Shakespeare Schools Foundation Wins Award With Campaign Fronted By Hugh Dennis

Cultural education charity Shakespeare Schools Foundation has been named 'Best Children's Charity' in the Big Give Christmas Challenge Awards for their campaign in December 2019.

The campaign was championed by actor and comedian Hugh Dennis, a Patron of the charity. In a video filmed for the campaign, he highlighted the impact the arts can have in the lives of young people, saying: "Shakespeare Schools Foundation helps children right across the UK to find their own voice and gain the confidence they need."

The charity's campaign raised over £76,000 during the Big Give Christmas Challenge. Donations will support children from the most disadvantaged areas of the UK, enabling them to take part in Shakespeare Schools Festival.

The Festival is the charity's flagship project and the world's largest youth drama festival, giving over 20,000 children from 750 schools across the UK the chance to perform Shakespeare on a local professional theatre stage.

The charity's CEO Ruth Brock said: "We are delighted that Shakespeare Schools Foundation's brilliant and generous donors have helped us to achieve this award, most importantly giving us the chance to change many more young lives through our work in 2020."

The Big Give Christmas Challenge is a match-fundraising campaign. During the appeal week, which ran 3rd to 10th December 2019, donations to Shakespeare Schools Foundation were doubled by match-funding from the National Lottery Heritage Fund and individual pledgers. Donations were doubled until the charity's target of £60,000 was reached, with 130 donors contributing. Further donations then contributed to the final total.

Shakespeare Schools Foundation's Big Give Christmas Challenge campaign built on the success of its 2018 campaign, which won Overall Winner in the 2018 Big Give Christmas Challenge Awards.

Key information about Shakespeare Schools Foundation:

• Shakespeare Schools Foundation was founded in 2000. Since then, it has worked with over 300,000 children from primary, secondary and special schools and Pupil Referral Units.

• The charity is committed to reaching children living in disadvantaged areas. In 2019, over a third of schools the Shakespeare Schools Foundation worked with were situated in the top 30% of most deprived areas of the UK.

• Through its projects, Shakespeare Schools Foundation helps children develop life skills, as well as boosting academic attainment. According to the evaluation of the Shakespeare Schools Festival 2019:

• 98% of teachers said that their students were more confident

• 96% of teachers said that their students were more resilient

• 86% of teachers said their students' academic attainment had improved

• In 2020:

• Special school teacher Sam Kendall was awarded an Inspirational Educator Award by the Worshipful Company of Educators for his pivotal role in bringing Shakespeare Schools Festival to children at Sherbourne Fields School, Coventry

• The charity has been named a finalist for the following awards: The NatWest SE100 Social Business Awards - Storyteller Award; Education Resources Awards;
  Primary Resource - Special Education Resource

• Previously, the charity has won the following awards:

• Praemium Imperiale's 2018 Grant for Young Artists (a major global art prize which recognises outstanding contribution to the arts for young people)

• Educational Resource Provider of the Year at the 2018 Education Awards

• 2018 Big Give Christmas Challenge Award,'Best Donor Love' at the Management Centre's Emcee Awards for its 2017 Christmas card campaign

• Find out more about Shakespeare Schools Foundation at:
www.shakespeareschools.org
Twitter: @SSF_UK
Facebook: @ShakespeareSchoolsFestival

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