The Music Works is a local charity offering innovative music programmes, workshops, and projects for young people. They have launched a crowdfunder to help them complete a new community music venue for young people in the Forest of Dean.
The Music Works was chosen as one of the Bishops’ charities for 2023 to receive the episcopal collections.
The Music Works supports over 4,000 children and young people each year through innovative music programmes. In February, children from the charity took part in the Knife Angel events at Gloucester Cathedral, presenting a series of thought-provoking spoken word and rap pieces over tracks they produced themselves.
The Forest of Dean is set to welcome a dynamic and inclusive music venue and recording studio, The Forest Community Music Hub, dedicated to nurturing young talent. The Music Works was founded in the Forest of Dean in 2004 and are now looking to come back to their roots to ‘help give young people in the Forest an amazing space that will give them things to do, make new friends and feel proud of the place that they live’.
The Music Works has already achieved an impressive milestone, raising nearly £850,000 towards this project. With their sights set on an early 2024 opening, the charity is now launching an online crowdfunding campaign appealing to the community to help secure the remaining funds.
Deborah Potts, CEO at The Music Works, said, “We strongly believe that the Hub will transform our work in the Forest of Dean. Having engaged with thousands of young people at our Gloucester Hub, we have witnessed the profound impact it will have and the new aspirations it will raise for young people in the Forest.”
The funds raised through this campaign will be instrumental in the complete renovation of the old HSBC bank located in the heart of Cinderford, Forest of Dean. The Forest Community Music Hub will have its own event space, state-of-the-art recording studio, production suite, practice spaces, and even a sensory music room, all equipped with cutting-edge music technology. The aim is for the Hub to engage 600 young people a year, helping them to develop their passion for music, their creative and performance skills, and support their career paths in whatever form they take.
One young person said, “To have our own Hub in Cinderford would be amazing! Being able to make music and come to a space where you feel like you belong, it really does make a lasting difference.”
If successful, the new venue could open its doors as early as January 2024.
To donate, visit: The Forest Community Music Hub – a Music crowdfunding project in Cinderford by The Music Works
Find out more about The Music Works: TheMusicWorks
Watch a video about the Forest Community Music Hub