Between austerity politics and the cost of living crisis, schools all over the country are facing mounting financial pressure – and it’s ultimately the children who suffer, with tighter budgets and reduced funding drastically limiting their educational opportunities. As a result, music industry executives and twin sisters Katie and Debbie Gwyther have founded the new charity initiative GOODSTOCK to raise much-needed funds for the Highgate Primary School in north London, which is attended by Katie’s son and Debbie’s nephew.
As co-founders of the management and PR company FEAR, the Gwythers work with high profile artists including Liam Gallagher, Kiefer Sutherland and Gary Numan. Drawing on their experience and expertise, the duo called upon the music industry community to make GOODSTOCK a reality. As a result, the GOODSTOCK initiative today launches with the release ofa new version of The Beatles’ classic ‘With A Little Help From My Friends’ – recorded by the Highgate Primary Choir in an attempt to raise money for the school. The song also features a spoken word introduction by Liam Gallagher, who lives locally and has a nephew at the school.
As you can see from the uplifting accompanying video, thechildrenenjoyed a day to remember when they recorded the song at The Church Studios, one of London’s most renowned and beautiful recording studios, which is owned by the multiple Grammy Award winner Paul Epworth (Adele, Florence + The Machine, London Grammar). The track was recorded by the drum ‘n’ bass duo turned top tier songwriters/producers FUTURE CUT (PinkPantheress, Lily Allen, Olly Murs), whose co-founder Tunde Babalola has a son at the school.
The Gwythers hit upon the idea behind GOODSTOCK after seeing how much difference Highgate Primary made to the community, and witnessing how it helped so many children flourish after previous struggles in the education system. Working in partnership with Blanche Nevile School for the Deaf and Highgate Family Centre, the school excels at helping children with autism, ADHD, Down’s syndrome and deafness by playing to their strengths, utilising a range of different therapists, and encouraging children’s creativity through music, arts and sports. With the government cutting funding, the school is struggling financially, and this single release is an attempt to bring the local community together and raise much needed funds for the children. Highgate Primary in particular helps a lot of neuro diverse children and further financial cuts will have a devastating effect on their mental health.
Actor Christopher Eccleston, best known for ‘Dr Who’, ‘Our Friends In The North’ and his latest role in ‘True Detective’, lives locally and has stepped up to become an official ambassador of the GOODSTOCK project. He has experience of the excellent work that the school does and is well versed in the needs of neurodiverse children after his work on the BBC television drama ‘The A Word’. He is available for interviews along with the school’s co-head teachers William Dean and Rebecca Lewis;
“At Highgate Primary we pride ourselves on our genuinely inclusive ethos, but inclusion comes with a financial cost. With school and SEN funding as it is, maintaining great provision requires creative approaches. The opportunity for our children to work with industry professionals at The Church Studios on such an exciting project has been a fantastic experience for everyone involved – and knowing that any money that is raised will support children to get the support they need, makes this project even more special.”
In addition to the single, you can further support the GOODSTOCK project by donating to their Just Giving page HERE. Expect news of further GOODSTOCK projects to be announced soon.