Shakespeare Schools Festival

The Shakespeare Schools Festival (SSF) charity is the UK’s largest youth drama festival. Schools who participate perform half-hour abridged versions of Shakespeare's plays in local, professional theatres all over the United Kingdom. Since its inception in 2000 it has worked with 4,842 'teacher directors' and 100,000 young people. 1000 schools (25,000 young people) will take part in the 2013 Festival in 120 theatres across the UK.

SSF aims to engage children through an active way of learning. The charity strives to bridge "the attainment gap" by boosting articulacy and confidence, as well as imparting key employability skills such as teamwork, peer leadership and critical thinking. In preparing and performing the plays participants also learn about Shakespeare's language, themes and characters.

All schools are able to take part in the festival, and the charity actively targets disadvantaged schools and teachers who feel that their pupils cannot do Shakespeare. After a pilot scheme in 2011, SSF now works with primary schools, with 7 new scripts specially abridged for younger participants. 330 primary schools are taking part in the 2013 Festival, alongside special schools and secondary schools. Seven international groups are also participating in the 2013 UK Festival, covering all their own travel and accommodation costs.

SSF is partnered with the Central School of Speech and Drama, who support workshops for the young casts participating.

Shakespeare Schools Festival is a charity supported by numerous trusts and foundations and individual donors. The largest corporate sponsor is Telereal Trillium. SSF's central office is currently housed at Telereal Trillium HQ at Bastion House, 140 London Wall, City of London.

The festival was featured recently on BBC Breakfast on Saturday 13 October 2012.

The Festival began in 2000 and is now in its 14th year.

In 1995, twelve of Shakespeare’s best loved plays were abridged to half hour scripts for the S4C and BBC Wales series, Shakespeare: The Animated Tales. Ninety per cent of the UK's secondary schools now use the Tales as their introduction to the language and plays of Shakespeare for years 7-10 (11-15 year olds), making it BBC Education's most popular series. In 2009 the films were made available by the DCSF to all English primary schools. In summer 2013 all twelve episodes were re-released on DVD in the UK by Metrodome Group Plc. They are distributed by Shakespeare Schools Festival.

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