Drama school

[2] The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA) remains both the UK's and the world's oldest drama school still in existence and was established in 1861.

CDS existed to strengthen the voice of the member schools, to set and maintain the highest standards of training within the vocational drama sector, and to make it easier for prospective students to understand the range of courses on offer and the application process.

Graduates of CDS courses are currently working on stage, in front of the camera and behind the scenes in theatres and studios across Britain.

The most prominent funding scheme for performing arts education in the UK are the Dance and Drama Awards.

This is a government scheme which subsidises the training offered at a selection of the leading performing arts schools in the fields of dance, drama, musical theatre and stage management.

A decision by Trinity in January 2007 to drop its BA in Acting Studies to cut costs met with disappointment from the theatre sector.

[6] A Forum for Acting Training was convened with leading professionals who recommended in a 2008 report,[7] that an Academy for Dramatic Arts, independent of a University, but with third level accreditation should be created.