Hilary Halpern and his family opened the New Arts Centre in Chatham in 2002 and so the 'nucleus' of the Halpern Charitable Foundation was born. This was born from Hilary's  frustration at lack of flexible space for artists in the Medway Towns. Similarly, our community engagement arm was born from Marie Halpern's desire to tackle loneliness and isolation.

Since then, our Medway-based award-winning arts charity has grown, not only providing low-cost creative studios, but also two galleries, and community spaces. Alongside this, our thriving community engagement team delivers thousands of creative activities each year, as well as festivals and events. Nucleus Arts, as part of The Halpern Charitable Foundation, has become a key part of Medway’s wider community sector, championing creativity across the health, regeneration and education sectors, and collaborating with numerous partners to deliver activities that make a tangible difference to thousands of people's lives.  In 2012, Café Nucleus opened, and has since grown to become a multi-award winning dining experience. Together, through studios, workshops, galleries and the Cafe - Nucleus has become a High St name and destination.