Candoco Dance Company And World Heart Beat Music Academy Win The 2019 Achates Philanthropy Prize

The winners of the 2019 Achates Philanthropy Prize, the only annual prize that celebrates first-time supporters of the arts in the UK, were announced last night at a special event at London's Rich Mix and presented by the eminent cultural philanthropist, Hannah Rothschild CBE.

Founder of the Prize, Caroline McCormick, said: "Culture belongs to and is the responsibility of us all. If a gift of money is one of the manifestations of a successful relationship, then the Achates Philanthropy Prize is a barometer of how well arts organisations are working with their audiences. 2019 is the fourth year of the Prize, and I can genuinely say that the ground is shifting. We saw a 65% increase in nominations this year - covering every art form, organisational scale and geographical region - but most importantly we saw the highest quality of nominations to date. So to those of you who won tonight as well as all of those who were shortlisted - congratulations and thank you - you are exemplars to the sector and are building a campaign for real change in the arts".

Prize presenter, Hannah Rothschild CBE, said: "Anyone can be a philanthropist: it isn't only giving money - it's about contributing your time, skills and passion. Success is often based on partnerships and all of the nominees celebrated tonight represent the exciting outcomes of people, groups and companies working together. They range in size and complexity, but they are all inspirational. This generosity has never been more important: in times of darkness, philanthropists are in the business of giving light".

The 2019 Individual Philanthropy Award, sponsored by Spektrix, was won by World Heart Beat Music Academy & Nick Thomlinson.

World Heart Beat provides grassroots, non-selective, richly diverse, music education programmes for children from a vast array of backgrounds. The organisation was introduced to Nick Thomlinson by a trustee who thought Nick's considerable experience in property would make him a good contact as it began its pitch for a new music education centre and venue in Nine Elms. Nick met with founder and Artistic Director, Sahana Gero, and came to a number of events including a concert at Speakers House. Inspired by Sahana's vision and by seeing the young people first-hand he became involved in the pitch for the new space, investing time and providing valuable expertise. Following the successful pitch, he personally donated £37,500 in September 2018 - his first meaningful gift to an arts organisation - and worked closely with the team on the capital fundraising campaign leading to gifts and a widening of World Heart Beat's prospect pipeline. Nick has personally secured donations of between £1,000 and £10,000 from individuals, despite initially being reluctant to be involved in asking for people for gifts.

Nick Thomlinson was selected from a shortlist of seven outstanding first-time cultural supporters: Dr John Stephen Barnes MBBS MRCPsych, nominated by Arts & Health South West; Lyn Glass, nominated by Lighthouse; Karen and Mark Smith, nominated by The Fruitmarket Gallery; Mr R Emery, nominated by Town Hall Symphony Hall; and Jamie Wildman, nominated by the Young Vic - voted on by an independent judging panel: Jonty Claypole, Director of Arts for the BBC; John Gillman and Mary Winch, winners of the 2018 Individual Philanthropy Award; Sarah Maguire, freelance dance producer; Caroline McCormick, Director of Achates Philanthropy; Patrick McKenna, founder of Ingenious Media and Chair of the Individual Award judging panel; Michael Nabarro, CEO of Spektrix; Francis Runacres, Executive Director, Enterprise & Innovation at Arts Council England; Bill Swainson OBE, Trustee of the Achates Foundation; and Andria Zafirakou MBE, teacher at Alperton Community School in Brent and winner of 2018's Global Teacher prize.

Nick was presented with a sculpture by the renowned British artist, Peter Brooke-Ball MRBS. As the winning philanthropist, he will be custodian of the sculpture for one year. World Heart Beat Music Academy received a £5,000 donation from the Achates Philanthropy Foundation which will be spent on much-needed instruments - including alto and tenor saxophones, trumpets, trombones, drum kits, cymbals, pianos and a double bass - for young people in Wandsworth.

Sahana Gero, Founder and Artistic Director, World Heart Beat Music Academy, said: "We're delighted to have won the Individual Award. It's fantastic to celebrate Nick Thomlinson's philanthropy - he has been so generous, making a major gift to our capital project and getting actively involved with our fundraising campaign. Nick embodies the true definition of the word 'philanthropy' and we really appreciate his support. Individual donations are a vital cornerstone of our work - we couldn't achieve all that we do without them."

