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Since early summer we’ve had relentless requests from state schools for support to introduce Classics. In fact, by the end of this year we’ll have added 660 schools to the 1,000 that were already teaching Classics when CfA first began, bringing the total to 1,660 schools. We estimate we’ve reached at least 35,000 pupils with our programme of support.
This is very good news, but it is putting pressure on our fundraising to meet that demand. I hope you will join me in giving what you can. We need £180,000 between now and the end of the December to meet all these commitments to get Classics going in these classrooms. I know you wouldn’t want to let these pupils and teachers down.
CfA is beginning to have a transformational effect in giving state school pupils access to Classics. Why is this important? I asked Peter Jones recently and I think he says it more eloquently than anyone so I want to share this with you.
Geoffrey de Jager
Chairman
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Western civilisation began nearly 3,000 years ago, in this sense - that it was the moment when the first voice of the West was heard. That first voice of our civilisation was Greek literature: Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, c. 700 BC. Greeks taught the Romans about literature; and the Roman taught all Europe about it. Since when everyone has been churning the stuff out like mowing machines.
And what a literature it was! And now accessible to every school pupil in translation. There you can read the West’s first shot at dealing with love, sex, same-sex relationships, death, old age, citizenship (local and global), education… law-making, property-rights, politics, the just war, marriage, the uses of power, xenophobia, punishment theory, the good life.
Click here to read on for why it is unconscionable that our children should not be given the opportunity to take their pick from this unmatchable linguistic, literary, historical, artistic, crosscultural, intellectual feast.
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Hilary Hodgson
Grants & Programme Director
grants@classicsforall.org.uk
Classics for All is now offering all year round support to any state school across the UK that is interested in teaching Classics. Levels of interest from schools across the UK has grown considerably over the last six months and we are proud to have reached over 600 schools since we first launched, helping to establish Latin, Ancient Greek, Classics on and off the curriculum for pupils of all abilities.
As demand increases, we are also increasing our fundraising efforts to ensure that we can meet unprecedented levels of request for help. One of our key aims is to ensure that we reach all areas of the country and we now have 12 classics networks, which play a vital role in helping us to reach new schools, offering Classics training for non-specialist teachers as well as advice, mentoring and resources. This autumn we launched three new networks in Leeds, Leicester and Scotland with a view to extending our presence in areas where there is little current activity.
In Leicester, supported by the University, there are plans to work with 15 primary and secondary school to introduce Latin and Classics on and off the curriculum using innovative resources, which celebrate the area’s rich archaeological past.
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The team at Leeds University, led by Maria Haley, will be working with a cluster of primary schools to introduce Latin and Classical Civilisation to the curriculum. The network in Scotland is led by the Classical Association of Scotland, in partnership with the universities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and St Andrews. Research into the state of Classics in Scotland earlier this year confirmed that changes in the curriculum and a shortage of trained Classics teachers have resulted in a dramatic decline in the teaching of Latin and Classics in state schools. However, consultation suggests that there is scope for revival.
An immediate priority will be to train over 20 enthusiastic primary schools to introduce Latin as part of the languages curriculum in partnership with Scottish language associations. Another goal is to provide resources and support for teaching Classical studies in secondary schools. Any readers keen get involved should contact the recently appointed network coordinator Alex Imrie at Scotland@classicsforall.org.uk
As momentum grows, we are keen to ensure that network leaders across the UK are brought together to exchange knowledge. This November we will be holding our first UK-wide gathering which will focus on strategic issues including promoting Classics in state schools, approaches.
To view the full list of 62 schools (!!) reached since May, click here.
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 Hannah Walsh
Phoenix Programme and
Bristol Network Coordinator
We are delighted to announce the launch of Phoenix, which aims to promote the teaching of Latin in state primary schools. This programme, funded by The Polonsky Foundation, will strengthen support for primary schools wishing to introduce Latin on or off the curriculum. Between April and September 2017, we awarded grants to 30 primary schools and trained over 50 teachers to use either the Minimus resources or a new free online course ‘Maximum Classics’.
There is a real appetite for Latin at primary level and it has been exciting to see the programme take off so quickly. It is particularly encouraging that most schools are introducing Latin to the mainstream curriculum, offering it to all pupils rather than a selected few, often as a designated language at Key Stage 2 (KS2).
In recent months, we have run a number of highly successful Classics ‘taster’ days for primary school teachers in London, Bristol and the South East. Most of these have been generously hosted by independent schools, working in partnership with experienced Classics for All trainers. These taster days allow us to reach a number of local schools at once, generating interest in primary Latin and building teachers’ confidence. Schools can then access further in-school Continuing Professional Development, directly tailored to their specific context.
