ROYAL WELSH COLLEGE OF MUSIC AND DRAMA: HISTORY, MISSION AND
OPERATION
“The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama is utterly unique in Wales,
and above all it has helped thousands of people realise their dreams.”
HRH The Prince of Wales, Patron
INTRODUCTION TO THE COLLEGE
The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama has a pedigree which stretches back some sixty-three
years, during which time it has seen some of the finest performing artists pass through its doors. It
is the national conservatoire of Wales and provides specialist training for around 680 exceptionally
gifted young artists and theatre practitioners at any time - in Music, Acting, Stage Management,
Theatre Design and Arts Management.
Typically, around 75% of our students come from outside Wales: our current cohort of students is
drawn from 30 different countries.
Competition for places is intense. As an illustration, up to 1500 applicants are auditioned annually
for just 20 places on our Actor training programme. The College auditions potential applicants
(musicians and actors) in a range of centres internationally including China, Hong Kong, Singapore
and North America.
Our students typically go on to employment in the leading companies in the UK and internationally.
Recent graduates are currently employed at the Royal Opera, the Royal National Theatre, the Royal
Shakespeare Company, the Royal Court, Manchester’s Royal Exchange, English National Opera,
Welsh National Opera and many other leading UK companies.
Our acting alumni include Sir Anthony Hopkins, Ruth Jones, Rob Brydon, Eve Myles, Kimberley Nixon
and Aneurin Barnard who was recently awarded an Olivier Award within two years of graduating.
The National Theatre’s recent production of Thirteen involved 7 graduates of the College including
the designer, stage manager and fight director. The 2012 production of The Lion, the Witch and the
Wardrobe in London’s Kensington Gardens employed no fewer than 14 graduates of the College.
The College enjoys a close relationship with the leading cultural institutions in Wales such as Welsh
National Opera, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, National Theatre Wales and Music Theatre
Wales; our students also regularly undertake placements with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the
National Theatre, the Donmar and Royal Court amongst others.
This is a small institution that punches disproportionately above its weight internationally. In the
field of theatre design, the College is acknowledged as the leading trainer in the UK and a major
international player. In September 2013 we will host World Stage Design, exhibiting the work of 100
international theatre designers and hosting over 1000 delegates.
CONTRIBUTION TO WALES’ CULTURAL LIFE
The College trains its students in conditions that replicate the wider arts industry. As a core part of
its training model, the College promotes some 350 public performances a year – by students and
leading international artists - and makes a substantial contribution to the cultural life of Wales.
The College provides weekly tuition for 350 exceptionally talented young musicians and actors under
the age of 19 through its Junior Conservatoire and Young Actors’ Studio. 95% of all Junior students
progress to full-time higher education.
The College also delivers a lively community participation programme for all ages, both year-round
and through a diverse programme of Summer Schools.
RECENT INSTITUTIONAL HISTORY & CONSTITUTIONAL STATUS
The College began life as the National College of Music and Drama in 1949, based in Cardiff Castle.
Since then, it has developed from a local authority institution to achieve conservatoire status and in
2002 was granted its Royal designation by Her Majesty, The Queen.
In 2007, the College entered into a Strategic Alliance with the University of Glamorgan, becoming a
wholly-owned subsidiary. This was a unique arrangement in Wales designed to afford the College a
more stable operating platform, provide it with a new academic quality framework and generate
savings through some shared back-office operations. In recent years the College has been able to
complete a magnificent development of its estate, benefitting from substantial investment by the
Welsh Government via the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales (HEFCW), and underpinned
by financial guarantees provided by the University
From the outset, all stakeholders recognised the need for both institutions to protect and enhance
their respective reputations, brands, differentiated missions and operating contexts. The legal
separation of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama Ltd. within a wider group structure1 was
adopted specifically to ensure the retention of the College’s highly prized Royal designation and its
ability to compete effectively within its international peer group.
The governance link between the University and the College (parent and subsidiary company) is
made through mutual representation of the two legal entities at board level. The Chair of the
College’s board also serves as a Governor of the University board, and acts as the primary point of
liaison for the Royal Welsh College’s Board with the Chair and Board of the University of Glamorgan,
drawing (as appropriate) on specialist sub-committees of the Board of the University. Two or more
lay governors of the University also serve as directors/trustees of the College.
The Financial Agreement between the University of Glamorgan and the Royal Welsh College of
Music and Drama sets out the terms and conditions under which the University makes payments to
the College out of funds (premium funding) made available by the Higher Education Funding Council
for Wales.
The Board of Directors of the College is accountable to the Board of Governors of the University of
Glamorgan, the parent company and sole shareholder.
The Directors of the Company are also Trustees of the Charity, Royal Welsh College of Music and
Drama Ltd. The role of Director/Trustee is defined by the Companies Act and by charity legislation
respectively and all Directors/Trustees carry those statutory responsibilities equally.
ECONOMIC MODEL
The higher than average cost structure of conservatoire education is acknowledged through an
enhanced level of public funding (‘conservatoire premium funding’). From September 2012, with
the introduction of a new fee structure across Higher Education, the College will charge an
undergraduate fee of £9,000 per annum which, combined with a continuation of premium funding
provided by the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales, is designed to sustain the conservatoire
model of training.
1
The Glamorgan Group comprises the University of Glamorgan, Merthyr Tydfil College and the Royal
Welsh College of Music & Drama.
PEER GROUP AND RECRUITMENT MARKET
The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama is one of six designated ‘Royal Schools’ of Music and/or
Drama in the UK2. Outside the UK, other leading national conservatoires also benefit from Royal
designation. The Royal designation speaks to an international audience about the standing of these
institutions in the national life of their countries.
The characteristics that distinguish these institutions include:

