Penny Hay

Dr Penny Hay is Professor of Imagination at Bath Spa University, UK, and Founding Director of House of Imagination. An artist, researcher, educator and mentor, Penny has extensive international experience in arts and creative education. Across her career, Penny has developed participatory, place-responsive and interdisciplinary approaches to education, working with children, educators, artists and communities. She is co-founder of Forest of Imagination, School Without Walls and Playful Green Planet, initiatives that connect creativity, nature, learning and community engagement. Her doctoral research focused on children's learning identities as artists, leading to the publication of her monograph Children are Artists (2023). At Bath Spa University, Penny leads the Creative Pedagogy strand in the Research Centre for Policy, Pedagogy and Practice and co-chairs the eARTh research group. A National Teaching Fellow and Fellow of the Chartered College of Teaching, Penny has published widely on creative education and the transformative power of the arts.