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 We are also working hard to raise awareness of the programme in areas where Classics does not have a strong presence. This month it has been particularly encouraging to receive two ambitious consortium bids from multiacademy trusts in South Yorkshire and West Cornwall. In West Cornwall, four primary schools within the Truro and Penwith Academy Trust will be supported to introduce Latin on curriculum this year. Similarly, in Sheffield and Doncaster, five primary schools within the Astrea Academy Trust will be embarking upon an exciting project to embed Latin into the curriculum, linking it explicitly to National Curriculum literacy requirements. These two projects will give over 500 pupils, in areas of socio-economic deprivation, access to a subject area which they would otherwise have no exposure to.
In the year ahead, we hope to use these links to build further partnerships in similar areas, thus ensuring that The Phoenix Programme has a truly national reach.
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"I did Classics because I was always very fascinated by history and was fond of learning about Ancient Rome as a child. After being given the chance to learn Latin, I immediately signed up as it combined my love of learning, language and history all into one thing.
Learning Latin has taught me to explore why things are the way they are today, in regards to language, culture and architecture, and to always be aware that life as we know it now was largely influenced by those from the ancient world.
I would encourage others to study Latin because it is a great opportunity to learn about ancient life and where modern English was derived from. As well as this, it is an extremely enjoyable and fascinating subject to take part in. My favourite Latin word is ‘sanguis’ (blood) because of how it sounds when saying it.
My favourite Latin phrase is ‘pax vobiscum’ (peace be with you) as it is what I sign off emails to my great great uncle with, who also studied Latin."
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Kira Copland, former pupil
at Kelmscott School
"My favourite Latin word is sanguis"
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Dr Efthalia Sini-Spencer, Classics Teacher, Bishop Thomas Grant Secondary School, Streatham, London
We introduced Classical subjects at our state secondary school in Streatham five years ago, starting with Latin. Now, with the support of Classics for All, eleven of our Year 10 and Year 11 students embarked on the next stage of our journey to build Classical subjects at the school, with a trial ‘Ancient Greek Club’ off-timetable in 2016-17.
The results have been incredibly positive, in terms of pupil engagement and achievement. Our students now wish to continue the subject to a full GCSE over the next two years, and our Head teacher is supporting its move onto the full curriculum. Students reported feeling more confident in their English language (we are a school where many students have English as a second language), and also they have particularly loved learning about the ancient background to much of modern society: the origins of theatre and drama, political systems and democracy. One of our favourite group exercises in class has also been the derivation of many English words which they use regularly in other subjects.
To read more about the progress and useful lessons learned in Streatham, click here.
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We’ve seen a rapidly rising demand from schools who recognise the opportunity Classics gives their pupils; our 62 recent grants show how busy we have been since our last newsletter in June. Children love Classics and without our funding they will miss out. This is a perfect time for you, our supporters, to give generously knowing how valuable your gift is to the pupils and teachers in the schools we support.
I’m thrilled to announce an opportunity for anyone who would like to have their donation doubled. For the first time Classics for All has been selected to participate in the Big Give Christmas Challenge 2017, the UK’s largest match funding campaign. Please see below for details.
 Jules Mann, Executive Director
Telephone (mobile): 07809 256839
E-mail: jules@classicsforall.org.uk
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We will be raising money for our project ‘Londinium Magnificum’, aiming to reach a further 100 primary and secondary schools in London.
Donations to this project will be matched for 7 days from 12pm on 28th November (#GivingTuesday) to 12pm on 5 December.
Double Your Donation
If you would like to support our work, we highly recommend doing so during the Christmas Challenge when your donation will be doubled and make even more of a difference to us.
Even if you have already donated this year, think about giving just a little more through the BigGive.org.uk website, knowing your gift will be matched: give as little as £5 or as much as £5,000. Let’s smash our goal of raising £30,000, which will be matched with a further £30,000 and will make a huge difference Classics expansion in London over the next two years.
Save The Date: add a reminder to your diary for 12pm on 28th Nov, then
- Visit CfA’s Christmas Challenge page link to our Big Give donate page from our website https://classicsforall.org.uk/get-involved/donations/big-give-christmas-challenge which will forward you to our Big Give Christmas Challenge.
- Have your credit card card details ready when you make your donation. And finally,
- Please pass on this message to anyone who you think might be interested in supporting us and having their donation doubled.
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Final tickets available for our 2 November event 'A Cicerone to Cicero' featuring Robert Harris in conversation with Dr Peter Jones. Purchase them here.
Master storyteller Robert Harris has written ‘the finest  fictional treatment of Ancient Rome in the English language.’ (Allan Massie, Scotsman). Given he is not a classical scholar, how did he come to write these books? Does he consider them to be allegories of current events? What is the difference between fiction and historical fiction? And what is so special about Cicero?
