It was an impressive week for Blue Teapot who welcomed Walter Balfe, QQI Head of Quality Assurance and colleagues Marie Cotter and Yvonne Agnew to join the celebrations of Blue Teapot Theatre Company in their successful re-engaging with QQI as a provider of quality assurance programme delivery.
Prior to this, Blue Teapot was a legacy provider under the FETAC umbrella on the national frameworks of qualifications. It is a significant milestone for the company which provides performing arts training at QQI Levels 2 & 3 to adults with intellectual disabilities.
The rigorous process by Quality and Qualifications Ireland recognises the high-quality work in developing, enhancing and implementing quality assurance processes. It is a benchmark that has to be achieved by all institutional and independent providers of QQI programmes, and Blue Teapot has met that threshold at first time of re-engagement.
Last year Blue Teapot shared the news they had bought their building on Munster Avenue. This was enabled by Clann Credo the Social Finance Foundation, a non-profit body that provides loan finance for community organisations around Ireland. The foundation reported a 29% increase in loans to the sector in 2022. The €26.6 million lent to 265 organisations from all 26 counties included a loan to Blue Teapot Theatre Company in Galway.
Commenting on how social finance made a difference to its operation, Blue Teapot Director, Petal Pilley, said: ‘’It has been a long-held aim to secure a permanent cultural home for Blue Teapot. Our vision is to be a centre of excellence for Disability Arts in the Western Region, this goal would not have been possible to achieve without the social finance provided through Clan Credo and facilitated by the Social Finance Foundation.’’
For more information check out www.blueteapot.ie
