Laying the Foundations for Future Growth: A Feasibility Study for the Unicorn Theatre

Working with Philanthropy Company on a Capital Fundraising Feasibility Study at the Unicorn Theatre has been such a positive experience.  From start to finish they have been so thorough, flexible, considered and considerate.  The process has felt very collaborative and bespoke.  Thank you – we’ve benefitted hugely from the experience and perspectives that Annalise, Genevieve and Liz have offered us. I wouldn’t hesitate to work with Philanthropy Company again and for any fundraising professionals looking for consultancy that offers in-depth, bigger picture insight whilst feeling assured they’ve ‘walked a mile in your shoes’, I would wholeheartedly recommend them.

Lucy Buxton, Development Director, Unicorn Theatre 

Challenge

The Unicorn is the UK’s largest and leading theatre for young audiences, a ‘national theatre for children’, with over 65,000 families and schools visiting annually. It is twenty years since the Unicorn opened its current building and it now needs urgent capital investment to safeguard its future, with a particular and continued focus on accessibility and environmental sustainability as well as opportunity and creative excellence for young audiences. Philanthropy Company was asked to undertake a feasibility study to assess the fundraising potential and explore approaches to achieving their goals.

Response

We undertook a series of stakeholder insight interviews with senior staff, current trustees and donors to understand organisational readiness and the most compelling drivers for the case for support.

Through extended research, the team presented an overview of the current external climate and provided comparable and insightful fundraising examples from institutions across the sector. We analysed historic fundraising data, reviewed the donor pipeline and undertook prospect analysis.

The final report provided recommendations on the likely timescale, target, infrastructure, stakeholder involvement and resources needed to deliver the proposed capital campaign.

Impact

This process gave the Unicorn leadership the chance to interrogate opportunities and challenges and test the potential for fundraising for a significant capital campaign. It has provided them with a clear set of actionable recommendations to put them in the best possible position to build on their strong foundations and achieve campaign success..