Wellington College celebrates 5 years of support for local school arts projects 

Since 2020, the Wellington College Arts Fund (WCAF) has distributed grants to more than 75 schools in the local area. These have funded arts initiatives for children including music lessons, dance workshops, technical equipment for drama departments and art resources.

“I now have a recorder at home so I can show off to all my family”.  – Pupil at Hatch Ride Primary School in Crowthorne

WCAF has donated over £125,000 in grants over the last 5 years, raising money through fundraising and ticket sales from Wellington College’s performing arts events. Any local school can apply for a grant by completing a simple form.

Wellington will mark the 5th anniversary of the Arts Fund with a year of events including productions of the hit musical ‘Into the Woods’ and ‘Treasure Island’ plus two major orchestral and jazz concerts.  This will culminate in a collaborative event on Friday October 17^th where pupils from local schools showcase their talent in a captivating ‘Celebration of the Arts’ in Wellington’s G.W.A Theatre. The Arts Fund regularly brings local schools together for performances and any school wishing to participate in this year’s event has until 20^th February to express their interest.

Simon Williamson, Director of Music at Wellington says ‘An involvement in the arts is a vital part of every child’s cultural upbringing and we are delighted to have connected with hundreds of local students over the last five years.  We look forward to continuing to support many local school children in their artistic experiences.’

Ticket sale proceeds for Wellington arts events like our most recent musical  Into The Woods (12-14^th Feb) go to the Arts Fund. Tickets are priced from £5 and are on sale to the public.

The WCAF recently funded dance workshops for boys at Yateley School.  Head of Dance, Helen Wearing, was able to set up a performance group who went on to participate in an all-boys’ Dance Platform at The Mayflower Theatre, Southampton in 2024. She said “the project provides a safe and supportive environment where boys can explore their own creatively and be physically challenged”. Year 9 pupil, Charlie V said “The boys’ dance project ‘Manmade’ played a vital role in my taking up dance inside and out of school.”

In 2024 a grant was awarded to Hatch Ride Primary School in Crowthorne to fund a term of recorder lessons delivered by Berkshire Music Trust for 120 key stage 2 pupils. Class teacher, Miss Costello said “the opportunity to learn an instrument has supported the development of learning behaviours including resilience”.

The music and drama departments at Ranelagh School in Bracknell have also benefited from Arts Funds grants which have gone towards music and drama equipment. Head of Music, Luke Coventry said “the grants have funded staging, allowing us to create immersive performances like last year’s Bugsy Malone which had a stage that extended into the audience.  We’ve also upgraded our computing suite so all pupils can plug in guitars or mics without taking turns and the whole class can progress more quickly”

The process of applying for a grant is refreshingly straightforward. Luke Coventry said “The form is simple to fill in with clear criteria and we quickly heard that our application had been successful. We won’t hesitate to apply for further grants in the future to elevate our performing arts offering for pupils”   

To apply for a Wellington College Arts Fund Grant or to express interest in taking part in the ‘Celebration of the Arts’ performance in October, please visit Grants & Donations – Wellington College or contact thearts@wellingtoncollege.org.uk