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about mortal fools

​"It is rare to find an organisation with this 
quality, community focus, and ambition"
- Rob Huggins, Chief Executive Liberdade Community Development Trust”
SUPPORT US

Mortal Fools is a multi-award-winning theatre, drama and creative learning company based in Northumberland, working with children and young people using drama and creative interventions to support their wellbeing and personal development.

We are a company of participatory artists and practitioners who are committed to co-creating compelling, dynamic, socially-relevant and high-quality theatre-based work with children, young people and communities.

We work with 1,000s of children and young people every year, mostly in the North East.

We started out as a small youth theatre group, running one-off week-long projects from a village hall. Today we have two office bases (in Ashington and Prudhoe), tour our work Nationally, and deliver training to organisations across the country.

​In 2018, we were named 'Small Charity of Year' at the North-East Charity Awards, and in 2021 we won 'Best Arts & Business Partnership' with Vida Creative for our work on Melva Digital. In 2022, we were nominated for Uniquely North East in the North East Charity Awards and in 2023 for a National Diversity Award – both nominations were for our high impact work with vulnerable young people, many with intersectional needs.

We are a purpose-driven organisation. Our work must be relevant to and matter in wider society and make a demonstrable and measurable difference to those we work with.

Positive mental health and wellbeing outcomes are an integral part of our work. We use the ratified PERMA Framework TM as our approach to embedding, monitoring, and evaluating the impact of our work against defined wellbeing outcomes. Therefore we can demonstrate that our work brings about changes in behaviour and outlook, confidence, personal accomplishment, personal resilience, positive self-image, and empowers towards a more positive future.
​
We are working to create a society where everyone is motivated, engaged, and able to bring their unique abilities to help make the world a little bit better. The problems of the world are essentially the problems of individuals. And through supporting individuals to change, together we may just be able to change the world.


A Message from our Artistic Director & CEO Kiz Crosbie:

“I’ve been with Mortal Fools since its inception, almost 11 years ago, and my excitement, belief and drive for this fantastic organisation remains unwavering.

We are committed to enabling the delivery of life-enhancing experiences for our thousands of beneficiaries. Young people need more opportunities to use the arts to explore, understand and express their current experiences, questions, concerns and hopes, and I’m excited for Mortal Fools to do this with them, now and into the future.

April 2023 saw Mortal Fools join Arts Council England’s National Portfolio of regularly funded organisations. This signals a new chapter for us as a growing company and on a National stage. Mortal Fools has demonstrated considerable resilience and ingenuity throughout a challenging period for the cultural sector, pivoting our work to keep serving audiences with high-quality participatory arts opportunities, whilst learning and growing through the experience. The 3 years of investment from Arts Council is a welcome addition, which, alongside our other funding supporters, will provide us with greater stability in a tumultuous economic climate and enable us to treat our staff team properly so they can continue to provide excellent services for our beneficiaries and audiences.”

Read more about...

Our values
Our team
Our board
Our impact
Click here to download our What’s On Offer At Mortal Fools Resource
​An overview of our work and what’s on offer for youth workers, education professionals, community groups, creative practitioners, parents, home educating families and anyone connected to children and young people.
Click here to download our Mortal Fools Programmes Summary 2023/24
​An overview of our work and how it intersects together in the present, alongside a flavour of next 18 months.
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WHY we do what we do...
We work with children and young people - with the aim of contributing to shaping future generations to become a society where everyone is motivated, engaged and able to bring their unique abilities to help make the world a little bit better...

​
The creative arts are at the core of everything we do. We use theatre and drama to help people unlock their personal brilliance.

Whilst it may not be crucial to survival, creativity is a fundamental human need and vital for a fulfilling life. The act of creating something makes us feel present, and that we can make a mark on this world – it shouts, ‘I’m here!’ We use the creative arts to support people in their personal and professional development, helping those we work with to bring about changes in behaviour and outlook, to build confidence, experience personal accomplishment and shape a more positive self-image.

We believe that many of the world’s problems arise from disengagement, and that fundamental to engagement and well-being is having a positive self-image, confidence and a sense of purpose.
 
We are working to create a society where everyone is motivated, engaged and able to bring their unique abilities to help make the world a little bit better. The problems of the world are essentially the problems of individuals. Through supporting individuals to change, together we may just be able to change the world.
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HOW we do what we do...
We use high-quality drama and the process of making and performing theatre as our tools for change, supporting the next generation by focusing on activities with children and young people.

We’re passionate about the arts and know that they have the potential to change and enrich lives, to share and show our potential as human beings and to transform society. Our theatre productions explore contemporary concerns and the realities of the world we’re living in right now – inviting positive change.
​
We believe there is huge value in shared, enjoyable, and entertaining experiences and of group achievement – especially through challenges. The way we work supports achieving excellence in both the process of making theatre and in the end products.

