Policies

Play to the Crowd receives a significant number of requests for donations, discounts and charity involvement. This policy is in place to facilitate this process and to create a fair and transparent approach.

Play to the Crowd is an arts and education charity (RCN 1077139). We exist to delight and unite people through the power of live performance. We are a friendly and collaborative charity, committed to supporting our communities to be healthier and happier.

We recognise the impact we can have to help local people and organisations to generate support, awareness and revenue for good causes.

However, we receive limited public funding and so our capacity to fundraise from our charitable and commercial activities is vital to our financial sustainability. We have to carefully consider the offers and discounts we give away against these activities, particularly when it is in support of another charity or charitable initiative.

What we can offer

Play to the Crowd provides a limited number of Theatre Royal Winchester tickets and Play to the Crowd memberships to be used as raffle or auction prizes to support other charities and good causes with their fundraising.

• As we are often oversubscribed with requests, we like to make sure that the way we support is fair and transparent.
• Requests must be made directly by a Registered Charity, Community Amateur Sports Club (CASC) or School. If you are fundraising on behalf of an organisation, you must provide us with a letter or email of authorisation directly from the organisation.
• We prioritise requests from organisations or groups in Winchester and the surrounding district or in cases where our charitable aims complement those of the enquiring organisation.
• Requests should be made at least 6 weeks in advance of the event.
• If a membership is provided, it will be issued as a gift voucher and valid for one year from the date redeemed.

Cash and bucket collections

We regret that we are unable to allow cash and bucket collections in the theatre or in association with Hat Fair, our Outdoor Arts festival, unless approved directly by our Chief Executive. As a charity, it is critical that the public engage with our own channels of donating, which include static collection boxes in the theatre building and our own post-show charity bucket collections in the theatre and throughout the city during Hat Fair.

Thank you for thinking of Play to the Crowd and for giving us the opportunity to support so many wonderful causes. We wish you every success with your future fundraising.

updated 2023-10-24

Play to the Crowd are committed to protecting personal data and handling it in accordance with applicable data protection laws. If you have concerns about how your personal information has been collected, used, stored, or shared, you have the right to make a complaint.

How to make a complaint

Complaints relating to data protection should be submitted in writing to Kirstie Mathieson, our Data Protection Officer, at data@playtothecrowd.co.uk. Please provide:

• Your name and contact details
• A description of your concern or complaint
• Relevant dates and supporting information, where available.

Complaint handling process

1. We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 30 working days.
2. We will investigate the matter promptly and fairly.
3. We may contact you for additional information if required (such as verification of your identity, or that you have the authority to make a complaint on behalf of third party.)
4. We will take appropriate steps to respond and keep you informed of our investigation.
5. We will inform you of the outcome of your complaint once we have finished our investigation.

If you are dissatisfied with our response, you may request a review of the decision. You also have the right to raise your concerns with the relevant supervisory authority. For organisations in the UK, complaints can be made to the Information Commissioner's Office.

Record keeping

All data protection complaints will be recorded and monitored to help improve our data protection practices and ensure compliance with legal requirements.

Third party harassment including sexual harassment of our team will not be tolerated by Play to the Crowd.

Should a customer harass a member of our team, they will be warned that continued provision of our service to them will cease if they are to act in a similar way again.

Should their behaviour recur, they will be informed that our service to them will cease.

Any criminal acts will be reported to the police.

Our charity is committed to maintaining the highest standards in all our activities, including fundraising. We adhere strictly to the UK Fundraising Code of Practice and aim to address any concerns promptly and fairly. This procedure outlines how to raise a complaint, the steps we will take to investigate and resolve the issue, and your rights to advance the complaint if necessary.

Who can use this procedure?

This procedure is applicable to:

• Donors
• Beneficiaries
• Members of the public
• Third-party fundraisers working on behalf of our charity

Accessibility and vulnerability considerations

We are committed to ensuring our complaints procedure is accessible to all. If you have any specific accessibility needs or are in a vulnerable situation, please let us know so we can provide appropriate assistance. We can provide information in alternative formats upon request.

How to make a complaint

You can make a complaint through any of the following methods:

1. Phone: Call us on 01962 844 600
2. Email: Send an email to info@playtothecrowd.co.uk with the subject line "Fundraising Complaint".
3. Post: Write to us at Play to the Crowd, Theatre Royal Winchester, Jewry Street, Winchester, SO23 8SB. Please mark the envelope "Fundraising Complaint".
4. In-person: Visit our Box Office at Theatre Royal Winchester (Tue - Sat, 10am - 1pm)

Please include as much information as possible, including:

• Your name and contact details
• Details of the complaint
• Any relevant dates and times
• Names of individuals involved (if known)
• Any supporting evidence

What we can and cannot do

We can:

• Acknowledge your complaint within 5 working days.
• Investigate the complaint thoroughly and fairly.
• Provide a full response within 28 days, outlining our findings and any actions we will take.
• Offer remedial actions such as an apology, an explanation, or changes to our processes to prevent recurrence.
• Signpost you to the UK Fundraising Regulator if you are not satisfied with our response.

