National Art&Design Saturday Club

The Sorrell Foundation

The National Saturday Club gives 13–16 years olds the opportunity to study art and design at their local college, university or museum. The Clubs are free and held on Saturday mornings for up to 30 weeks during the academic year. This exciting programme bridges the gap between secondary and tertiary education, and gives secondary level students a broader exposure to the diverse practices of art and design, and to industry practitioners.
A model intended to support and complement the mainstream education system, the National Saturday Club aims to inspire creativity in young people, to develop their practical and career-related skills, and to encourage them towards further study and a future working in the creative sector. As part of their yearly programme, Club members receive up to 100 hours of specialist learning, attend masterclasses with leading art and design professionals, and take part in group events in London, including a summer exhibition of their work at Somerset House.
The Saturday Club movement began in 2009, when The Sorrell Foundation launched the National Art&Design Saturday Club in four locations. Since then, its network has grown and flourished to encompass 50 Art&Design Clubs in colleges, universities and cultural institutions throughout the UK. The success of the early initiative led to the creation of Saturday Clubs offering the additional subject areas of Science&Engineering, Fashion&Business and Writing&Talking.
The National Saturday Club takes its inspiration from the Saturday morning classes that ran in UK art schools between the 1950s and 1970s. The scheme was launched in the post-war years to develop the skills of a new generation of artists and designers. Sir John and Lady Sorrell both took part at their local colleges, giving them what proved to be their start on the ladder to careers in the creative industries.
After founding Newell and Sorrell (1976-2000), one of Europe’s most successful design businesses, John and Frances set up The Sorrell Foundation in 1999, to develop programmes whose core principle is a joined-up approach to design education. Among the projects the foundation pioneered (joinedupdesignforschools, 2000-2006; the Young Design Programme, 2005-2010; RIBA Sorrell Foundation Schools Award, 2007-2010; Design Out Crime, 2008-2010; and joinedupdesign for myplace, 2009-2010), 
the National Saturday Club is the most ambitious.
In 2016, an independent charity, the Saturday Club Trust, was set up to take over the development of the National Saturday Club from The Sorrell Foundation.
www.saturday-club.org

Sir Misha Black Award

2014