Registered charity number: 1164676
Shakespeare Schools Foundation is a cultural education charity that gives young people across the UK the confidence to succeed in life.
Shakespeare Schools Foundation (SSF) transforms lives through the unique power of Shakespeare. The charity’s enthusiastic and powerful approach is proven to work, with students and teachers reporting better teamwork, improved confidence and increased ambition. Over their 18 year history SSF has worked with 300,000 young people, currently working with up to 30,000 beneficiaries a year.
The focus of SSF’s work is the world’s largest youth drama festival, which the charity organises every year. Thousands of pupils from a diverse range of communities, backgrounds and types of school are involved in months of preparation and activities, supported by SSF, culminating in exhilarating performances in professional theatres nationwide. These incredible events have a profound effect on participants – not only are they proven to improve literacy and develop life skills of empathy and teamwork, but they can also give the people involved confidence and self-esteem that lasts a lifetime – enough to change a child’s path in life.
Following the 2018 Shakespeare Schools Foundation Festival:
A student participant said: “I really enjoyed the Shakespeare Festival because it felt like I had just conquered the world. It was the best day of my life!”
Your old car donation could go towards the running of this fantastic program and give more children this incredible experience.
The charity is passionate about using Shakespeare’s works for many reasons. The confidence young people gain is from them tackling an aspirational project and exceeding their own expectations, so using difficult texts in professional theatres makes their learning ambitious. Shakespeare’s works embrace diverse characters, styles, and stories making them accessible and relevant to all who encounter them with a little help from the SSF team. Most importantly, Shakespeare’s characters can be fun, terrifying, hilarious and deeply moving – teaching everyone involved what it means to be human.
A Teacher-Director involved in a recent SSF Festival told the charity:
“One student was bordering on being permanently excluded from our school for his very poor behaviour. I dragged him into this show as he has innate talent. It has saved him, given him a purpose, and a sense of belonging. We are all rather overwhelmed by how well he has done and the positive impact it has had on him. The show and this SSF experience has literally made the world of difference to him and has given him the self-worth he was lacking.”
Each programme is carefully tailored by the SSF team to provide curriculum resources and standalone workshops that improve teamwork and educational attainment. With 93% of teachers reporting that their students work better together as a team having gone through this experience, and with 81% reporting improvements in academic attainment, the results are clear.
An old car donation could help SSF to continue their innovative work and empower more young people with the confidence and skills they need to succeed elsewhere in their life. That effect is needed even more when it comes to pupils from diverse groups such as those with special education needs and those living in areas of deprivation. SSF is passionate about working with young people from all backgrounds, so an old car donation supporting this charity means the promotion of social inclusion and truly improving life chances for everyone.
Your old car donation to SSF can help more young people across the country realise their potential.