Four Studios, One Gift, and What Happens Next

A donor's generosity has unlocked the next stage of our studio build, and a route to Sirlute funding its own future.

Thanks to the generosity of a donor keen to support Sirlute's youth outreach programme, we're able to proceed to the exciting next stages of building and equipping a four-studio set-up, one that will soon be available to hire by the public, and that will help make our charity self-funding and able to carry out even more excellent work.

The donor has asked not to be named. We're going to respect that, and say only this: it's rare for someone to give without wanting their name on the front of it, and the thing they've bought isn't a plaque. It's a building that keeps working long after the gift is spent.

What the gift unlocks

Four studios, built and equipped. For the young people who come through Sirlute, that means more rooms, more sessions running at once, and less waiting for a slot. Right now, capacity is the ceiling on what we can offer, there are only so many hours in a week and only so many desks. Four studios lift that ceiling.

For the charity, it means something we've been working towards for years: the studios will be available to hire by the public, and the income from that hire goes straight back into free programmes for young people.

Why "self-funding" is the important part

Most youth charities live grant to grant. You write the bid, you wait, you hope, and if it lands, you get "X" months of certainty before you start again. It's an exhausting way to plan anything, and it's the reason so many good programmes stop suddenly.

A studio that earns its own income changes that maths. Every commercial booking, a band, a podcast, a producer, a brand shoot, pays for sessions that stay free for the young people who need them. The building funds the work. The work doesn't stop when a grant round closes.

That's what this donation has done, it's moved this from a plan to something we're actually building.

How you can be part of it

The gift takes us to the next stage. It doesn't finish the job. If you'd like to help with what's left, here's exactly where the money goes:

Amount	What it funds
£10	Buy a pair of headphones
£150	Fund a full taster day for up to 10 young people
£500	Support a young person through a 6-week creative programme​

Every pound goes into free creative learning, mentoring and training for young people aged 5 to 25 across East London.

Become a founder

If you're in a position to give at a larger level, there's a different conversation to have, and we'd like to have it with you directly.

We're looking for founders, people and organisations who want to back the next stages of Sirlute's expansion, with their name on the wall of the building they helped make possible.

If that's you, get in touch with us directly at info@sirlute.com or 020 7459 4784, and we'll talk you through where the project is and what the next stages need.

And to our donor

You know who you are. Thank you.