Nick Thomlinson, said: "How wonderful to have won a Prize that is shining a light on the importance of individual philanthropy for the Arts. I never saw myself as a major donor and certainly never envisaged getting involved in fundraising. However, World Heart Beat Music Academy is a wonderful charity that's making a real difference to the lives of young people. Once I got involved, I couldn't step away - I realised I was hooked!"

The 2019 Corporate Award, sponsored by BOP Consulting, was won by Candoco Dance Company & ASOS.

Candoco Dance Company and ASOS met at the 2018 Paralympics in Seoul where ASOS was an official supporter, responsible for designing and creating the formal and ceremony wear for ParalympicsGB, and Candoco performed as part of the Cultural Olympiad celebrations. It quickly became clear that there were synergies at the heart of these two considerably different organisations that offered an exciting opportunity. Candoco and ASOS developed a partnership to bring to life their shared values around promoting inclusion and celebrating diversity. The ASOS + Candoco Dance Company Training Intensive, a two-week residential for 15 disabled and non-disabled dancers aged 18-30, aimed to increase opportunities to train in an inclusive environment. ASOS offered significant financial support to develop this pilot, as well as gifted clothing for participants. The partnership took a dynamic and collaborative approach to communications and social media, with Candoco featuring on the ASOS Instagram Stories feed on numerous occasions.

ASOS was selected from a shortlist of five outstanding companies which have supported the arts for the first time within the last 12 months: Mace, nominated by Contact; Hotel Chocolat, nominated by English National Opera; Mountain Warehouse, nominated by Hay Festival Foundation; and Dishoom, nominated by HOME - voted on by an independent judging panel: Nigel Farnall, winner of the 2016 Achates Philanthropy Prize; David Hall, founding Chief Executive of The Foyle Foundation; Tarek Iskander, Artistic Director and CEO of Battersea Arts Centre; Steven Jackson-Winter, Senior Associate of Achates Philanthropy; Caroline McCormick, Director of Achates Philanthropy; Danielle Sugrue, Senior Commercial Manager at Laing O'Rourke, winners of the 2018 Corporate Philanthropy Award; Paul Owens, co-founder and Director of BOP Consulting and Chair of the Corporate Award judging panel; Libby Penn, digital specialist working across the cultural sector; Victoria Pomery OBE, Director of Turner Contemporary; and Aliceson Robinson, Executive Director at Russell Reynolds Associates.

ASOS was presented with a sculpture by the renowned British artist, Peter Brooke-Ball MRBS. As winners of the Corporate Award, they will be custodians of the sculpture for one year. Candoco Dance Company received a £5,000 donation from the Achates Philanthropy Foundation which will be invested in essential fundraising infrastructure to allow the Company to grow the scale and impact of the Training Intensive project in the future.

Jo Royce, Executive Director, Candoco Dance Company said: "We would like to thank the Prize judges for recognising the impact and importance of this collaboration, which was built on a shared value system around supporting emerging talent and a commitment to inclusion and diversity. We have to thank ASOS who enabled this vital project to happen; through this partnership we have been able to reach a wider and more diverse audience in Candoco's work and connect with 15 incredible young artists".

The Achates Philanthropy Prize Bursaries is the first in a series of national initiatives to be launched and led by the Ambassadors, a group of experienced arts professionals. Supported by the Trustees of the Achates Philanthropy Foundation and the Directors of Achates Philanthropy Ltd, the Achates Philanthropy Prize Ambassadors are: Suzanne Alleyne, Rose Goddard, Nancy Hitzig, Zak Hulstrom, Sarah Maguire, Renu Mehto, Kane Moore, Clare O'Hara, Sally Pennington, Annemarie Shillito and Rossella Traverso. The inaugural Bursaries will offer five UK arts organisations a bespoke masterclass to support the development of their fundraising.

2019 Bursaries were awarded to: Hackney Shed, Northern Ireland Opera, Square Chapel Arts Centre, Streatham Space Project and Writing West Midlands.

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