, local printers who serve the creative market (like Absolute Print), someone who works for a media company in Archway, an interior designer who works for a firm in London, but lives in Archway, an actor, a model, musician, dress designer, someone who runs festivals etc….

We want to attract and bring out those creatives living and/or working in Archway and surrounds, who’ve probably never met each other before, are not very engaged locally, but would like to be. We want the network to support connections, community and potential opportunity. It is to be social, inclusive and fun!

And, finally, by building this network and community locally, we hope to engage people to utilise local services and forge lasting relationships that will stand to help each other in the future.

What will the format be of the networking event?

We want each networking event to be fairly relaxed BUT we also want it to be useful and interactive. So we are going to balance free and speed networking and chat time with some formal elements such as discussing the recent local music festival Rhythm & Ride and what we can do next time, showcasing the work of a local artist, a local creative giving us a little workshop of their skills etc.

Please feel free to put yourself forward to contribute a workshop at a future network – no more than 30-60 minutes required and you are absolutely welcome to give out your contact details to the group for potential future business.

And we will encourage ‘show and tells’ at events too – where creatives are invited to present their latest work or projects or products. So that could be your latest design work, a successful completed art project, some new fashion lines you created etc…let me know if you have something to share.

What if I’m by myself?

Florence and I are very friendly and intend to welcome you warmly. It can be awkward at first if you don’t know anyone, but most will be in that situation and we really do want everyone to get to know each other, so we will make sure to enable mingling and ‘look after’ anyone who is a little shy.  No one stands alone in a corner at our events.

Can we keep in touch between events?

Email Florrie to be added to the mailing list, or send me your number to be added to the WhatsApp Group – or we can add you when you come to an event.

How do we know when the networking events will be and where?

Please bookmark this page, where the next networking event are always confirmed 100% closer to the date. We intend to run an event on the first Tuesday of every month, perhaps skipping August (summer) and December – to be confirmed.

Occasionally we will have to change dates and/or venue, last minute, due to unforeseen circumstances, so do please always double check before attending a network.

Florence will also be compiling a list of your contact details so she can keep you updated. Please make sure to leave you name and email address at the door when you arrive for the event, for this purpose. Or drop her an email to be added to her list. Florence Kettle.

We also have a WhatsApp Group and you can ask either of us to be added. We share event updates and others and the council share general creative updates.

Can we offer feedback, ask to be part of the next months ‘show and tell’ or give an ‘experts talk’?

Absolutely – I WANT feedback, it’s useful to us. I am not a Networking expert, and in the spirit of community, this is to be your group too, so please let me know if you have any comments.

And yes, if you have something to show, share or talk about, just ask….

You can contact me via email – Susannah Fields

Please note – for full transparency – I am NOT being paid to do this network, nor do I work for the Council – it’s entirely of my own making and, thankfully, Florence and her team at Islington Council are able to support this with their time and contacts.