The project
Rekindling Nello James is a community-led heritage project rooted in Whalley Range, Manchester. It exists to uncover, preserve and celebrate the legacy of the Nello James Centre — a vital space that supported African and Caribbean communities across South Manchester for over three decades.
Through storytelling, research, creative activity and community gathering, the project brings together people who used, shaped and were impacted by the Centre. By centring lived experience and community memory, Rekindling Nello James ensures this important history is not lost, but honoured, shared and passed on.
Our Goals
1
To document and preserve the untold histories of the Nello James Centre
2
To centre African and Caribbean voices through oral histories and community archives
3
To reconnect generations through shared heritage, culture and care
4
To create accessible resources that support wellbeing while engaging in heritage work
5
To ensure the Centre’s legacy is formally recognised and safely archived for the future
What’s Happening Now
The project is currently delivering a programme of community workshops, storytelling sessions, research activity and public events. These activities invite former Centre users, local residents, creatives and researchers to reflect, remember and reconnect.
Alongside this, we are building a growing digital archive and working closely with heritage partners to ensure stories and materials are preserved with care and respect.
Explore some of what we’ve uncovered so far in the Archive, or see what’s coming up on our Events page.
The Team
Rekindling Nello James is delivered by a small team of heritage practitioners, creatives and community organisers, supported by a wider steering group made up of people with direct connections to the Centre and its legacy.
Our team brings together lived experience, cultural knowledge and professional expertise in community heritage, wellbeing, research and creative engagement. This ensures the project is rooted in care, accountability and community leadership at every stage.
Ruth Ibegbuna
Rekindle Founder and CEO
Bianca Danielle
Project Manager
Nicole Panton
Project Coordinator
Jackie McNeish
I am founder of Women of Worth, an organisation that empowers Black women who have experienced abuse and trauma; I also facilitate creative workshops for local women and serve as the parade lead for the Manchester Caribbean Carnival.
Siarka ‘Simeon’ Murisanga
I am a Certified boxing coach and personal trainer with over 2 decades of experience of training and competing in the amateurs. Other passions include field research in African history which has brought me to over 10 countries documenting the rich legacy of black people world wide.
Lorraine Ballintine
Lorraine Ballintine is an experienced person-centred therapist in private practice and a creative practitioner who helps individuals and groups develop self-awareness and cultivate emotional resilience.
Otis Thomas
I’m an African Centred, venture building, social entrepreneur. Focused on empowering continental Africans and the African Diaspora.
Keisha Thompson
Freelance artist, producer and researcher. Currently the Programme Manager for Legacies of Enslavement (The Guardian), Co-chair of Independent Theatre Council and Trustee for Olympias Music Foundation.
Project Resources
Rekindling Nello James Wellbeing Toolkit
This wellbeing toolkit has been created with community, culture and care at its heart. It is a freely accessible resource for anyone engaging in community, creative or heritage work — and for members of the public who want to nurture their own wellbeing.
Whether you’re attending an event, collaborating on a project, volunteering, researching, facilitating, or exploring this history in your own time, the toolkit offers practical and calming tools to help you feel grounded, supported and connected to yourself and your community.