Niall Deegan, a teacher from Tuke School in Peckham, joined the SLG’s Communities & Learning team for the 2025/26 academic year as part of a fellowship programme supported by the Art Fund and the Clore Duffield Foundation.
Working at the SLG three days per week, Niall developed tailored learning programmes for SEND students and worked with SLG staff to enhance accessibility and engagement for all visitors to the gallery. With 19 years of teaching experience spanning both mainstream and SEND settings, Niall brought a wealth of expertise in arts education to the SLG.
The fellowship created opportunities for students to showcase their creativity at the SLG, and for Tuke School staff to engage more deeply with the gallery through visits and professional development sessions. One of the outcomes of the relationship included the public exhibition This is Allowed Space, which brought together three artists and students from Tuke, Cherry Garden and Highshore schools.
The fellowship also embedded new practices within SLG’s programmes, with Niall developing Sensory Inclusion Packs for exhibitions, working directly with exhibiting artists and providing a framework for future artists, creating an important legacy of the project.
By embedding a working teacher within a contemporary art gallery, the Art Fund Teacher Fellowship offered an innovative approach that put the needs of SEND schools at the heart of the SLG’s Communities & Learning programme. It created new ideas and opportunities for collaboration, and made contemporary art more accessible for SEND pupils in south London.