Graeae Theatre
Graeae is a disabled-led theatre company of actors, writers and directors with physical and sensory impairments. It is the leading British company in its field, with a reputation for innovative work, built around the creative use of sign language and audio description. In fact, its Artistic Director was the creative force behind the London Paralympic opening ceremony!
In 2004, the trustees of Graeae first asked us to help develop their fundraising by conducting prospect research and developing an appeal strategy. In addition, we also carried out contact mapping, developed the case for support and written a range of funding bids.
Graeae’s main fundraising need was at first the completion of the capital appeal for its superb premises in Hackney, followed by revenue funding for new productions and training and education programmes. In all, our consultant Claire Greenhalgh has helped to raise over £1.5 million from charitable trusts and the Arts Council for this client.
Graeae’s Executive Director Judith Kilvington says: "Claire's initial work was focused on developing and implementing our fundraising strategy for our Capital Project to create Graeae’s first home in its 30 year history. It was our most ambitious fundraising campaign to date and with just over £500,000 to raise in less than 12 months, a not inconsiderable challenge. But from the start the working relationship was an easy one and Claire quickly was able to capture the spirit and culture of Graeae's aspirations for our new building. This understanding of the company's ethos and her ability to speak Graeae's "language", has meant that as our fundraising campaign moves from capital to revenue and training and education projects, we have been able to work swiftly to transform ideas into tangible, well-funded projects. I look forward to continuing our successful and hugely enjoyable relationship."
Our Director, Simon George, says: "This has been a great client to work for and, as well as raising a lot of money for Graeae, our consultant Claire has developed an excellent working relationship with the staff and trustees. This is a good example of how it is possible, over time, to deliver tremendous value to a client by really understanding their needs and working closely with them to achieve results. Our contract with Graeae has been extended once again and we look forward to continuing to deliver results for them."
To read more about Graeae visit www.graeae.org/page/home
