Government launches National Theatre partnership to reach 100,000 young people

The UK government launched a new programme to provide over 100,000 children and young people across England with access to live theatre.

Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy announced that the National Theatre will partner with 12 regional theatres to deliver productions, workshops, and training. The initiative aims to encourage careers in the creative industries and reach young people who might otherwise face financial or geographical barriers to seeing live performances.

The National Theatre will work with partners in every English region to offer thousands of subsidised £10 tickets. The programme includes touring productions specifically designed for young audiences to 400 schools across the country. Participants can explore various roles including acting, directing, playwriting, and backstage work. A new music theatre programme will also create original community productions inspired by and performed by local young people.

To support these efforts, the government allocated up to £15 million from the Every Child Can programme. This is part of a larger investment of £238.5 million from the Dormant Assets Scheme. The funding also supports a £450 million Youth Matters Fund to improve youth facilities and services in 60 local authorities. The government plans to recruit 1,000 new youth workers to strengthen the youth services workforce.