This year we are delighted to report that we have given away over £150,000 in course fee discounts to approximately a third of our students!

As we receive no public funds, we rely on the generosity of our supporters who, like us, believe that art education should be accessible to all. Our Concession Scheme offers discounts to NHS staff, teachers, local residents, retirees, students, individuals on disability support and job seekers allowance and more. 

Catherine Pickston, a public programme student and art teacher has been taking courses with us for many years with the help of the Art Teachers' Concession:

"I first started a life drawing course at the Royal Drawing School in the Autumn of 2017. I was a secondary school art teacher who had been teaching for many years. Being able to access the Art Teachers' Concession has made it possible for me to do the courses, financially. It is always such a difficult dilemma for artists; finding the balance between supporting themselves with another job, without damaging their own practice.

It was incredibly inspiring to be taught by professional painters, who showed such passion for their art. To spend time being taught rather than teaching was so refreshing and rewarding. I had always continued my own drawing  practice, realising early in my teaching career that it was difficult to help children when I wasn't doing it myself, but to have a whole day to focus solely on drawing, (without distractions, with other like-minded students, professional models and tutors who taught with such integrity), was life changing for me. It gave me a belief in my own ability that I had never had before.

This has been my experience of all the courses I have taken over the subsequent years and I have been able to feed this back into my own teaching with a new found confidence and enthusiasm."

Katie Westbrook has taken a number of public courses with an NHS Concession:

"The Royal Drawing School Concession Scheme was a game changer for me. After an incredibly difficult year and a reduction in my earnings, having such a wonderful drawing programme become affordable was such a relief! Very grateful to the team and the teachers that provide such fantastic classes and recognise that public sector salaries can be a barrier to engaging in the arts."

Support a fellow student

If you have enjoyed a course at the School and would like to support another student on their drawing journey in 2024, you can help by making a donation of any size.  

Donate today

You can donate at any time through our Just Giving page, or why not consider donating when you book a course for Spring Term? Just click Donate Now on your booking confirmation screen when booking a course to go to Just Giving. 

Either donate anonymously or leave your name and email, so we can thank you for your support. 

See the Concessions we offer