Literacy charity 'over the moon' as new base opens
Rehearsals by Grimm and Co performers have been ongoing ahead of a schools project
- Published
A new home for a South Yorkshire-based literacy charity will allow it to greatly expand its work, the people behind it have said as they prepare to open its doors.
Grimm and Co's new base on Ship Hill in Rotherham has been named the Emporium of Stories, with staff pledging to inspire children's creativity and ambition.
Grimm and Co said it would be able to offer three times the amount of work for children and families thanks to its new site, which cost more than £1m.
The charity also does outreach work across Yorkshire and the Humber region, as well as further afield.
Organisers said its work, which included sessions for schools, festivals and weekend workshops, aimed to build resilience, literacy skills, self-esteem and aspirations through stories.
The charity offered family learning activities and creative educational programmes supporting teachers and those working with children and young people, they added.
Staff at the venue run confidence-boosting activities with the hope of helping the children involved
Deborah Bullivant, Grimm and Co's founding director, said the opening of the new base marked a high point after years of work on providing a bigger venue.
Ms Bullivant said staff were "over the moon" to help the charity's supporters.
"They helped to make this happen and have patiently but enthusiastically monitored progress as we’ve navigated the pandemic, among other challenges, since this project began," she added.
Several organisations, including Arts Council England, Rotherham Council, BBC Children in Need and the National Lottery Community Fund, have contributed towards the project
Darren Henley, chief executive of Arts Council England, said he was sure visitors to the centre would be inspired and enthused for years to come.
"Children and young people sit at the heart of our Let’s Create strategy and Grimm and Co is a fantastic example of a creative organisation putting them right at the centre of its work."
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