Actress leads push for school music centre

 
P1 Sally Hawkins Picture by Daniel Hambury
15 March 2013

Arts and media figures have united to raise funds to create a London school’s new music centre.

Actress Sally Hawkins, opera singer Angela Gheorghiu, and broadcasters Nicky Campbell and Danny Baker are supporting James Allen’s Girls’ School in East Dulwich, which wants to build the community facility.

The school, known as JAGS, needs to raise almost £18 million to complete the project. It will provide rehearsal and performance space for more than 300 people and will be run by the school but open to the public 60 per cent of the time.

Baker’s daughter is a JAGS pupil and Hawkins also went there. Comedian Jenny Eclair, musician Sola Akingbola of Jamiroquai and Camila Batmanghelidjh, founder of charity Kids Company, are among the patrons of the project. Head teacher Marion Gibbs said: “This facility is much needed. It’s not just for the school, it’s for the community. There are lots of people from disadvantaged backgrounds nearby. We want to reach out to people who’ve never had the chance.”

The centre will host a symphony hall and smaller recital hall, classrooms, practice rooms, recording studios and music therapy rooms.

It will open to the public from 6am to 8am, then from 6pm and during weekends and school holidays.

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