We were delighted to attend the inaugural showcase of the Speaker’s Trust ‘Culturally Speaking’ programme over the summer. Culturally Speaking is a programme aimed at 13-16 year olds, seeking to expand their knowledge and understanding of cultural spaces, develop their communication skills and encourage them to share their views through public speaking. Working in partnership with cultural venues across London, young people visit a cultural venue and then participate in a communication skills workshop at school. Through the workshop, they explore the themes and ideas encountered during their visit, before delivering a three-minute speech inspired by this.
A group of the programme’s participants were selected to represent their school and delivered their speech at the prestigious St Margaret’s Church, Westminster Abbey.
We greatly value the importance of enhancing communication and public speaking skills for young people and also believe in increasing access to cultural institutions for young people. Culturally Speaking brings together both of these elements. We are incredibly proud to support the Speakers Trust in delivering this fantastic programme and of all the young people who took part. You can read more about our support for Speaker’s Trust here.