Case Study - Kate Allerston
A former actress is celebrating a business milestone as the stage school franchise she helped set up marks its second birthday.
Kate Allerston is the principal and company director of a LIPA 4:19 franchise in Widnes, Cheshire, and since the business opened two years ago, she has seen it go from strength-to-strength.
LIPA 4:19 is the franchise arm of the prestigious Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA), which was co-founded by Sir Paul McCartney, and offers singing, dancing and acting classes to children aged fourto 19.
Kate currently runs the franchise, which is owned by Wade Deacon secondary school in Widnes, and has seen the pupil numbers double over the last two years.
Senior staff at the school, including the head and deputy headteachers, are directors of the company and being part of a wider school network is something that Kate attributes aspects of the franchise’s success to.
Kate said: “When we heard about LIPA 4:19, I was currently working as the arts officer at Fairfield School (formally Wade Deacon).
“The school already held Performing Arts Academy status and had the perfect facilities for a franchise of this kind- so it made sense that we invested in LIPA 4:19.”
A graduate of the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA), Kate’s distinguished background in performing arts along with strong business ambitions, set her in perfect stead to run the LIPA 4:19 academy.
Kate said, “Being in a school gives you exposure to a potential student base, but interestingly most of our students come from other schools.
“The staff are a good resource for advice and ideas and are very supportive of LIPA 4:19.Though when we set it up, we didn’t want it to seem like more school lessons for our students so none of our LIPA 4:19 teachers are from Wade Deacon.”
“All of our teachers are trained actors and professionals from the performing arts industry.”
The franchise’s growth has seen staff numbers rise to eight, with the recent addition of a new part time administrator.
“Employing someone to help assist with the business administration is really going to help lay the foundations for future success. We’ve also ensured that we have fantastic tutors here so the children get the best learning experience possible.”
Talking about her own performing arts career and her decision to take on the running of the franchise, Kate said: “I’d acted for years in theatre and television in London and I absolutely loved it. After that I ran an award-winning theatre company but I wanted to move back home as I’m a Liverpool girl originally.
“I’d heard of LIPA as it’s got a fantastic reputation in our industry for excellent teaching and really nurturing young talent.
“It’s the best of both worlds for me now – I’m still involved in performing but I get to be my own boss and I love the responsibility of helping to drive a business forward. And it’s great to be working with such enthusiastic kids every week.
“To run a franchise like this, it really helps if you have a passion for performing arts – I certainly do and it makes me so happy to go into work, knowing that I am helping children enjoy themselves and maybe one day, realise their performing arts dreams too.”
