July 2022

“All I insist on, and nothing else, is that you should show the whole world that you are not afraid. Be silent, if you choose; but when it is necessary, speak and speak in such a way that people will remember it.” — Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Since Covid-19, schools have been working overtime to help their children catch up on the core academic subjects, with many having to put access to Arts subjects lower down on their agendas. As a result, there are significant numbers of children who are not accessing any Arts activities at school or being exposed to them through afterschool activities or through their families.  This risks a generation of children who have no ‘Cultural Capital’.

JLC’s Cultural Capital Fund was formed as part of its Home-School-Community initiative to seek to ensure children and young people can access the Arts. One Arts organisation which secured a Cultural Capital Fund grant is the The Mozartists.

The Mozartists is a leading musical organisation comprised of professional performers and practitioners who specialise in the works of Mozart. The Mozartists have a worldwide reputation for their fresh and dynamic performances of 18th-century repertoire. Performing on period instruments, or modern replicas, and working with an in-depth knowledge of 18th-century performance practice, these masterful musicians bring the music of Mozart and his contemporaries to vivid and dramatic life. In 2015 the Mozartists established MOZART 250 – a 27 year chronological project looking back 250 years to follow Mozart’s life, works and musical influences.

With support from John Lyon’s Charity, this inspiring classical organisation wanted to bring live classical music to children who might not otherwise have the chance to experience it – and the Mozart 250 Discovery Project was born. School children learn about the childhood Mozart and his music, as well as what life was like in the eighteenth century, and working with The Mozartists’ animateurs and players, devise and perform their own music. Guided by this experienced team of workshop leaders, singers and instrumentalists, children explore the young composer’s world and music and follow in his footsteps to create their own operas, which are showcased in a final performance to their peers, families and communities.

Starting with two class groups in 2015, this project has expanded over the years, and off the back of its grant from the Cultural Capital Fund, The Mozartists worked with over 1200 children across Ealing last year. The project was expanded to incorporate primary and secondary schools, with the MOZART 250 Discovery Project at the core, with additional ‘drop-in’ singing workshops for primary schools, ‘Introduction to Opera’ workshops for secondary schools, and a new range of workshops devised specifically for special needs settings, all inspiring children through Mozart’s composed music.

Yogesh Dattani, Head of Ealing Music Partnership, said: “The opera project delivered by The Mozartists and funded by the Cultural Capital Fund has been a catalyst to accessing pupils with SEND in four mainstream primaries. Opera is out of reach for many of our families, but with John Lyon’s Charity’s support, we have taken opera to our pupils – another significant milestone in our journey of inclusion!”

Joe Cummings, a workshop leader at The Mozartists, said: “The projects allows children the chance to engage, communicate and express themselves through multi art forms (music, dance, theatre, co-creativity). This medium often enables children to engage on a much deeper emotional level than with words/speech.”

For many of the children, these workshops are their first encounter with live classical music and a unique opportunity to experience singers and instruments up close. Throughout the intensive weekly workshops, the children grow in confidence and develop important creative and team-working skills that will help them thrive on and off stage.  Here is what a few of the students from Stanhope Primary School had to say:

“It was pretty amazing and the Mozart people are astonishing and very helpful”

“I am really grateful for everything they did. When I performed my solo, I felt a bit nervous at first, but it was such a confidence boost.”

“It’s really inspiring and I hope that other kids will be inspired by Mozart too.”

The Mozartists are committed to continuing to deliver a range of projects to cater for a wide range of school children in Ealing. John Lyon’s Charity is keen to encourage other arts organisations who operate within North and West London to come forward and utilise the Charity’s Cultural Capital Fund offering. JLC hopes to see more inspiring organisation’s such as The Mozartists in schools so that children and young people can experience a wide range of arts opportunities.

If you are an Arts Organisation and would like to find out more about the Cultural Capital Fund: Arts Organisation, then please click here.

We also offer a Cultural Capital Fund: schools grant for schools that operate within the Charity’s Beneficial Area. To find out more, please click here.

Five years on from the Grenfell Tower tragedy, John Lyon’s Charity continues to help local people and communities in North Kensington affected by the fire to recover.

The impact of the fire at Grenfell Tower is still being felt throughout North Kensington and will continue to affect residents for many years to come. John Lyon’s Charity (JLC) – a London based grant-giving Funder who stepped in immediately after the tragic event five years ago is actively seeking new ways to fund Children and Young People’s organisations, and has invested £4.4m since 2017 into the borough to help support the community.

In the first days and weeks following the fire, JLC worked closely with other funding organisations and London Funders to create an emergency response strategy to support the communities living in the area that had been affected. In July 2017, over £1.1m was distributed to 100 local community groups, faith groups, schools and residents associations for extra equipment, food and essential supplies to support the local communities.

Dr. Lynne Guyton, CEO of John Lyon’s Charity said: “As one of the biggest grant-giving Funders in London, we knew we had to step up and do all we could to protect this much-loved community, which is based in the heart of our Beneficial Area. Now, five years later, we are still doing all we can to help and want to remind organisations that operate in and around the area that we are committed to investing in the borough long term.”

Traditionally, Kensington & Chelsea as a local authority area, is often overlooked for funding and support from outside agencies. Parts of the borough are the most affluent in the country, if not in Europe. However, in pockets such as North Kensington, levels of deprivation and need are incredibly high. John Lyon’s Charity has remained focused in supporting the survival of key charities in the borough and funded 166 organisations since June 2017 but much more needs to be done.