Join us for a discussion between Robert Harris and Dr Peter Jones MBE on Thursday 2 November 2017 at the Royal Society, followed by a wine reception with canapés. You will have the opportunity after the talk to hear from a passionate Classics teacher who has introduced classical subjects into several state schools, who will describe the difference it makes for pupils, teachers and the schools’ communities.
We are very pleased to acknowledge the event’s Principal Sponsor, Netwealth is a wealth management service that brings together a highly qualified team, a powerful online service and a robust investment framework. Clients have access, for a fraction of the industry cost, to experienced financial advisers and portfolio managers while benefiting from cutting edge financial technology.
If you want to catch more of Robert Harris, why not see this?
Imperium, The Cicero Plays
Based on the Cicero Trilogy by Robert Harris, adapted by Mike Poulton
Swan Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon
From 16 November
Six plays spanning four decades of history - this epic literary adaptation is the culmination of the RSC's ROME MMXVII Season.
Described as 'Ancient Rome meets The West Wing', Imperium follows Cicero's triumphs and disasters, through power struggles, civil wars, and personal highs and lows, told through the eyes of Tiro, his loyal secretary.
Whatever happened at (and to) Delphi?
12 December 2017, 7.00pm Assembly Hall, King Solomon Academy, London NW1
The sanctuary site of Delphi in Greece became a UNESCO World Heritage site based on its ‘ability to bring people - otherwise divided by material interest - together’ crucially both in the past and in the present. Famously in the past people came to consult its oracle, but also to participate in its athletic and musical competitions, dedicate monuments to glorious deeds and marvel at the majesty of Apollo’s sanctuary. How did this ancient Delphi work and how did its oracle maintain Mediterranean interest for over a 1000 years?
Dr Michael Scott will deliver this talk on ‘Whatever happened at (and to) Delphi?’ as the second in an annual series of Friends of Classics Memorial Lectures.
The event will be followed by wine and nibbles. To book tickets, click here.
We have recently supported our venue for this event, King Solomon Academy, to introduce a Latin club! To read about their plans click here.
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Classics for All is looking for people who can lend their experience pro bono to help us with activities in the next few months.
- Fundraising dinner support: seeking help from one or several people who have good contacts to source high-end auction items for our Gala Fundraising Dinner in January 2018. Please also get in touch if you have time to assist with handwritten invitations and other support to make this a successful fundraising event for Classics for All.
- PR/publicity: seeking an experienced PR professional to help write material to raise the profile of our events and programme, work with media contacts and refresh content on website.
Email contact@classicsforall.org.uk or ring 07809 256839.
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INQUISITIO VERBORUM
Just for a bit of fun, we invite you to test your Latin knowledge (and horticultural interest) with this word search.
For a full range of crosswords, horoscopes and more, visit Hebdomada Aenigmatum, the first monthly magazine of crosswords and puzzles in Latin.
Launched in June 2014 by the Italian Cultural Association Leonardo, it is available free of charge in printable pdf format upon registration on their website here.
Verba indicata inveni. Litteræ reliquæ imaginis delineatæ nomen formabunt.
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Catch Classics for All Patron Bettany Hughes in an exciting new series, Eight Days that Made Rome, on Channel 5 commencing 27 October at 9pm.
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James Morwood (1943-2017)
And finally, we are very sorry to have to share the news about James Morwood. He was a tremendous friend to Classics for All, and of course editor of our online ad familiares. Read the In Memoriam here.
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Trustees
Nicholas Barber CBE, Hon President; Geoffrey de Jager, Chairman; Christopher A Clarke, Hon Treasurer; Jeannie Cohen, Hon Secretary; Carolyn Foreman; Professor Thomas Harrison; Deborah Hughes; Sarah Jackson OBE; Professor David Langslow.
Advisers, Staff and Support
Adviser Dr Peter Jones
Executive Director Jules Mann
Grants and Programme Director Hilary Hodgson
Administrator Moa Taylor Hodin
Grants Monitoring James Murray
Patrons
Professor Mary Beard OBE; Lord Butler of Brockwell; Professor Paul Cartledge; Lord Dyson; Professor Pat Easterling; Sir Michael Fallon MP; Lord Faulkner of Worcester; Tony Harrison; Natalie Haynes; Charlotte Higgins; Ian Hislop; Tom Holland; Bettany Hughes; Professor Richard Jenkyns; Boris Johnson; Martha Kearney; Joanna Lumley OBE FRGS; Stuart Lyons CBE; Professor Christopher Pelling; Lord Stevenson of Coddenham CBE; Sir Tom Stoppard CBE.
See also: Development Committee, Lawyers Group Steering Committee and CfA Event Planning Group members
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Classics for All is a Registered Charity (Number 1135379) and a Company Limited by Guarantee (Number 7182949)
Registered in England and Wales
Contact General: Telephone: 07809 256839
Email: contact@classicsforall.org.uk
www.classicsforall.org.uk
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