Emma Butchart, Marsh Awards winner 2025

Emma Butchart is Creative Learning & Engagement Manager at Compton Verney, where she leads a team of permanent and casual staff alongside a dedicated group of volunteers to deliver an ambitious programme of schools workshops, family engagement, and initiatives which invite everybody to engage with art. A former teacher, Emma began her journey with Compton Verney as a volunteer ten years ago and has since shaped a distinctive approach to visual arts learning rooted in the Reggio Emilia philosophy: child-led, exploratory, and grounded in open-ended play. Now heading the Learning Team, Emma has embedded this ethos across the organisation through the development of a Play Strategy that steers programming and visitor experience both inside the galleries and across the grounds. Her work places curiosity, creativity and access at the centre of every visit, whether for early years children discovering materials for the first time at an Artist Play Day, families engaging with exhibitions in unexpected ways, or school groups handling ancient Chinese vessels. Emma builds thoughtful, high-impact partnerships with young people at their heart. She leads a long-term collaboration with Whitnash Nursery, supporting children from some of the most deprived communities locally, and oversees a Supported Internship programme with Stratford College that has opened creative workplace opportunities for young people with learning disabilities. She started Compton Verney’s Young Trustee programme, which welcomed its second cohort at the start of 2026. Alongside flagship initiatives such as the newly launched Play Wagon, Emma continues to deliver an extensive year-round programme, from Wonder Wednesdays and forest school sessions to dementia-friendly cafés and a schools offer reaching 6,500 children annually. She is a passionate advocate for inclusive, innovative arts learning — both within Compton Verney and nationally.