Shakespeare Schools Foundation (SSF) is a cultural education charity in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Every year, up to 30,000 young people from across the UK representing all communities and backgrounds take part in the world's largest youth drama festival, the
Shakespeare Schools Festival. Since 2000, SSF has worked with over 250,000 young people and their teachers.
Mission
SSF is a cultural education charity. Its mission is to give young people skills that help them succeed in life.
Through tailored programmes, curriculum resources and standalone workshops, the charity works to improve teamwork and educational attainment. SSF works with every type of school in the UK. They engage diverse groups, including those attending special schools and from minority ethnic backgrounds, and is working to reach those living in areas of deprivation.
Values
* Aspirational
* Experiential
* Diverse
* Uniting
* Thrilling
* Transformative
Activities
The Shakespeare Schools Festival
SSF's flagship project is the world's largest youth drama festival. The charity trains teachers and young people in an active and ambitious way of working with Shakespeare. Every autumn, months of preparation culminate in over 1,000 performances from primary, secondary and special schools in over 130 theatres nationwide. SSF trains, supports, encourages and produces - making the creative, technical and artistic work of the schools possible.
Workshops and Curriculum Resources
SSF creates curriculum resources and runs standalone workshops for students, teachers and businesses. For over 15 years, SSF has given participants tools applicable in classrooms and staff rooms, offices and boardrooms.
History
In 2016, Shakespeare Schools Festival became Shakespeare Schools Foundation. See
Shakespeare Schools Festival for previous history.
2016
27,550 young people from 1,093 schools performed abridged versions of Shakespeare plays in 131 theatres across the UK as part of the 16th Shakespeare Schools Festival.
To celebrate the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death, SSF staged performances at
10 Downing Street
10 Downing Street in London, also known colloquially in the United Kingdom as Number 10, is the official residence and executive office of the first lord of the treasury, usually, by convention, the prime minister of the United Kingdom. Along wi ...
,
Westminster Abbey, a West End Gala, and at the Queen's 90th birthday. SSF also hosted the Trial of Hamlet fundraiser. Tried by QCs in front of
Lady Justice Hallett, evidence from Gertrude, played by
Meera Syal, Claudius, played by
Tom Conti, and Player King, played by
Lee Mack, was insufficient to find
Hamlet, played by
John Heffernan, guilty for the murder of
Polonius. SSF's young performers shared the stage with the cast.
2018
In 2018, the Foundation was awarded the
Praemium Imperiale Grant for Young Artists, having been selected for the award by Chancellor of the
University of Oxford and former Chairman of the
BBC Trust,
Chris Patten
Christopher Francis Patten, Baron Patten of Barnes, (; born 12 May 1944) is a British politician who was the 28th and last Governor of Hong Kong from 1992 to 1997 and Chairman of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1992. He was made a life pe ...
.
In April 2018, SSF hosted another West End fundraiser, "Trial of
Richard III", this time at the
Novello Theatre. The cast included
Hugh Dennis,
David Oakes
Rowan David Oakes (born 14 October 1983) is a British actor. He is best known for his roles in the series ''The Pillars of the Earth'', '' The Borgias'', '' The White Queen'', ''Victoria'', '' Vikings: Valhalla'', and for his discursive Natural ...
,
Kae Alexander,
Lady Justice Hallett, Ian Winter QC and John Kelsey Fry QC with contributions from
Ed Vaizey MP,
Maggie Aderin Pocock and
Tim Campbell.
Patrons
*
Jenny Agutter
*
Nick Allott
Nicholas David Allott, OBE (born March 1954) is a British theatrical producer.
Career
Allott is Non-Executive Vice Chairman of Cameron Mackintosh Ltd.
He was a member of the Cultural Olympiad Board 2012, a trustee of The Foundation for Sports a ...
*
Simon Russell Beale
Sir Simon Russell Beale (born 12 January 1961) is an English actor. He is known for his appearances in film, television and theatre, and work on radio, on audiobooks and as a narrator. For his services to drama, he was knighted by Queen Elizabe ...
*
Ruby Bentall
Ruby Bentall (born 3 April 1988) is an English actress, known for playing Minnie in ''Lark Rise to Candleford'', Mary Bennet in ''Lost in Austen'', and Verity Poldark in the 2015 BBC adaptation of Winston Graham's ''Poldark'' novels.
Backgroun ...
* Dame
Judi Dench
*
Hugh Dennis
*
Ralph Fiennes
*
Jamila Gavin
*
John Heffernan
* Sir
Nicholas Hytner
*
Paterson Joseph
*
Kwame Kwei-Armah
*
Francesca Martinez
Francesca Martinez (born 1978) is an English comedian, writer and actress. She has cerebral palsy, but prefers to describe herself as "wobbly". Martinez first came to public attention in 1994, when she made her debut on the television series ' ...
*
Philip Pullman
*
Lord Puttnam
*
Matthew Rhys
*
Michael Rosen
* Sir
Tom Stoppard
Sir Tom Stoppard (born , 3 July 1937) is a Czech born British playwright and screenwriter. He has written for film, radio, stage, and television, finding prominence with plays. His work covers the themes of human rights, censorship, and politi ...
* Dame
Harriet Walter
Trustees
* James Dray (Chair)
* Guy Davies (Treasurer)
* James Hadley
* Geraint Talfan-Davies OBE
Education Advisors
* Colin Hall
* Dame
Alison Peacock
Dame Alison Margaret Peacock, (née Mann; born 17 October 1959) is a British educator, public speaker, writer and best known originator of the ''Learning Without Limits'' approach to education. She is the Chief Executive of the Chartered Coll ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
Official Website
Educational charities based in the United Kingdom