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My cousin was killed in a bike accident in June of 2010 and his Mum asked me to start a Charity in his memory. He loved Performing Arts and was very active behind the scenes but also loved being on stage. She has given me full use of the hall in her School for workshops and is ever so supportive but has given me the challenge of setting up the organisation. I would like to give young people of all ages the opportunities to gain what he did from performing - confidence, new friends and new skills. Although his passion was for computing and business and he wouldn't have gone into the profession, he enjoyed drama at school purely to make new friends and gain confidence he lacked so much. I am based in Tameside and there isn't an organisation which gives young people the chance to learn about drama to boost their confidence, it is all about "stage coaching". I have been a Performing Arts student myself, I know the difference between learning to be on stage and learning to love drama and improve confidence. I am writing to see if anyone could offer me any help into how I can go about in establishing this charity/organisation. I would like to offer drama workshops to young people with learning difficulties which is purely improvisation so they can feel a sense of achievement when coming up with their own stories and performances. This is work I have done in Wales and the sense of pride on the parents and carers' faces is like nothing I have ever seen before. Furthermore I would like to be able to offer workshops to young people. Thank you!
Comments
Welcome to Junction49. I'm Sarah from the Junction49 helpdesk here to support you in turning your idea into reality.
I'm so sorry to hear about your cousin, but I think this is a lovely thing to be able to set up. First of all it's probably best to start it off as a project and apply for some small amounts of funding to fund the provision of the workshops and then as you go you can look into setting it up as a charity if you wish.
It's great that you already have use of a venue as this is the first obstacle to overcome in setting up something like this. If you're looking for funding there are a number of different funds that you could apply to:
- O2 Think Big http://www.o2thinkbig.co.uk/
Awards of up to £2500 for your project, given in stages, for projects to improve the community. This is open to 13-25 year olds. In the first round you can apply for £300 and then after you've completed that part of the project you might get invited to apply for £2500.
- Live UnLtd http://www.liveunltd.com/
Live UnLtd will give up to £5,000 of funding and all the support needed to turn a great idea into a reality. Open to 11-21 yr olds.
IdeasTap - http://www.ideastap.com/Funding
They run different funds all the time for 16-25 year olds, so it's worth signing up to their newsletter to get regular updates about what is out there.
Awards for All
http://www.awardsforall.org.uk/england/index.html
If you need any help at all in applying to funding, then just let me know and I'd be happy to help or look over any funding applications before you submit them.
When thinking about setting this up as a charity of organisation you might want to consider what type of organisation you want to set up. For instance, to ensure it is sustainable you might want to think about setting it up as a social enterprise where the money you make from the project is reinvested back into the running costs of the organisation. For instance, you could run workshops with an annual performance which you sell tickets to members of the public to come along to.
The Charity Commission is the best place to look at to see how to go about setting up a charity and you can read their guidance here: http://www.charity-commission.gov.uk/Start_up_a_charity/Set_up/Things_to_think_about.aspx
I hope that helps to think about how to get things started. If you have any questions, please do just ask and we would be happy to help with whatever you need to get your project up and running.
Sarah Report Abuse
I just found out about this great competition which is being run where you could win £20,000 for your project and all you need to do is post it on this website - www.thestake.co.uk and get people to vote for the idea. The 20 ideas with the most votes or stakes will be shortlisted and then 6 will be given funding and support from some top mentors. If you go for it, let us know and we'll help promote it via Twitter and Facebook.
Sarah Report Abuse
Sarah Report Abuse
I'm Ada a junction49 help desker.
This is a great idea which could educate and help loads of people. It's good to see you trying to make a postive change :-)
Good Luck
Ada Report Abuse
Congratulations about the funding from o2, that is really exciting news. You'll have to keep us updated with how it all goes and if you need any help from us don't hesitate to get in contact.
Planning the launch party sounds very exciting if you need any help looking for a venue then you could always get in touch with www.somewhereto.com. They help young people to find the places they need to do the things they love.
Sarah Report Abuse
Sarah Report Abuse
How is it all going? Did you manage to get in touch with somewhereto_? How are all the plans going for your launch party?
Sarah Report Abuse
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