Greenham Trust match fund Hermitage performing arts centre appeal

Prior's Court has received £10,000 of match funding from the Greenham Trust for its Let Me Shine Performing Arts Centre appeal – meaning for every £1 donated, the trust will match fund that with a £1 donation up to the value of £10,000.

The donation brings the Hermitage-based centre closer to its £450,000 interim fundraising target to build a bespoke arts centre for young people diagnosed with autism.

The centre's target for the fundraising appeal is £950,000.

Donors to the appeal can now 'double their money' at no added cost to them.

Fundraising manager Natalie Norris said: "We want to maximise every last penny of this match funding.

"We are therefore asking that all donations are submitted via The Good Exchange portal (https://app.thegoodexchange.com/project/19577/priors-court-foundation/let-me-shine-performing-arts-centre).

"We are hugely grateful to The Good Exchange for supporting this appeal, which will provide more people with autism the opportunity to access the arts and the transformational power it has."

One recent donation came from the theatre company, Murdered for Money, which chose to support Prior's Court with its virtual murder mystery event last autumn.

The Let Me Shine Performing Arts Centre will feature adapted facilities to support young people with complex autism, who face many barriers in accessing the arts – from light and noise sensitivities, to understanding of social rules.

One aim of the centre is to mimic theatre environments to prepare young people to access arts venues in the community successfully.

One Prior's Court family also featured in a video explaining why they are supporting the fundraising appeal.

The Greenham Trust has already distributed more than £71m to charities and organisations local to West Berkshire and North Hampshire since its inception in 1997.

Visit priorscourt.org.uk/Appeal/performing-arts-centre for further information about the appeal and planned facilities.