Collaborations
Irish Heritage Collaborations
An important factor in Irish Heritage’s successful delivery of its charitable objectives is its programme of collaborations with organisations that share its purpose.
Mutually beneficial relationships with the following organisations have contributed significantly to the Charity’s impact in programmes including education, events, and outreach and community.
Irish Heritage is interested in forging new relationships with like-minded collaborators; anyone interested should contact the Chairman.
The Ireland Funds Great Britain
The Ireland Funds is a global philanthropic network established in 1976. The Ireland Funds’ vision is of peace, equality and opportunity across the island of Ireland and among Irish communities worldwide.
The Great Britain is a proud chapter of The Ireland Funds; a network of friends of Ireland dedicated to creating a positive social impact and making a real difference to communities in need. For over 35 years, they have raised funds to support community, culture, education, and peace on the island of Ireland and across Great Britain.
IFGB Website
Irish Youth Foundation
The Irish Youth Foundation (IYF) UK was originally established in 1989 to help young Irish people arriving from Ireland. It is the only national charity in Britain specifically aimed at helping young people of Irish heritage and their families.
Since its inception the IYF has awarded over £6 million in grants. Grants are awarded annually to a wide range of welfare, educational and cultural groups working with disadvantaged young people of Irish heritage and their families in Britain and Northern Ireland.
IYF Website
Irish Cultural Centre – London
The Irish Cultural Centre (ICC) is committed to sharing Ireland’s culture and it works with its neighbours in London's diverse community, to achieve deeper appreciation of the value of intercultural exchange and understanding which it believes plays a significant part in building a stronger society.
The Centre was established in 1995 and is acclaimed for providing one of the most exciting and adventurous weekly entertainment programmes in Britain, featuring Ireland’s best traditional and contemporary musicians, an Irish film programme, Irish literary events, theatre and art exhibitions and more.
Irish Heritage has collaborated with the Centre to launch the first element of the charity’s outreach and community programme – a series of afternoon music recitals for people who enjoy live music but who are unable to access evening performances.
The Centre and the Charity have also collaborated successfully on the ICC Digital and ICC Culture Hotline projects and look forward to providing Ireland’s next generation of classical musicians and singers with more performance opportunities over coming years.
ICC Website
Wigmore Hall
Thanks to the valuable support of its Patron, John Gilhooly CBE, Director of the Wigmore Hall, Irish Heritage has access to the famous classical music venue for the adjudication of its annual round of bursaries.
Discreetly nestled in central London, the Hall – renowned for its intimacy, crystalline acoustic and beautiful interior complete with an Arts and Crafts cupola above the stage – has a capacity of 552 seats, but draws in audiences from far and wide through its enterprising use of digital media and its ambitious Learning programme; these go beyond concert audiences to embrace schools, nurseries, hospitals, community centres and care homes.
Since 1994, the Hall's renowned learning programme has been giving people of all ages, backgrounds and abilities opportunities to take part in music making, engaging a broad and diverse audience through innovative creative projects, concerts, events and online resources. Hosting Irish Heritage’s bursary auditions is one aspect of the Hall’s vison in this context.
Wigmore Hall Website
Blackwater Valley Opera Festival
The Blackwater Valley Opera Festival, Ireland’s only summer opera festival, is a celebration of the finest opera and classical music set in the heart of Ireland’s ancient east. Tucked away in the beautiful Blackwater Valley, the festival stages performances of the highest artistic quality featuring both Irish and international stars and emerging talent of the classical music world.
While opera is the artistic core of the Festival, the week-long celebration of music would be incomplete without the bustling events programme featuring vocal recitals, chamber music, concerts and more. The grand houses, churches, and cathedrals of the region are the gracious hosts for these events, allowing guests to explore the architectural gems of the historic Blackwater Valley.
In all that it does, the Blackwater Valley Opera Festival aims to promote excellence, both by featuring the finest international stars, and by championing emerging artists who are at the beginning of promising careers. To this end, it is proud to annually award the BVOF Bursary and to work in collaboration with Irish Heritage in providing the latter’s talented bursary recipients with invaluable performance opportunities in the early stages of their professional careers.
BVOF Website