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̽»¨Ö±²¥Â£40,000 the Fitzwilliam aims to raise through online donations – with tomorrow (Friday, December 10) being the last day for giving - will create ̽»¨Ö±²¥Fitzwilliam Museum and Soham Schools Partnership, transforming the lives of young people in rural East Cambridgeshire by giving them unprecedented access to a world of cultural inspiration through the Museum.
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Children and young people in this area will be given exciting new opportunities not only to visit the Museum guided by experts, but also to get 'behind the scenes' and engage directly with the Fitzwilliam's collections in their own schools.
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This fundraising challenge is part of the national initiative ̽»¨Ö±²¥Big Arts Give, which helps individual giving to cultural organisations go further by doubling the donations. Every donation made online on 6 December for the Museum to carry out this work will be doubled by ̽»¨Ö±²¥Big Arts Give's Challenge Fund, matching each gift pound for pound.

̽»¨Ö±²¥Museum has already raised over £12,00 with this campaign, which, potentially doubled by the Fund, totals over £24,000.
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For many of the local young people involved and their families, this project will be their first opportunity to experience a museum and its collections. Working with Soham Schools, the Museum's initiative will offer creative opportunities to help young people across the area discover new ideas, develop fresh approaches to learning and raise aspirations and levels of achievement.
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̽»¨Ö±²¥online giving challenge started on December 6 through to Friday 10 December. Speed of giving is crucial, with the majority of donations needing to come in on the first day to qualify for as much of the challenge pot as possible and reach the project's target of £40,000.
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To find out more about the challenge visit - and to donate, go to .

Carin Taylor, Principal of Soham Village College, commented: "This new partnership between Soham Schools and the Fitzwilliam Museum will provide a range of opportunities for young people in the area.
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"We aim to bring the riches of museum learning to the heart of the curriculum in primary and secondary schools, to raise aspirations and open doors into a world which might otherwise appear rather distant in this part of rural East Cambridgeshire. We hope to see a benefit across our entire community and that this partnership will endure for years to come."
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Julia Tozer, Head of Education at the Fitzwilliam Museum, commented: "Hopefully the treasures of the Fitzwilliam Museum will become talking points in the schools, community centres and in homes as they become closely involved with our collections and exhibitions and add a new dimension to learning.
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" ̽»¨Ö±²¥enthusiasm of Carin and her colleagues gives the work a strong foundation from which to begin questioning and learning from artefacts and paintings - a skill which those involved will carry with them for life."
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