New to Arduino - London, UK based - one-off build

Good afternoon, my name is Ian.

I have a model being built at the moment that I would like to incorporate some funky interactive elements into and I think Arduino would be great to use. I am interested in the sensor, light and music aspects of the shields. The marionette has limited space.

Are there any groups I can link up with?

Thank you.

Ian,
What part of London are you in?
In East London, there's London Hackspace (in Hackney) that has a fortnightly Arduino meeting.
I know there are makerspaces in Wembley (Stonebridge Park) and South London, but don't know much about them.
I suspect that in any of them you'll find experienced Arduino programmers to help you.

Bit of a bump here, but there is an Arduino/electronics meetup at CreateSpace, Wembley, located opposite Stonebridge Park station.
This occurs every Thursday evening from about 6.30 pm onwards. There is also an open night on Tuesday evenings where you can come in look around and see if its for you.

More details can be found here: NW-London-Hackers-and-Makers meetup

Both nights are free but if you want to start using the facilities on a regular basis, then membership is required.

Its best if you contact one of the organisers (I am currently one) via meetup if you want to attend.