a high degree of selectivity

high achieving students

high levels of retention

intensive training methods based on low student-to-staff ratios, leading to

a higher than average cost base.
The College operates in a highly competitive niche market. The College’s ability to recruit
the most outstanding students and leading staff is reliant upon:

the perception of the College’s standing within its UK and international peer group

its institutional and industry affiliations

the international reputation of individual staff

the distinctiveness and quality of its training

the career success and visibility of its alumni.
In these institutions, competition for places is intense. The procedures for selection and
expectations are adjusted accordingly. In 2010/11, the profile of the College’s student body was
characterised as follows:
2

above average UCAS scores

97% retention rate

88.9% of graduating students achieved first or upper second class awards

75% of students domiciled outside Wales

15% of students domiciled outside the UK.
The others comprise the Royal Academy of Music, the Royal College of Music, the Royal Northern
College of Music, the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA).
A STRATEGY TO REPOSITION THE COLLEGE
Since 2008, our aim has been to reposition the College within its national and international peer
group of conservatoires and drama schools through a raft of initiatives designed to increase the
ambition and quality of the College’s provision. Key landmarks include:

an innovative deal with Steinway to provide 62 new Steinway pianos, through which the
College became the first All-Steinway Conservatoire in the UK;

the appointment of five International Chairs in Music to enhance our teaching - they include
internationally renowned lyric soprano Barbara Bonney and baroque violinist Rachel Podger;

the introduction of a suite of new Masters courses under new artistic leadership – these
include an MA in Opera Performance, delivered in collaboration with Welsh National Opera;

an enhanced relationship with our Royal Patron, HRH The Prince of Wales and Capital
Campaign Patron, Bryn Terfel;

performances by students at high-profile arts festivals in the UK and internationally.
The early success of this development is evidenced by an increase in the quality and volume of
applicants to train at the College (an increase of 50% in both Music and Drama between 2006 and
2010). International recruitment has risen each year, with China and the USA being particular
growth markets.
The previous five year strategy focused on enabling the College to reach a point at which it could
compete internationally and we made significant progress – academically organisationally and in
terms of the College’s facilities. The next five year phase (2012/13 to 2016/17) is designed to ensure
that the College can:

compete successfully at the forefront of its UK and international peer group

achieve its full potential as a world class cultural institution

make a distinctive contribution to the cultural and economic life of Wales and enhance the
‘Wales brand’ on an international stage

continue to deliver its unique mission against the backdrop of a Welsh HE sector that is
undergoing reconfiguration.
DEVELOPING NEW FACILITIES
A central focus of the College’s development in recent years was the realisation of a long-held
ambition to develop state-of-the-art rehearsal and performance facilities on a single site. A £22.5
million development, completed in June 2011, has transformed the College’s facilities and training
provision. The key elements are:

the Richard Burton Theatre – a 180-seat proscenium-arch theatre with fly tower, dedicated
to Wales’ greatest actor and delivered with the support of Burton’s family

the Dora Stoutzker Hall - a 400 seat chamber recital hall with a world class acoustic

the Linbury Gallery – to display the College’s award-winning theatre and costume design
work

four full-sized, double-height rehearsal and training studios

a public Foyer, Café/Bar and Terrace.
The College recently completed its first year of activity in the new facilities which have transformed
its operation in myriad ways. The development has won numerous architectural awards and within
a year of opening has enabled the College to make a significant contribution to the wider civic and
cultural life of Cardiff and South East Wales. In a recent citation, the Arts Council of Wales wrote:
“The Royal Welsh College has had a tremendous opening year in its new award-winning building.
This has been visible in its core remit of being a conservatoire, but even more so in becoming a truly
public-facing and engaging attribute in civic and cultural life in Cardiff through adventurous and
high-quality programming across the arts.”
This transformation has helped the College to significantly advance its profile in Wales and the UK.
The Capital budget was made up of a combination of grants, commercial loan finance and
philanthropic gifts from Trusts and individuals. The first philanthropic donation to the project was
by the Royal Welsh College’s own Student Union which, through its wholly-owned business
activities, generated and donated £100,000. A major gift by the philanthropist, Ian Stoutzker, is
recognised in the naming of the concert hall.
We received significant donations from the Linbury Trust, the Garfield Weston Foundation, the Foyle
Foundation, the Wolfson Foundation, the Coutts Charitable Trust and many others, as well as
individual gifts from many Fellows and friends of the College.
The climax of the fundraising campaign was a Royal Gala at Buckingham Palace in April 2010,
generously hosted by the College’s Patron, HRH The Prince of Wales. College students performed to
an audience of international guests including Dame Elizabeth Taylor, Dame Shirley Bassey, Lord Lloyd
Webber, David Frost, Michael Parkinson and many other leading figures from the arts industry.
KEY PERSONNEL
Patron
HRH The Prince of Wales
President
Lord Rowe Beddoe
Vice Presidents
Sir Anthony Hopkins CBE
Dame Gwynneth Jones CBE
Dr. Geraint Stanley Jones CBE
Captain Sir Norman Lloyd Edwards
Menna Richards OBE
Lady Anya Sainsbury of Preston Candover
Edward Thomas
Board of Directors
Gareth Williams (Interim Chair)
John Andrews
Hilary Boulding
John Cranmer
Michael Lawley
Julie Lydon (Vice Chancellor, University of Glamorgan)
Helene Mansfield
Chris Moorsom
Dame Janet Ritterman
Luke Sweeney
Mark Taylor
Haydn Warman
Huw Williams
Principal
Hilary Boulding
FURTHER INFORMATION
Further information about the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama can be found at:
www.rwcmd.ac.uk