Contact
aaceuksteeringcommittee@gmail.com

The Association of Acting Coaches and Educators UK Branch
AACE UK is a branch of AACE International. In the UK, many acting tutors, coaches, and educators are freelancers, lacking support for their ongoing education in a rapidly evolving training and industry landscape. AACE UK’s goal is to build a community that offers respect-based education and support to acting coaches, teachers, and practitioners both in training and industry. We abide by AACE International’s Code of Conduct, Member Guide, and application process. AACE UK will collaborate with the Actor Wellbeing Facilitators Collective to develop tailored well-being workshops and lectures for AACE members and their students. Additionally, we aim to foster the exchange of educational resources between the UK, Canada, and other future AACE divisions worldwide.
Educational Initiatives will focus on:
- Wellbeing/resilience
- Neurodiversity
- Managing our power as educators,
- Gender diversity & equality
- Intimacy for educators
- Other relevant issues related to actor training
Methods of delivery will be live and online and include;
- Professional development workshops
- Lectures/panel discussions
- Online resources and videos
- Symposia and/or conferences
What We’re Looking For
AACE UK is seeking industry partners to collaborate and contribute in the following ways:
- Strategic Partnerships: Collaboration with prominent industry organisations; drama schools, unions, theatres, charities, etc.
- Endorsement: An official statement supporting AACE UK’s mission and objectives.
- Financial Support: Funding to assist with start-up costs and initial operations.
- Technical Assistance: Help with IT infrastructure and website development.
- Event Sponsorship: Support for our inaugural symposium/launch event, including advertising, venue hire, and marketing.
- Workspace Provision: Access to ad hoc office or meeting spaces in London.
- Event Participation: Representation at key industry and educational events, such as ABTT, UCAS, Theatre UK, and SOLT.
- Advisory Roles: Members to join our Advisory Committee and contribute their expertise.
By partnering with AACE UK, you will play a vital role in advancing our shared vision and fostering meaningful connections across the industry.
Background of AACE
After #MeToo many brave students and former students in Canada came forward to shine a light on problems in education, coaching and self-tape environments, in 2018 Got Your Back (GYB) created a National Acting Training Survey with over 500 students’ responses. A strong recommendation from the survey was to establish an association to provide oversight, guidance, community, and educational resources for Acting Coaches and Educators in Canada.
AACE was formed in 2021 with the support of concerned industry partners, knowledgeable and dedicated educators, grassroots community groups, and students. A working group was built with representatives from; ACTRA Toronto, Canadian Actors Equity Association, The Casting Directors Society of Canada Got Your Back, Entertainment Industry Coalition, Talent Agents & Managers Association of Canada, various schools/studios, and educators. Together they created;
- an industry Code of Conduct – which is a set of voluntary commitments all AACE members sign, and are responsible for upholding.
- an AACE Member guide that supports the code of conduct
- an application and vetting process.
The creation of AACE has helped bring oversight and best practices to the sector for students and parents, but it has also created a much-needed community where coaches and educators can learn, share, and grow together.
AACE UK – Who We Are
Alan Powell
An AACE Canada member and part of their administration team and various committees, Alan is originally from Toronto, Canada. He now makes his home in the United Kingdom. His career spans over 40 years in the arts. Starting as an actor then an audio producer and founder of his own voiceover agency which he later sold. After nearly twenty years as a director of educational videos and a handful of multiple award-winning short films, he founded Actor Care® to support resilience and vulnerability in the actor’s creative process.
Actor Care® was one of the processes used during the Mind the Gap resilience research at Rose Bruford College of Theatre & Performance in collaboration with London South Bank University in England. It’s being used in film and theatre and has been a game changer for many actors. It will also be included in the book series Stanislavsky and… (Routledge, Taylor & Francis).
His passion for creating community led to a collaboration with Dr. Mark Seton. Together they produced/curated & moderated the Actor Wellbeing Webinar series hosted by the Performing Arts Medicine Association (PAMA). The series was a five-part panel discussion that brought together practitioners, educators, researchers, & therapists from across the globe to discuss the various aspects of actor well-being, i.e. lifestyle, work, education, actor’s craft & research. The connections made from this project formed the Actor Wellbeing Facilitators Collective (AWFC), a 50+ global membership that has enabled others involved in actor wellbeing work to stay in touch for further collaborations and information sharing.
Alan has earned five certificates in four therapeutic modalities including Humanistic Integrative Counselling, Psychodynamic Integrative Counselling, Psychodrama Theory & Practice, and Therapeutic Spiral Model Experiential Trauma Therapy (level 2). His curiosity about actors and their wellbeing led to the creation of Artists in Depth, a podcast now in its third season.
Pat O’Toole
Pat began her career as a Stage Manager in the UK before training as an actor at Arts Educational Drama School in the early 1980s. While working as an actor, she also took on roles in directing, producing, and teaching. In her mid-30s, after a late diagnosis of dyslexia, Pat returned to university to pursue her long-standing interest in psychology, counselling, and social sciences, gaining a PGDip & MSc Integrative Counselling in 1999 & 2001, all while becoming a first-time parent.
For the past 25 years, Pat has been a Senior Lecturer, Acting Tutor, and Course Director at Rose Bruford College, as well as a Personal Development and Well-Being Coach, Mental Health Advocate, and Mental Health First Aider. While in higher education, Pat became a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (HEA) and earned a Postgraduate Certificate in Learning & Teaching in Higher Education (Performing Arts). She was also a research fellow twice, focusing on embedding personal development and well-being into the actor’s curriculum and accessibility in actor training. Pat has designed and led Foundation Acting Courses across the UK, helping to nurture young artists at the start of their careers.
In 2016, Pat was a founding member of the Mental Health Charter for the Performing Arts with Annmarie Lewis Thompson at the (former) MTA. She is a regular speaker and trainer in the industry, specialising in building mental fitness and personal development. In 2023, Pat qualified as a Civil Mediator and now offers Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) services to the education and arts sectors.
Pat continues to work as a Director, Teacher, Coach, Trainer, and Facilitator. She and Alan have collaborated on several projects focused on actor wellbeing including Mind the Gap and are founding members of the Actor Wellbeing Facilitators Collective in the UK.