Our challenge:
Like most organisations, the team at Trinity has people on every rung of the career ladder. There are those with just a few years’ experience who are just getting started, side by side with those ready to throw themselves into more senior management positions. And each one plays an essential part in keeping the wheels turning and the lights on.
But a recent internal HR review highlighted a bit of a problem. It showed there were real gaps in skills and confidence – especially when it comes to leadership, communication, and how the organisation runs. What’s more, these gaps are there at every level. That’s when Trinity asked for our help.
Trinity is a community arts centre in Bristol, housed in a former church. It has a rich history as a major music venue, particularly during the 1990s, when it was pivotal in shaping the ‘Bristol Sound’. Over the years, it has hosted legendary artists like U2, Public Enemy, and Massive Attack, played a key role in developing genres like trip-hop and dub, and remains a hub for diverse local and international talent today.
MUTI’s bootcamp created a workforce that’s more ambitious, proactive and collaborative, and that’s exactly what organisations like ours need to stay relevant and sustainable.
Adam Gallacher, Deputy CEO, Trinity Community Arts
Our solution:
It soon became clear that we had a double challenge on our hands:
- We needed to give Trinity’s more junior people the confidence to make more of their roles now – and think about where they might want to be in the future.
- We also needed to support middle managers to move on from just focusing on delivery, into leadership roles where they can get involved in strategic decision-making, compliance and people management.
After really getting under the skin of Trinity’s needs, we put together a MUTI Live Bootcamp to develop skills for emerging leaders, while building confidence and capability for the rest of the team.
The programme took the team on a 12-week journey, combining group workshops, one-to-one coaching, and reflective exercises. It gave Bootcampers the space to step away from their day-to-day work, think about their own leadership potential, and explore how to think strategically and boost communication skills. And to cover all bases, it was offered at two different levels:
- Level 3: For coordinators and early-career staff
- Level 5: For team leaders and middle managers
It was an exciting opportunity to work with MUTI, to tailor a programme of professional development that met the complex needs of the organisation, as well as supporting staff in their professional and personal development.
The impact for Trinity’s people
For many of our Bootcampers, the training was transformative. Not because they saw a dramatic change in their skillset overnight, but because they experienced a gradual shift in their mindset and behaviour as the weeks went on.
Cordelia Milward, Trinity’s Fundraising Manager, wasn’t initially sure the training would be relevant to her role. What was there to aim for in a team of one? She told us, “I wasn’t in a leadership position and there’s no obvious progression route. But the training helped me realise you can be a leader without having ‘leader’ in your job title.”
Over the 12 weeks, Cordelia says she found herself:
- Gaining the courage to explore leadership opportunities beyond her current role – including applying for trustee positions.
- Building stronger relationships with departments she rarely interacted with.
- Becoming more confident to ‘manage upwards’ and play a stronger role in strategic conversations.
The impact on Trinity
The impact of this programme rippled across the organisation and brought clear benefits across four main areas:
Greater confidence and more proactive
Across the organisation, it was really clear that the people who attended the bootcamp grew in confidence, developed a new appetite to achieve more, and became much better at working independently. They also weren’t afraid to step outside their job descriptions to contribute ideas, develop partnerships, and think strategically about their roles.
“Our team’s communication, maturity, and energy all improved – and we saw a real appetite to progress.” Adam Gallacher, Deputy CEO, Trinity Community Arts
Stronger cross-team collaboration
The Bootcamp broke down silos between departments and improved communication. And by introducing the team to a shared vocabulary around skills and abilities, it helped people understand each other’s roles and collaborate more effectively.
“We work in such different areas and often don’t really know what each other does. The Bootcamp was eye-opening – it really bonded us as a team.” Cordelia Milward, Fundraising Manager, Trinity Community Arts
Honest self-reflection among leaders
For some managers, the programme prompted significant self-reflection about their career paths and motivations, with several choosing to reshape their roles or move on altogether.
“One manager realised they weren’t interested in the responsibilities their role had evolved into. That kind of honest self-appraisal is invaluable.” Adam Gallacher, Deputy CEO, Trinity Community Arts
A more professional, performance-focused culture
The Bootcamp helped Trinity’s team rethink their relationship with their employer. Instead of seeing it as a purely values-driven environment, they now see it as one that balances passion with professional accountability.
We’d recognised through restructuring that there were some gaps. We wanted people to understand both Trinity’s expectations of them and where they might need to invest in their own development.
Every day’s a school day
With every training programme we put together, there’s always something to learn – for us and the organisation we’re working with. For MUTI Live and Trinity, this programme taught us some key things:
- Language matters: For less experienced staff, the title, ‘leadership training’ can feel intimidating. Framing it as ‘confidence’ or ‘professional development’ seemed to help build engagement.
- Be clear on what success looks like: More defined outcomes and follow-up checkpoints helped everyone manage their progress better.
- Sustained support: A series of post-programme check-ins helped to strengthen what people were learning into day-to-day practice.
Our Leadership and Management Skills Bootcamp, specifically designed for Trinity, was so much more than a training programme. It became a catalyst for cultural change, professional growth, and organisational resilience.
It showed emerging leaders how to step up with confidence, encouraged honest self-assessment among managers, and at ground level, built the skills needed to thrive in a complex and evolving cultural sector.
