The Royal Shakespeare Company is calling for every child to have meaningful arts entitlement in the national curriculum.

The call comes as the RSC, associate schools and theatre partners celebrate 20 years of partnership, starting with a public arts symposium at The Other Place, Stratford on Friday 18 September.

The symposium, called Building Partnerships: A 20-Year Story, will bring together 200 school leaders, teachers, artists, theatre practitioners, arts leaders and policy makers for a day of presentations, conversation and reflection.

The symposium will include a conversation between Georgia Gould MP, minister for school standards, and Geoff Barton, RSC trustee and former general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders.

They will discuss the role of the arts in schools and explore how the arts and education sectors can remove barriers to participation and ensure that all children have access to high-quality arts education as part of their school lives.

The symposium will also mark the publication of Finding Every Child: a new report from the RSC setting out key learnings from more than 20 years of working in partnership with schools and regional theatres.

Jacqui O’Hanlon, deputy executive director and director of creative learning at the RSC, said, “we now have 20 years of evidence that describes the real difference an arts-rich education makes to a child’s life and learning outcomes. Partnerships between schools and cultural organisations can play a critical role in unlocking the potential of every child in every postcode.

“All young people should have access to arts subjects and experiences throughout their school lives. By sharing what we’ve all learnt across 20 years of working together, we want to strengthen understanding about the vital role the arts play in a child’s social, emotional and academic development.

“More partnerships between the arts and education sectors mean more children will be given the opportunity to find their voice, develop essential skills and build the confidence they need for life and work.”

During the day, delegates will watch Factory, a new verbatim play performed by the RSC’s Next Generation Act young company and supported by young trainees from the RSC’s Next Generation backstage and Next Generation Direct talent development programmes. Factory will run for four performances at The Other Place from Wednesday 16 until Saturday 19 September.

Actor Patterson Joseph will perform Imagine This, a poem that describes his experience of Shakespeare in school, and West Midlands young poet laureate Naomi Mba will perform a specially commissioned poem.

The 20th anniversary programme will continue with First Encounters: Julius Caesar, a co-production with KPPL Productions and a reprisal of Phyllida Lloyd’s 2012 all-female production featuring Dame Harriet Walter as Brutus.

The production will tour to five RSC associate schools across the country before arriving in Stratford for a short run at The Other Place in November. At each school across the tour, the company will remain in residence for a week of performances, workshops and post-show conversations.

The programme will conclude with a Young Creatives Festival on Saturday 21 November. It will be produced by members of the RSC’s youth advisory board, and the day will involve discussions and workshops as well as a special performance showcasing young people’s creative responses to Julius Caesar.

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