St Mary’s College: Top of the league

On a chilly February night in London, the top theatremakers, teachers and organisations from around the UK gathered for the 2023 Music & Drama Education Awards. The aim for the evening? To celebrate the innovative work of those aiming to make music and drama education as inclusive, progressive and dynamic as possible. Despite facing an immensely challenging year, this remarkable sector has thrived against extraordinary odds, continuing to offer projects, products, performances and services of a high quality.

London Bubble Theatre was given the award for Outstanding Drama Initiative for its project ‘Playing Safe’, which was developed in response to the rise in violent crime in Southwark. It aimed to support and engage Year 6 students at risk of serious youth violence, showing a 30-minute play and creating an accompanying session to unpack issues explored within it, both for the children and their parents. Vulnerable students were identified and invited to work with facilitators to create their own show. Overall, the project reached nearly 400 young people in the borough of Southwark. The judges saw this as an innovative response to a social need, with theatre used as a way to engage lesser-reached communities.