What We Do
Combining our skills and experience to enhance the lives of young adults.
Percy Street Collective has been supporting young people aged 18-30 in Sheffield since 2021. We are a Community Interest Company (CIC), which means we are a not-for-profit organisation focused on benefiting our community.
We aim to support those who experience barriers to developing their interests and strengths in mainstream society, and have found existing pathways into employment challenging.
Our Story
Characteristics that are perceived as deficiencies compared to the norm can often serve to exclude people from key areas of life. Only 1 in 5 autistic people are employed. Most of the people we encounter at Percy St have never had paid work despite being capable of holding down a job and contributing to the economy.
Percy Street Collective was set up to support the neurodiverse community and others realise their potential. Through working with us, they will learn new skills, make lovely things and then give them away. This in itself is an uplifting experience, but it is just the vehicle to gaining confidence and self-belief.
Meet The Team
Brian George
Director and Design / Workshop Lead
With a lifelong interest in making things, Brian created Dec1mus Studio Joinery Company on Percy Street in 2019 which has now become Percy Street CIC. Brian was a single parent for many years, he has 4 children and 3 grandchildren. Brian’s son Nicholas was born with severe difficulties and passed away shortly before his third birthday.
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Brian believes that disability is neither a triumph nor a tragedy. A close relative in his 70s has met the challenges of ASD without diagnosis or support and persevered to create a cohesive and rounded lifestyle.
For Brian, the creation of Percy Street CIC is an opportunity to provide a serious alternative to what is generally available for young people with ASD and ADHD.
Joe Spriggs
Director and Commercial Lead
Joe's journey begins in Sheffield, where he grew up in a straightforward, no-frills family environment. They valued determination and a strong work ethic, traits that Joe embodied from a young age.
Starting off in a factory, Joe quickly realized his future lay beyond the steel factory. He transitioned into sales, where his natural ability to connect with people shone through.
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Joe is now the owner of the award-winning Alder Bar just a few doors down from the workshop on Percy Street. We combined forces for a range of projects, including supporting young people to produce wooden furniture for the bar, improving the performance space, as well as creating a herb garden.
Hena Aravindakshan
Director and Safeguarding Lead
Hena's personal experiences have given her a deep empathy for the challenges faced by children and young people with disabilities, whether socially, emotionally, physically, or developmentally. Two of her four sons are neurodivergent.
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After graduating, Hena worked as a playworker, providing play opportunities for marginalized children through local authorities and the voluntary sector.
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Passionate about advocating for equal opportunities for disabled children, Hena currently continues her work as a primary teacher at a specialist school by leading forest school sessions. With over twenty years’ experience of working with children and young people, she leads our Safeguarding and Wellbeing policies.
Rod Ellis
Director and Workshop Facilitator
Rod was born in Sheffield and retired in 2013 after a career in public transport. As well as being a driver and service controller, his earlier experience spans haulage, construction, horticulture, and furniture making.
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As a Director of Percy Street CIC, Rod has been an invaluable asset, contributing his expertise both in leadership and hands-on in the workshop. He shares his skills with our young people in a calm and confident manner.
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In addition to his role at Percy Street CIC, Rod also supports the Sheffield University Drama Society, where he works on set construction, lighting, and mentors young adults in woodworking.
Our Partners
Our community is continually expanding - we have several collaborations in place and ongoing joint projects. Our aim is to deliver projects with other voluntary sector organisations, enabling them to improve their capacity to provide for their service users.
