
Running a Youth Theatre is back and better than before.
England’s Youth Theatre NPOs* have teamed up to offer free, regular, online spaces to discuss the practice and practicalities of running a youth theatre today.
You told us you wanted more space to unpick challenges and dream big for the youth theatre sector. So we’ve reshaped how Running a Youth Theatre will work in 2025.
Running a Youth Theatre is run by: 20 Stories High, Burnley Youth Theatre, Company Three, Mortal Fools, Prime Theatre and Theatre Factory.
*NPO stands for National Portfolio Organisations. Being an NPO means the Arts Council England gives our organisations regular funding to deliver our work, and that our work responds to the Arts Council’s strategic aims for arts and culture.
RAYT Foundations
A 1 hour intervention led by a leading Youth Theatre, sharing their experience or organisational approach in a key area, with space for you to interrogate your own practice and speak to others working in the sector.
These sessions are open to anyone working in youth theatre - just sign up for free here and you’ll receive more information and a Zoom link by email.
RAYT Forums
A 1 hour deep dive into the challenges you’re experiencing in that area. You’ll break out into smaller groups and interrogate one or two challenges, listening to each other and providing a space for active problem solving and learning.
These sessions only have 15 spaces, and require you to apply by answering a few simple questions. We’ll then curate a space to ensure we have a balance of perspectives, and let you know 1 week before the date if you’ve been allocated a space.
Upcoming Sessions.
Here’s what we have coming up in the first half of 2025. We will release sessions from September to December in August 2025.
If you have any questions, feedback, or would like to suggest a topic for us, please get in touch with Gabi at gabi@companythree.co.uk
Building a Programme of Work
FOUNDATIONS: 11 Feb 1-2PM with Company Three
FORUM: 25 Feb 1-2PM with Company Three
Co-Creating with Young People
FOUNDATIONS: 11 Mar 1-2PM with 20 Stories High
FORUM: 25 Mar 1-2PM with Prime Theatre
Finance and Fundraising
FOUNDATIONS: 8 Apr 1-2PM with 20 Stories High
FORUM: 22 Apr 1-2PM with Theatre Factory
Recruiting and Supporting Staff
FOUNDATIONS: 6 May 1-2PM with Company Three
FORUM: 20 May 1-2PM with Mortal Fools
‘It's supportive to know things can change and be done differently.’
Running a Youth Theatre participant.

Frequently Asked Questions
-
Each month has a topic relating to Running a Youth Theatre - areas you have told us you’d like to learn more about or have questions about.
The first sessions each month is a RAYT Foundation - it has a 20-30 minute keynote from one of the NPO group, explaining their approach to the topic. There is then a breakout activity. These sessions are open to anyone.
The second session each month is a RAYT Forum - a space to discuss any challenges relating to the topic with other youth theatre practitioners. These sessions are smaller and curated to have a range of voices in the room, so you will need to apply for a place.
The sessions happen on Zoom on the second and last Tuesday of each month from 13:00-14:00. Captions are enabled and you’ll always have the chance to ask questions.
-
Yes!
Which is why - for the RAYT Forums especially - we need you to tell us if you can no longer attend a session, so we can give your space to someone on the waiting list.
-
These sessions are for people working in youth theatre. That could look like:
Someone setting up a youth theatre
A freelance facilitator
Someone running a new youth theatre
Someone working in a youth theatre department as part of a larger organisation
An applied theatre student who would like to work in youth theatre
Something else entirely.
We’ll try our best to be specific about which sessions are relevant to which roles within an organisation.
We’d love for you to share these sessions with people you know who you think would enjoy them.
-
That’s fine, we know that life happens.
We would like you to let us know if you’re no longer able to attend a session so that we can give your space to someone else - especially for the RAYT Forum sessions.
-
Yes please!
We’d love for you to share these sessions with anyone you think will enjoy them or learn from them.
-
Yes, if there’s anything you’d like to learn more about, see explored or have a conversation about - let us know by emailing Gabi at gabi@companythree.co.uk or let us know during a RAYT session.
These sessions should be shaped by you.
-
As National Portfolio Organisations, we receive regular funding from the Arts Council England, which means we have more resources than other youth theatres to share our work with the sector for free.
Many of our organisations have over 10 year’s experience in the sector so we have lots of learnings, failures and successes that we’re happy to share.
That said - we are not experts. With Running a Youth Theatre, we’re aiming to share our perspectives and experience, and encourage the same from others in the sector.
Do let us know if you think we could be doing anything differently or better.
Notes and recordings from 2024.
Our sessions in 2024 were: Organisational Structure with Mortal Fools and Prime Theatre; Beginnings and Endings with Company Three and Mortal Fools; Safeguarding with 20 Stories High and Theatre Factory; Climate Action with Theatre Factory; Fundraising with Burnley Youth Theatre and Mortal Fools; Inclusion and Access with Company Three, Theatre Factory, 20 Stories High, Mortal Fools and Prime Theatre; Recruiting and Supporting Staff with 20 Stories High and Company Three; Cocreating with Young People with Mortal Fools and Prime Theatre; Pastoral Care and Supporting Young People with 20 Stories High and Burnley Youth Theatre; Building a Programme of Work with Company Three and 20 Stories High; and Ask us Anything with Company Three, Theatre Factory, 20 Stories High, Mortal Fools, Prime Theatre and Zest Theatre.
Click below to download the notes, powerpoints and to watch recordings from those sessions.
