Singing with Heart and Inclusion Since 2024
Our Story, Mission, and Values
Breathe Collective is committed to making music accessible to all. Whether you are a disabled person, a neurodivergent individual, or an accompanying carer, we strive to create a safe and inclusive environment that nurtures wellbeing through togetherness and song. Our mission is to empower voices, reduce social isolation, and foster a compassionate and supportive community. We are guided by the values of inclusivity, kindness, and joy.
Meet Our Team and Join the Community
Our experienced and caring team
supports all choir members with tailored approaches and passion. We invite you to become part of a choir where everyone is celebrated. Join us to find friendship, support, and the joy of singing.
Laura Joy Godwin BMus
Choir Director
Laura is in demand as a choral conductor and serves as Director of Music (Choral) at Bournville Parish Church, where she leads the thriving children’s and adults’ choirs. She is the Founder and Director of
Bournville-Vocal-Ease Ladies Choir and also conducts the Bournville Bell Group (BellePlate Ringers).
Laura is the singing teacher at The Blue Coat School, Harborne, where she also directs the Year 3 Choir. She is also a recommended singing teacher for the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Children’s and Youth Chorus.
Alongside her educational and conducting work, Laura works as a freelance lyric soprano, Musical Director and workshop facilitator across the West Midlands. She is regularly engaged by dance, drama and musical theatre organisations as a vocal coach or Musical Director for their productions.
Laura is deeply committed to both professional and community music-making and is a strong advocate for inclusivity. The creation of a fully inclusive community group such as Breathe Collective has been a long-held ambition since her time working in the Performing Arts Department at Queen Alexandra College, as well as
delivering music workshops for disabled charities.
Laura firmly believes in music as a powerful means of connection. Through the development of multiple
successful choirs, community outreach projects and concerts, Laura has consistently fostered a sense of
belonging and shared purpose. She now seeks to
extend that same spirit of community and inclusion to
disabled people, those with additional needs, and their carers.
Jacci Cottam
Choir Assistant and Secretary
Jacci has a deep commitment to inclusion and passion for accessibility. She began her career working in a local special educational needs (SEN) school, where she developed a passion for singing and signing, and discovered the powerful connections that can be formed with children through music.
In addition to this, Jacci runs a local amateur dramatics group which prides itself on being fully inclusive and welcoming to individuals of all abilities. More recently, she has joined the Access Team at Birmingham Hippodrome, where she supports audiences during busy festivals by operating access hubs and helping to ensure events are as accessible as possible. She also works as an assistant with Birmingham Hippodrome SENYT, a youth theatre specifically designed for young people with additional needs.
Jacci’s primary vocation is as a full-time foster carer. She is currently caring for three children with additional needs, in addition to supporting her stepson, Jack, who has cerebral palsy and is a full-time wheelchair user.
Jacci is delighted to be relaunching Breathe Collective and remains dedicated to providing an inclusive, engaging, and enjoyable musical experience for those who may otherwise face barriers to accessing music and performance.
Dr Adrian Powney
Choir Chairman
Dr Adrian Powney is currently Head of Operations for the Student Support Team in the College of Arts and Law at the University of Birmingham. Here, he has strategic oversight of the Student Wellbeing, Student Experience and Academic Writing Advisory Services. Prior to this, as both volunteer and staff member, he served as Head of Emergency Planning and Ambulance Operations for the Staffordshire, Warwickshire and West Midlands area of the British Red Cross, maintaining
clinical competency as operational ambulance personnel whilst leading and developing a number of service and allied areas related to health, social care and wellbeing.
Prior to this, he read music at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, gaining a first-class BA (Hons) and later a MMus with distinction at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire specialising in historical musicology. His research centres on all aspects of performance practices in French Baroque music with a doctoral thesis that examines metre signs and terms of mouvement in the music of Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643–1704). He has published in several journals, written various programme and CD liner notes, and edited for several professional ensembles works by a number of seventeenth-century French composers. He has recently published a critical edition of Marc-Antoine Charpentier’s Leçons et Répons de Ténèbres with the Centre de musique baroque de Versailles. He has also performed widely as both accompanist and soloist, giving recitals across the West Midlands.
Adrian’s research also examines the physical and mental wellbeing benefits of music, alongside the wellbeing needs of performing professionals. Influenced by the performance coaching of the late Karen O’Connor, he maintains a strong applied research interest in the Feldenkrais technique and performance visualisation strategies to manage performance anxiety and enhance professional practice.