On 23rd April 2016, William Shakespeare’s 452nd birthday and the 400th anniversary of his death, Shakespeare’s Schoolroom & Guildhall opened its doors. Visitors from across the globe have the chance to discover how and where William Shakespeare spent his school years, first experienced theatre, wrote his first sonnets and was inspired to become the world’s greatest playwright.
This period in Shakespeare’s life, about which there has previously been little insight, undoubtedly awakened in him a passion for the craft of which he was to become a master.
Shakespeare’s Schoolroom Trust is the independent charity that runs Shakespeare’s Schoolroom & Guildhall.
The charity’s mission is to ensure that Shakespeare’s Schoolroom & Guildhall is a place of inspiration, discovery and learning today and in the future.
Charity number: 1194083
The Trustees of King Edward VI School worked tirelessly for over ten years to achieve the opening of Shakespeare's Schoolroom & Guildhall to the public. Their vision was realised thanks to a programme of restoration and conservation made possible by a £1.4m grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund. Shakespeare's Schoolroom Trust is grateful for the continued staunch support of the Trustees.
The Schoolroom also received support from the Culture Recovery Fund, the Heritage Emergency Fund and the Warwickshire County Council Adapt & Diversify Fund which ensured its survival and enabled significant innovation through the Covid closures.
It is thanks to our volunteers and supporters that Shakespeare’s Schoolroom & Guildhall can open to visitors as a place to explore and be inspired by.
The charity manages the Grade I listed 15th century building in such a way as to ensure that it is carefully preserved while maintaining zero direct emissions and very low energy use. A minimum of 50% of electricity used is from renewable sources.
Where additional furniture has been added to the building this has mostly been built locally and much of it by craftsmen using traditional low energy and impact methods.
Our location is town centre, so we encourage people to travel by public transport when they can and to enjoy everything that they can see and do whilst they are in Stratford-upon-Avon.
Our own team of staff and volunteers are all locally based, limiting the emissions created through travel.
Our purchasing policy for the shop is to support local businesses wherever possible and to seek out products that can demonstrate that they are carbon neutral or net zero. We don’t sell any single use plastic bags, instead offering purchasers the option of either a paper or cotton bag.