The Creative Learning and Engagement team invited 30 teachers working with SEND (special educational needs and disabilities) students to participate in a Making Shakespeare Accessible teacher development day. We specifically targeted the schools in our Associate Schools Programme and across Warwickshire that would help us to reach learners with the most complex needs.

The event was an opportunity to share our work and resources and to hear first-hand how we can make our work more accessible to SEND students.

The day began with our keynote speaker, Michèle Taylor, Director for Change, from Ramps on the Moon, an organisation dedicated to making theatre accessible to all. She highlighted the importance of storytelling in how we influence people to think about others and ourselves, and therefore the importance of representation on our stages.

Throughout the day the teachers and our teams explored rehearsal room approaches, lesson activities, access performances, performance resources, research into our work and a carousel of stations to feedback on individual areas of the RSC programme.

Some of the key questions and feedback we received on the day included:

Why is making Shakespeare accessible important?

We are all in the business of storytelling and the stories we tell in our classrooms, on our stages and in our communities influence the way people think about others and about themselves.

There is a widespread desire to tell stories in which all of our audiences see themselves, and which have the power to influence wider society. Therefore, there is a need for the work on our stages to be more widely representative, as well as that work to be of the highest quality.

What do we love about teaching Shakespeare?

One of the many sentiments shared was the feeling that if you can study Shakespeare you can do anything.

To really achieve this, we need to demonstrate that anyone can study, explore and enjoy Shakespeare in classrooms and theatres if we remove the ‘baggage’ that so often surrounds it.

What are the barriers to teaching Shakespeare?

There are many and several perceived and physical barriers that currently prohibit all learners being given access to studying Shakespeare, coming to the theatre or otherwise engaging in the works of Shakespeare.

These include, but are not limited to:

• Complex texts,
• Travel costs,
• A lack of understanding of SEND classroom environments and their specific needs,
• Lack of support from school leadership.

What's next?

In short, we want to address what is possible now and challenge what can be made possible.

The call for change was echoed amongst the day's participants, fuelled by the desire to give their students the experience of live theatre and opportunities to explore Shakespeare.

With much to reflect on and new approaches to consider, the members of our team left with a renewed desire to make changes to the programmes of work, communications and available resources, and now armed with input and reflections from those teachers we hope to work with better and more often in the future.