Meet the team behind INNIT
Micky Dacks - Founder CEO
Micky is the Founder and CEO of Innit For Young People and is committed to preventing young people ending up in the criminal justice system, as he did when he was a young man. After 20 years of delivering targeted youth work, Micky founded Innit For young People so that he could utilise his lived experience, enabling him to reach even more young people through the Arts.
Since the charity’s inception, Micky has helped thousands of young people, with a focus on preventing their permanent exclusion from education and society, by using a multi-disciplinary approach to the Arts.
This includes his semi-autobiographical musical, ‘Innit’, which holds a mirror up to young people and society, helping them to make more informed choices. ‘Innit’ recently enjoyed a two-week run at The Lowry Theatre, with over 1,200 free seats for young people, free transport and free programmes provided by the charity.
Most recently, the charity opened a ‘Creative Hub’ in the heart of Salford, which has welcomed hundreds of young people and their families through the doors. Micky is most often found at the creative hub, where he facilitates workshops with our most vulnerable young people, such as young men who are subject to Deprivation of Liberty Orders (DoLs).
Micky also recently completed his passion project, ‘Jessie’s Wall’, which he worked on for over three years. This is a public piece of art that memorialises the tragic loss of Jessie James’ life, (a young man from Moss Side who was mistakenly gunned down).
It’s also a treasured community asset that highlights the beauty of youth and how young lives are wasted every day through unnecessary violence, all over the world.
Micky was honoured to host HRH Prince William, who wished to experience the wall, and visited the park in 2024.
In 2024, Micky was also celebrated as a ‘Greater Mancunian’ for his charity work, alongside many of Manchester’s most influential changemakers. This resulted in Micky’s portrait being featured in a public exhibition at Manchester’s Central Library.
To be honoured in this way, in the city in which he was born and bred, was a humbling experience and a tremendous accolade.
Angela Lea – Deputy CEO
Ange is a qualified Drama and English Secondary teacher and has worked in Education for over twenty years.
She was drawn to Innit for Young People because she is passionate about the Arts and making a difference to the lives of the young people who need it the most. She has worked with marginalised young people throughout her career including (but not restricted to):
- Those in the criminal justice system
- Children with SEND
- Looked After young people
- Young Carers
- Those excluded from mainstream education
Ange brings her professional experience as well as her leadership skills to the charity leading on key areas for the charity such as safeguarding, trauma responsive practice, bid writing, staff / volunteer management and creating content for facilitated sessions.
Ange is passionate about young people having unrestricted access to all areas of the Arts and loves to see the charity’s beneficiaries being creative and expressing their feelings through their chosen Art form. As a former educator, she believes this isn’t prevalent in mainstream education and the Arts are deficient in the lives of many young people.
Ange works as a Leadership Performance Coach for senior leaders in education both nationally and internationally and works with trainee teachers as a mentor and an interviewer. Her extensive work on embedding accessible teaching and learning strategies in mainstream schools has been acknowledged and highlighted in ‘Embedding Magenta’ by Mike Huges.
Kirk Allen - Chairperson
Kirk is a retired college lecturer and joiner with a lifelong passion for building, teaching and creating. He spent the first 25 years of his working life in the construction industry,
working on all kinds of major projects, including the original Arndale Centre in Manchester.
After that, Kirk gained many different experiences running his own joinery business for a number of years.
Eventually, Kirk felt it was time to give something back, so he moved into teaching.
Over the next 20 years, Kirk worked across all areas of education—from supporting SEN learners and teaching in prisons, to managing a construction department and helping train apprentices. It was incredibly rewarding for Kirk to pass on the skills he’d built up over the years.
Outside of work, Kirk has always been a creative soul. He loves making art and carving wooden figures— anything that lets him work with my hands and imagination.
One of the proudest moments in his career was being part of the ‘Ship of Tolerance’ project, travelling the world with a team of joiners to help build a powerful symbol of peace and understanding for young people everywhere.
Kirk continues to work on the ‘Ship of Tolerance’ project as it gives him a chance to travel and promote tolerance to young people around the world.
All of these experiences helped Kirk to realise that he likes to give back and help people, which is why he got involved and enjoys working with everyone at Innit For Young People.
Ian Burns - Treasurer
Ian is a qualified Actuary with nearly 30 years of experience advising on the planning, strategy, and financial management of pension schemes. Throughout his career, Ian has worked extensively to help pensioners achieve financial security, ensuring they can enjoy a stable and worry-free retirement. His expertise has enabled individuals and businesses to plan for the future with confidence. While much of his professional life has been dedicated to supporting the older generation, Ian is now keen to apply his skills in a different way—by helping young people in his community access the opportunities they need to thrive.
Becoming a Trustee of the Innit 4 Young People Charity in Salford represents an exciting opportunity for Ian to give back. He strongly believes in the charity’s mission to support young people, giving them the confidence and tools they need to flourish, develop resilience, and achieve their potential. He understands that financial sustainability is crucial to the success of any charity, and he hopes to use his expertise to help the organisation continue to grow and expand its impact.
Salford holds a special place in Ian’s heart, as it is where he grew up. Supporting the charity allows him to contribute directly to the community that shaped him. By working with Innit 4 Young People, Ian is committed to making a lasting difference, ensuring the next generation has the resources and encouragement they need to build a brighter future for themselves and for Salford as a whole.
Dave Clare - Trustee
Shirley Diver - Secretary
Our Stakeholders and Funders