We cannot:

• Address complaints that are not related to our charity or fundraising activities.
• Provide personal feedback about disciplinary actions taken against staff or volunteers.
• Guarantee a specific outcome that is beyond our control or outside the scope of our policies.

Our complaints handling process

1. Acknowledgment: We will acknowledge your complaint within 5 working days of receipt.
2. Investigation: A thorough investigation will be conducted by a member of our team. This may involve reviewing documentation, speaking to staff or volunteers, and, if necessary, contacting you for further information.
3. Response: We aim to provide a full response within 28 days of acknowledging your complaint. If we need more time, we will inform you and provide a revised timeline.
4. Remedial Action: If your complaint is upheld, we will outline the steps we will take to address the issue and prevent it from happening again.
5. Further Action: If you are not satisfied with our response, we will guide you on how to advance your complaint to the UK Fundraising Regulator.

Advancing your complaint

If you are not satisfied with our response, you can advance your complaint to the UK Fundraising Regulator:

• Website: Fundraising Regulator
• Phone: 0300 999 3407
• Email: enquiries@fundraisingregulator.org.uk
• Post: Fundraising Regulator, 2nd Floor, CAN Mezzanine Building, 49-51 East Road, London, N1 6AH

The Fundraising Regulator will independently investigate your complaint and provide a resolution.

Storing your data

We will keep a record of complaints in accordance with the requirements of, and to be available for inspection by, the Fundraising Regulator. This will include:

• details of any complaint
• the date the complaint was received
• details of any investigation we may have undertaken
• a copy of all communications regarding the complaint

We will retain secure records relating to a complaint for at least 24 months from the date on which the complaint was made, except where data protection law requires that the information be put beyond use earlier than this (for example, where the complainant within this timeframe requests that their information be destroyed).

Contact us

If you have any questions about this procedure or need assistance, please contact us at:

• Phone: 01962 844 600
• Email: info@playtothecrowd.co.uk
• Post: Play to the Crowd, Theatre Royal Winchester, Jewry Street, Winchester, SO23 8SB
• In-Person: Visit our Box Office at Theatre Royal Winchester (Tue - Sat, 10am - 1pm)

Thank you for helping us improve our services and maintain high standards in our fundraising efforts.

At Play to the Crowd, we believe in the power of live performance to connect, inspire, and bring people together. Whether you are an established touring company, an outdoor arts performer, or a local creative, we want to hear about work that aligns with our mission.

What we programme

We programme creative work across two primary platforms in Winchester:

• Theatre Royal Winchester: Our beautiful, 400-seat heritage theatre.
• Hat Fair: Our distinctive, internationally renowned Outdoor Arts Festival.

Our vision & programming themes

Every piece of work we stage or support must feed into our charity’s core vision: to delight and unite our communities through live performance and participation.

We are particularly interested in work that fulfils one or more of our three programming themes:

• Think: Performance that explores ideas, encourages us to see the world through different eyes, and develops new insights and perspectives.
• Chuckle: Performance that makes people laugh and explores different, creative ways of doing so.
• Wow: Visual performance that is exciting to watch, spectacular, or highly skilful — the kind of work that makes audiences go, "Wow, that was amazing!"

Artist support

We do more than just receive touring shows; we actively champion the artists who make them. Here is how we can work together:

• 'In association with' partnerships: We can provide essential space and technical support at Theatre Royal Winchester in early January and early September. This is designed to help selected professional work get a show on its feet prior to a national tour.
• Co-producing: While we are mainly a receiving venue (producing only our annual pantomime in-house), we are increasingly interested in joining consortia of like-minded organisations to co-produce exciting new work. We look for projects — either for the middle-scale indoors or the Outdoor Arts touring circuit — that can attract significant audiences and have a life beyond a single season.
• Local Creatives: We have a growing network of local creatives who get involved with us through regular socials, masterclasses, curated connect sessions, Atrium Live platforms, and Local Talent nights.

Discover more about our Local Creatives Programme

How to get involved

If you have a show, project, or idea that aligns with our programming policy, we'd love to hear from you.

• For artists & companies: Express your interest in any of our programming or support opportunities by emailing us at programmingtrw@playtothecrowd.co.uk
• For Local Creatives: If you are particularly interested in joining the Local Creatives Programme, you can sign up here.