Support for more equal access to creative programmes from Burberry
Luxury group Burberry is expanding its creative global arts scholarships programme. The company will offer scholarships to provide what it has called “more equal access” to creative programmes at institutions including The New School’s Parsons School of Design in New York, the Institut Français de la Mode in Paris and Central Saint Martins in London.
Burberry said on making the announcement that its aim is “to support the next generation of creative leaders from under-represented communities”.
This will be an expansion of an existing Burberry programme, the Burberry Creative Arts Scholarship, and will mean the company will enable more than 50 students to benefit from education programmes in the arts over the next five years and beyond.
Its chief people officer, Erica Bourne, said the company wanted to diversify the talent its bring into the industry. “This starts before the workplace, in education,” she said. “We are delighted to be working with such an impressive array of creative institutions, all of which are equally dedicated to ensuring better representation within their programmes.”
Executive dean of Parsons School of Design, Rachel Schreiber, said that the institution she represents would not be able to achieve its mission if it were not “educating a student body that reflects the society in which we live, work, and create”. And Jeremy Till, head of Central Saint Martins, said this initiative would provide essential support to students “who might otherwise not flourish because of financial hardship. He added that this, in turn, would help keep London “as a hub of creativity”.
For his part, the dean of the Institut Français de la Mode, Xavier Romatet, said that having creative talent from diverse backgrounds would bring “a different perspective and approach to fashion design” and have “a hugely positive impact” on other students and on the school as a whole.
