Grants database

The Voices Foundation aims help schools, academies, Music Education Hubs and other partners across the UK to establish sustainable and effective music education in their settings. This grant provides core support to The Voices Foundation to improve, research and scale their teacher-facing Singing Schools programmes in partnership with schools and academies across England.

Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (OAE) is a world leading orchestra who work with artists to nurture the next generation of musicians. They deliver a national education and outreach programme aimed at reaching people with least access to the arts. This grant supports OAE to partner with schools in London and Ipswich, one mainstream secondary school and one SEND school in each location. They will co-create programmes that support transferable skills building for students, while modelling music-based practice for teachers and wider staff.

MED Theatre is a community theatre focusing on rural participation and widening access to high-quality arts. They take inspiration from rural Devon to create original performances with professional artists, young people and multigenerational communities. This grant supports MED Theatre to co-construct a programme in primary and secondary school settings to address the learning needs of students in rurally isolated Dartmoor. Teachers will take part in bespoke professional development. Secondary students will build technical, organisational and creative skills for work readiness, and Year 6 pupils will be matched with mentors from their prospective secondary school to build creative skills and confidence.

Diverse Voices is a leading provider of creative approaches to education. They empower young people through performing arts; helping build creativity, improve life skills and explore important issues. This grant supports Diverse Voices to work with clusters of primary schools and alternative provision settings in Waltham Forest, Hackney, Camden and Islington, to support schools to deliver the new Relationships and Sex Education curriculum in upper Key Stage 2. The programme will use drama- and theatre-based approaches, and will be delivered through a blend of digital and in-person practices.

Devon Arts in Schools Initiative (DAISI) creates and promotes inspiring artistic and cultural experiences which enable more children and young people to access the arts in schools and communities across Devon and Torbay. This grant supports DAISI to bring together a cluster of nine schools with a group of local arts partners to co-construct a drama-based programme which will support Torbay children’s oracy and develop teachers’ practice.

Claybody Theatre creates relevant, dynamic and accessible theatre inspired by the people and heritage of Stoke-on-Trent. This grant supports Claybody Theatre to work with Year 5 pupils in three primary schools in the Potteries area to create, script, perform, edit and broadcast an audiodrama for the whole school community.

Act On It is a social enterprise using drama to raise achievement with groups experiencing disadvantage. This grant supports Act On It to work with students in Pupil Referral Units and schools for children and young people with social, emotional and mental health difficulties in East Sussex and Buckinghamshire. They will re-engage young people in learning through drama and improve their oracy, communication skills and confidence. They will also support teachers to develop and sustain drama-based practice in non-mainstream educational settings.

Midi Music is a music education and talent development charity that nurtures children and young people and supports them in their creative ambitions. This grant provides core support for Midi Music to continue providing affordable music education and pathways to further and higher education for children and young people. This support will enable Midi Music to work with over 4,000 11–30 year-olds each year across ten core music programmes.

The Duncairn delivers a programme of live music, workshops and participatory arts events from their base in North Belfast. As part of a community-based charity, they work to develop young artists and break down barriers to participation for those from minoritised groups and those experiencing structural disadvantage. This grant provides core support for The Duncairn’s work with new communities, including the development of new pathways to showcase emerging artists and community voice through their arts programming and organisational structures.

Project Art Works are a collective of neurodiverse artists, activists and caregivers. Their programmes evolve through creative practice and contribute to awareness raising in both the cultural and care sectors, promoting more diverse representation and relevance in cultural programming. Through their work, they aim to improve quality of life for people who have complex needs and their circles of support through art. This grant provides strategic core support to the organisation to continue key programmes and partnerships and use the opportunity following their nominations and receipt of key awards to address structural inequalities experienced by neurominorities.

Leeds 2023 is delivering a ground-breaking year of culture for Leeds and the wider region. Their mission is to deliver transformational creative experiences that connect and benefit people now and into the future. This grant underpins My Leeds, a two-year project co-created with and led by communities across Leeds. Working across 33 wards, My Leeds celebrates the diversity and complexity of cultural participation by enabling communities to take a lead on designing their own local cultural offer.

Community Arts by ZK is a young lived experience-led participatory visual arts organisation rooted in the working-class South Asian Muslim community of Pendle in Lancashire. They devise art projects serving their community alongside refugees and asylum seekers and white British communities. Their participatory work provides space for community interaction and cohesion. This grant provides core support for a three-year programme of work and enables the organisation to build their capacity, sustainability and impact.