Kensington Palace is set to be the latest cultural site to benefit from a generous £500,000 donation from the Clore Duffield Foundation to create a dedicated new Clore Learning Centre. The learning centre, covering around 500m2, forms an integral part of Historic Royal Palaces’ major £12 million project that will transform the visitor experience of the London palace in time for The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee and Olympics in 2012.

The new Clore Learning Centre will provide for the first time ever a permanent home for learning at Kensington Palace enabling 10,000 learners per annum to benefit from HRP’s education activity programmes. The dedicated learning facilities will be connected to the heart of the redeveloped palace and offer:

·  Three separate learning spaces (of approx size 1 x 100m2 and 2 x 30m2) equipped and specified to facilitate a wide variety of education activities and uses.

·  Two break-out spaces off the main visitor routes (in the palace’s State Apartments) for learning sessions

·  A new welcome and reception area for education groups

·   New cloakrooms and WC facilities

·   Office space for Historic Royal Palaces’ on-site Access & Learning team

Most of the Learning Centre will occupy the well-positioned ground floor rooms of the south range of the palace, designed by Christopher Wren and Nicholas Hawksmoor. The historic character and 19th-century decorative schemes of the three learning spaces (once domestic rooms used by the palace housekeeper) will be retained, giving a unique and inspiring sense of place for learners.

Following four years of pilot activity and content development, Historic Royal Palaces’ award-winning Education team will develop an education programme unique to Kensington Palace’s story that will engage diverse groups of learners of all ages. Key strengths of the education offer will include:

·   Textiles and fashion - drawing on Historic Royal Palaces’ extensive in-house expertise and Kensington Palace’s Royal Ceremonial Dress Collection

·   The twin themes of:

o    Image – using collections and stories to explore how palace residents have used art, fashion, collecting and the media to project an image of themselves, set trends and influence wider society.

o   Identity – how monarchs and people have shaped democracy from the Glorious Revolution to the present day, challenging learners with questions about citizenship and what it means to be British.

·    The education programme will aim to meet the requirements of:

o   Formal learners – in History, Literacy, Citizenship, English, Art & Design and Design Technology at primary and secondary school level; GCSE, A-Level and Diploma students will also benefit from Media studies, Building skills and Built environment, and Photography; Further and Higher Education students will benefit from learning opportunities around fashion, history, travel and tourism, and heritage management.

o   Informal learners – including adult and family learning events and activities; bespoke learning activities for community groups ranging from pre-school and young people at risk of exclusion, to new UK citizens and elders groups.

 HRP’s education team will also continue developing new partnerships with education institutions and cultural learning providers to maximise programme reach and impact.

Dame Vivien Duffield said at a press conference this morning, “I believe passionately that children and young people deserve the very best opportunities to benefit from the transforming power of our world class cultural organisations. I am delighted that we have been able to support such outstanding projects created by some of the best architects, in museums, galleries and theatres across the country – even in a royal palace. Now more than ever, I believe that culture should be at the heart of our children’s learning.”

John Barnes, Director of Conservation and Learning at Historic Royal Palaces said, “Kensington Palace's new Clore Learning Centre will transform the educational experience that Historic Royal Palaces can offer at this wonderful palace. When our major £12 million project for Kensington is completed in March 2012, we will welcome over ten thousand learners of all backgrounds and ages annually, further helping us to realise our ambition of creating a 'palace for everyone'. This very generous grant from the Clore Duffield Foundation enables us to create the dedicated spaces and facilities essential to delivering our exciting programme of learning activities that will engage diverse audiences with the fascinating history of Kensington Palace.”

Charles Mackay, Chairman of Historic Royal Palaces said “'I am thrilled that Dame Vivien Duffield, through the Clore Duffield Foundation, has so generously supported our major Kensington Palace project by helping us to create a new and exciting Clore Learning Centre.  It is a great boost for our £6million fundraising campaign, and the Centre will benefit many thousands of learners from 2012.”

This is the second Clore Learning Centre for Historic Royal Palaces that has been made possible by the generosity of The Clore Duffield Foundation. The Foundation donated £1 million towards Hampton Court Palace’s Clore Learning Centre which opened in 2007.