Our work with adults and businesses is founded on the same principles and values we apply when making theatre; creating an environment that is genuinely supportive and accessible, where everyone feels valued as an individual, and is enabled to contribute.
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WHAT we do...
  • Enable children and young people to co-create with professional artists, treating young people as artists in their own right
​
  • Inspire people with dynamic youth-led theatre productions and workshops

  • Learn through working with sector-leading organisations, schools, individuals and artists who share our values

  • Use drama and theatre to enrich the provision within education, train teachers and improve the personal, social and educational outcomes of pupils

  • Make dynamic, engaging and relevant contemporary theatre for young audiences

  • Programme exciting theatre by other companies and artists – prioritising this in settings where there’s not much available

  • Champion work produced by young people, and campaign for its recognition as an important and high-quality art form

  • Take our work to audiences in a range of settings, community buildings, schools, outdoor spaces and professional theatre venues, limiting barriers to taking part

  • Support independent artists working in youth arts with training, mentoring and employment
​
  • Run practical skills training for businesses supporting them to learn how to connect better interpersonally in the workplace, with clients and as leaders.
​
OUR FUNDERS & PARTNERS:

​We could not do our work without the ongoing support of our funders and partners. ​We unreservedly offer our thanks to:


​Main funders:

 
Arts Council England
BBC Children In Need
Kavli Trust
Garfield Weston Foundation
Paul Hamlyn Foundation
Northumberland County Council
Sir James Knott
Bernicia Foundation
Community Foundation
#Iwill
 
Project/strand of work specific funders:
 
Culture Bridge North East
Co-operative Local Community Fund
The Ballinger Charitable Trust
The Joicey Trust
Ashington Town Council
National Lottery Community
National Lottery Heritage
Key Fund Federation Ltd
Arnold Clarke Community Fund
Asda Foundation
Northumberland Children's Trust
Prime & Spriggs Family Funds
Ridley Family Charity
BBC Children In Need Youth Social Action Fund
Youth Focus NE Peer Action Collective
Kerry Grassroots Fund
CURTIN PARP FUND
John D Endowment Fund
Northern Powergrid Fund
Ashington Prime Fund
The Ironmongers Foundation
National Lottery Awards for All
Northumberland Public Health LCEP
Northumberland Community Chest
Northumberland Education LCEP
North of Tyne Creative England
Hadrian's Wall 1990
Youth Investment Fund
Wellesley Community First Fund
1989 Willan Charitable Trust
Healthier Together North East
UK Youth
 
Partners & Supporters:
 
Ryder Arcitecture
Muckle LLP
Cyber North
Laura Rothwell
Children North East
YMCA Northumberland
Schools North East
Gosforth Civic Theatre & Liberdade Community Development Trust
High Sheriff of Northumberland
Riding Mill Parish Halls Trust
Prudhoe Community Partnership
Prudhoe Town Council
Northumberland Arts Development
Curious Arts
Pride Action North
Theatre Porto
Burnley Youth Theatre
Company Three
Accelerate Ashington
Advance Northumberland
Newcastle Gateshead Initiative
Virgin Money
Trinity College London
Highfield Middle School
NENC Child Health & Wellbeing Network
North East and North Cumbria NHS
 
Previous funders and supporters:
 
Bait – Creative People and Places
Barbara Priestman Academy, Sunderland
Catherine Cookson Charitable Trust
CNL Young People’s Fund
Collingwood School and Media Arts College
Councillor Anne Dale
D’Oyly Carte Charitable Trust
Essity
Gateshead Council
GEM
J H Burn Charity Trust
North East Enterprise Agency Ltd
North East Fund for the Arts
Northern Stage
Northumberland Group Fund
Northumbria University
Ovingham Middle School
Queens Hall Arts
Riding Mill Drama Club
RW Mann Trust
Prudhoe Community High School
SCA Hygiene Ltd
St. Joseph’s RC Middle School
The Fuse Media Centre
The Rothley Trust
Tyne & Wear Archives and Museums
Ubiquitous Arts
Wunderbar
 

CONNECT WITH US

CONTACT US

MAILING LIST

0191 580 1250
​info@mortalfools.org.uk
Click here to subscribe or change your contact preferences. 

HEAD OFFICE

YMCA Northumberland

North View
Ashington
Northumberland
NE63 9XQ
​PRUDHOE OFFICE

Spetchells Centre

Front Street
Prudhoe
Northumberland
NE42 5AA

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​Mortal Fools is a company limited by guarantee and a registered charity. Company number: 8102487. Charity number: 1153400.
View our Privacy Policy here. View our Safeguarding Policy here.
  • ABOUT US
    • Our Values
    • Our Team
    • Our Board
    • Our Impact
  • OUR WORK
    • YOUTH THEATRE
    • IN SCHOOLS
    • WITH ADULTS (CONNECT TRAINING)
    • SECTOR LEADERSHIP >
      • CO-CREATION EXCHANGE
      • ARTIST DEVELOPMENT
      • ACTIVISM & INCLUSION
  • SUPPORT US
  • PROJECTS
    • CURRENT PROJECTS >
      • Grow Up
      • Fools Fest 2023
      • The Bigger Picture
      • Flux Digital
    • PAST PROJECTS
  • GET INVOLVED
    • JOIN Mortal Fools Youth Theatre
    • BOOK CONNECT TRAINING
    • EXPERIENCE OUR WORK
    • Work with us >
      • Recruiting - Trustees
    • CONTACT US >
      • Mailing List
  • MEDIA
    • News
    • Blog