Meet the Team
Our team brings together experienced makers, facilitators, and people with lived experience, with a shared commitment to supporting vulnerable and hard-to-reach communities. Through creativity and sewing, we help people build confidence, develop skills, and move towards greater inclusion and reintegration into society.
Gill Birchall
Gill Birchall is a Director of Sew and Sews Cornwall CIC. Her background is in supporting people in recovery, those experiencing homelessness, and individuals involved in the justice system, and she is passionate about creating opportunities that support positive change and personal growth.
Since working with Sew and Sews, she has developed skills in industrial sewing and been inspired by the confidence and enthusiasm participants show, often within just a few sessions.
For Gill, making items such as cushions or curtains is more than a physical process—it is about building connection, developing skills, and helping people gradually reshape their world and their place within it.
Sarah Best
Sarah is a veteran who continues to work with other veterans, bringing lived experience and a strong commitment to peer support and inclusion.
She works alongside the Sew and Sews to create opportunities where everyone feels welcomed, supported, and valued, particularly those facing trauma, isolation, or transition.
Sarah believes in the power of hands-on making to build confidence and connection. Through sewing and fabric work, she helps create a level playing field where people can focus on creativity rather than their past experiences, supporting them to feel part of a positive and inclusive community.
Christine Billingham
Christine brings over 15 years of sewing and costume-making experience to Sew and Sews Cornwall CIC. She studied a Foundation Degree in Fashion Design at Falmouth University and has since developed a distinctive creative style, with a particular love of sparkles, velvet, and bold, imaginative “out of the box” costume design.
Alongside her creative practice, Christine works as a facilitator with hard-to-reach communities, specialising in experiential learning approaches that help people build confidence through doing. She is passionate about using creativity as a practical, hands-on tool for engagement, learning, and personal development.
Christine’s combination of technical skill, artistic flair, and experience in community facilitation makes her a key part of the team, helping participants explore creativity while developing new skills in a supportive and inspiring environment.
