The art of wellbeing: how the IROKO theatre company is working to improve lives in London

First founded in 1996, the IROKO Theatre Company is a charity that draws on African arts and culture to inspire and entertain people – primarily those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Whether it’s supporting individuals suffering with chronic ill health or mental health issues, IROKO’s work demonstrates the transformative power of storytelling, drama, music, dance, singing and gentle movement.  A power that The Greggs Foundation were keen to support through the Community Grant programme. 

Let us tell you more . . .

Over the course of nearly 30 years, the IROKO Theatre Company has been using a diverse range of art forms to facilitate learning and self-development within communities in London and beyond.

On the surface, IROKO’s programmes and activities are fun and friendly. But scratch the surface and it’s clear that these initiatives have the power to educate, motivate and inspire participants.

More recently, the theatre company has expanded its offering and today the charity delivers a combination of performances, workshops, masterclasses and holiday clubs. Each year IROKO introduces thousands of people to the joys of drama, poetry, drumming, freestyling and dance.

Alongside this, the organisation conducts research, holds exhibitions and delivers accredited training programmes to corporates, NHS trusts and even the British Museum.

As Founder and Artistic Director of the IROKO Theatre Company, Alex Oma-Pius, says,

“We are storytellers. We use traditional African art forms, primarily, to enhance learning and education within the communities we support. Over the last 10 years, our programmes have evolved to place an increased focus on health and wellbeing. We realised that people were benefitting in different ways from the sessions that we were running – in many cases people told us that our programmes were helping improve their mental health which has become a really strong focus for us in recent years.”

Like many charitable organisations of its kind, IROKO currently retains a small team of just three people, supported by a large army of volunteers to help deliver programmes within the community. In 2024 there were a total of 78 volunteers working with IROKO.

As the popularity of the charity’s programmes has grown, so have the demands on the small team at the heart of the charity. And so it was for this reason that Alex applied for a Greggs Foundation Community Grant.

Spread over two years, the charity has been awarded £37,685. As the grants are core funding, it has allowed IROKO to support the salary of a new part-time administrator with responsibility for managing the day-to-day operational organisation of the theatre company. Alex says,

“As we found ourselves overburdened with the administrative work involved in running programmes, it began to stifle innovation and prevent us from working on the artistic side of our programmes. Employing a part-time administrator is giving us the ability to meet the increasing demand for our services within the community.”

Among the many organisations that have partnered with IROKO are local schools, charities such as MIND in Tower Hamlets and Newham, Time to Talk, the Safer Neighbourhood Board and many more.

With the support from the Greggs Foundation, Alex believes that the charity will be able to achieve improved organisational sustainability and increase the number of beneficiaries that can be reached each year:

“Health and wellbeing and community inclusion are going to be key areas for us over the coming years. We know the demand is huge and we’re only limited by the resources we have available.

“Mental health charities are finding themselves overwhelmed by the demand for their help and this is an area where we can support them. We provide a non-judgemental environment where people can feel relief from some of the stress and anxiety of daily life.”

Getting the word out about grant funding

Alex explains that he was fortunate enough to find out about The Greggs Foundation’s Community Grant programme through one of IROKO’s partner organisations. He says,

“I almost didn’t go for the funding because I only found out about the programme just before the submission deadline. But lo and behold we got a positive response back and I was so pleased with how keen the Foundation was to support our work.

“I suppose having a partner recommend the funding to us is another example of the community working together for each other.”

Alex continues,

“We’ve been running our organisation for over 27 years and we’ve learned the importance of having good funders. It’s not just about the money we receive, it’s also about the communication between organisations. The Greggs Foundation have been fantastic with us and I’ve already recommended that other partner charities we work with apply for the Foundation’s Community Grants in the future.

“The Greggs Foundation is one of those rare funders that has a genuine interest in the work that beneficiaries are undertaking. I believe they really care.”