Children & the Arts is an independent

charity Charity may refer to: Giving * Charitable organization or charity, a non-profit organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being of persons * Charity (practice), the practice of being benevolent, giving and sharing * C ...

that provides access to professional arts venues for young people in the UK who would otherwise grow up having had no, or very limited opportunity, to engage with the

arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...

. The charity works across the United Kingdom and across a variety of art forms, working in schools and children's

hospice Hospice care is a type of health care that focuses on the palliation of a terminally ill patient's pain and symptoms and attending to their emotional and spiritual needs at the end of life. Hospice care prioritizes comfort and quality of life b ...

s, allowing local arts venues and children to build sustained and engaged relationships. Children & the Arts is the only children's charity working with hard to reach children to tackle inequality of access across all art forms and across the whole of the UK. Arts venues and cultural organisations are selected to be part of Children & the Arts' national ''Start'' programme that enables them to partner with schools in local areas of deprivation - schools that have very limited arts provision for students and no connection to their cultural community. Children & the Arts provides the three-year framework, guidance and funding for arts organisations to each work with 300-500 schoolchildren every year. Children are introduced to an artform, inspired to find out more, taught how to enhance their experience of the arts through critique and teamwork and, of course, create and perform themselves. The charity was formerly known as The Prince's Foundation for Children & the Arts and was one of the Princes Charities, and prior to that The Prince of Wales Arts & Kids Foundation.

Origin

Children & the Arts began when

King Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to a ...

(then

Prince of Wales Prince of Wales ( cy, Tywysog Cymru, ; la, Princeps Cambriae/Walliae) is a title traditionally given to the heir apparent to the English and later British throne. Prior to the conquest by Edward I in the 13th century, it was used by the rule ...

) visited a pupil referral unit in Balsall Heath, Birmingham. While going round the school he saw a class studying Shakespeare's "

Romeo and Juliet ''Romeo and Juliet'' is a tragedy written by William Shakespeare early in his career about the romance between two Italian youths from feuding families. It was among Shakespeare's most popular plays during his lifetime and, along with ''Ham ...

" under the direction of an inspiring teacher who had roused a great response to the play from the pupils. His Royal Highness was surprised to hear that the children were studying the play without seeing it performed. Coincidentally, the

Royal Shakespeare Company The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is a major British theatre company, based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. The company employs over 1,000 staff and produces around 20 productions a year. The RSC plays regularly in London, St ...

was performing "Romeo and Juliet" at Stratford at the time. Being president of the

, Charles suggested that the class might like to go and see it. The class went and, after the performance, the cast entertained them on stage. After the trip all of the students wrote to the Prince saying it was the best experience of their lives. As a result of this experience he decided to take action and began the process which led to the development of his Foundation for Children & the Arts.Daily Telegraph feature
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References

External links

Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Children and The Arts Children's charities based in the United Kingdom Arts organisations based in the United Kingdom The Prince's Charities Arts charities