Urbanwise.London, a local educational charity received emergency funding from JLC to provide trips for families from the area. Moya O’Hara – Director of Urbanwise.London said: “Following the Grenfell Tower tragedy, the local community were in shock and grief. Many had lost loved ones and neighbours and they experienced mental trauma and health issues for a long time afterwards. The emergency funding enabled local groups to offer support to the community through a variety of different projects, very quickly and flexibly. However, local people are still affected by the tragedy today. Some moved away but many are still living in the same area under the shadow of Grenfell Tower and the memories of what happened here.”

Another charity that received emergency funding from JLC was London Sports Trust, an organisation that inspires positive change for disadvantaged young Londoners through sport. Ulick Tarabanov, CEO of London Sports Trust said: “Trauma is usually hidden, but with the Grenfell Tower tragedy in view every day, it still remains at the forefront of resident’s minds. The London Sports Trust supported children and families who lived in Grenfell over the last 20 years, so it was heart breaking to see some of those amazing young people perish in tragedy. The emergency funding from John Lyon’s Charity enabled us to provide additional support and sessions specifically for children and families affected by the tragedy, giving them a safe space to take part in activities or just be together. We continue to run sports and outdoor adventure activities as well as family baking programmes for families around North Kensington affected by the Grenfell Tower Tragedy.”

Tina Mayers, CEO of Shepherds Bush Families Project & Children’s Centre said: “We had one family from the North African community who was greatly affected by the fire. They had relatives living in Grenfell and sadly the whole family perished. Other families had relatives and friends who were admitted to hospital, one on life support for many weeks, and who came to our centre to express grief and concern. We still see the effects of the Grenfell Tragedy on families’ emotional wellbeing and we support families with childcare whilst parents attend counselling/therapy groups away from the project. We have seen many different communities come together to support each other over the last five years and many come to our centre to seek solace and be with friends and family. We are grateful to Funders like John Lyon’s Charity but more needs to be done to help this community heal.”

Five years on the impact of the fire still sends shockwaves across London with the community of North Kensington losing many family members and friends. Despite JLC’s continued funding commitment the area still needs significant support and investment. John Lyon’s Charity is using its platform to remind local organisations that it is committed long term to support the borough and urges the Government to step up and do more.

JLC also operates in Barnet, Brent, Camden, Ealing, Hammersmith and Fulham, Harrow and the Cities of London and Westminster. To find out more about the Charity please visit our Grants page.

March 2022

Major London Funder of Children & Young People has committed an additional £4M across the sector in just one year to help tackle the impact of Covid-19 on top of its usual grant giving of C.£12M

One year ago today, grant-giving funder John Lyon’s Charity ring-fenced an additional £22million from its endowment to be spent over the next six years to help protect the Children and Young People’s (CYP) sector survive the Covid-19 crisis. This was in addition to its usual grant-giving of c.£10-12M.

Now, just one year on, the Charity can confirm that it has already committed £4million to grassroots charities across London.

A strategic plan to protect the CYP sector in the long term was created and launched in March 2021, with the core focus on Home – School – Community (HSC); the three main points of reference in any child’s life.

Dr Lynne Guyton, CEO of John Lyon’s Charity says: “The Charity has spent the last thirty years contributing to the maintenance and effectiveness of a varied and vibrant CYP sector in London. Therefore, we could not sit by and watch the pandemic threaten and destroy the many vital organisations we have supported over the years. Just one year on from our HSC launch, we are already seeing the positive effects on many grassroots charities and organisations who have benefitted from this funding strategy. Our groups are starting to rebuild all that was lost during the pandemic but there is no denying that these organisations will need support for the foreseeable.”

Catholic Children’s Society (CCS), a charity that supports disadvantaged children and families was awarded funding from the HSC strategy. Greg Brister, Trust & Grants Officer at CCS says: “JLC’s Home-School-Community Strategy has been hugely important in helping the Catholic Children’s Society respond effectively to the devastating impact of the pandemic. JLC’s grant enabled us to significantly scale up our efforts to provide specialist support for children struggling with mental health issues. We have now launched our Connect-Ed therapy service in eight new schools, providing vital early intervention support for children who have experienced many challenges as a result of Covid-19 (including isolation, bereavement and family breakdown). This work has had a profound impact, helping vulnerable children develop greater resilience and putting them in a much stronger position to engage with school life and achieve their full potential. We are very grateful to John Lyon’s Charity for their fast response and ongoing support.”

British chamber orchestra, Aurora Orchestra, is another vital organisation that has benefitted from HSC’s funding. Helen McKeown from Aurora Orchestra says: “Before the pandemic, Aurora Orchestra ran a series of immersive storytelling concerts for Camden primary school children at Kings Place, and visited two special schools in Westminster with adapted, child-led, versions of the performances. These activities became impossible during the national lockdown. This funding has helped us to deepen the impact of the live shows and resources further than ever before.Following the disruption of lockdown to all aspects of children’s education, there has never been a more important time for this programme, which has enabled children to imagine, create and play through music over an extended period.”

Lydia Gandaa, art teacher at Old Oak Primary School says: “The opportunities the children from Old Oak have gained from the school having access to JLC’s Cultural Capital Fund within HSC are countless. Being able to partner with such a well-known arts institution such as the Saatchi Gallery would have been largely unachievable if Old Oak had not been part of this important project. This project allowed for our students to really build their cultural capital particularly following the pandemic as they are not often exposed to experiences such as this on a day to day basis. We are grateful that after such a difficult period, this type of funding from John Lyon’s Charity was made available”

Now with £4M already committed one year on, John Lyon’s Charity is on track to continue its support of the CYP sector with the end goal that it fully survives the impact of the pandemic.