The Wayne Sleep Foundation 2024-2025 Award Recipients

  • The Wayne Sleep Foundation has made my studies in London possible. With this bursary, I have the freedom to focus solely on my studies without any worry or stress. Their support helps me at such an important stage on my journey, and I can’t wait to spend the next year exploring my art and immersing myself in new opportunities at the Academy. I cannot thank the foundation enough for their support - I wouldn’t be able to do it without their help and guidance!

    Caroline Blair
    Opera School - Royal Academy of Music

  • I am extremely thankful to The Wayne Sleep Foundation for supporting me during my fourth year at the Royal College of Music London. This support will have a huge impact on my studies, allowing me to focus both on my development in practice and playing ability. It will also enable me to immerse myself fully in the UK’s amazing music industry, allowing me to attend and learn from many more concerts, ballets and operas, broadening my musical knowledge. Further to this, it will allow me to dedicate further time to musical tuition and outreach, sharing my passion with young musicians. 

    Summer Brooks

    Royal College of Music - Viola


  • I sincerely thank all the staff of The Wayne Sleep Foundation for your warmth, sincerity and cordiality. It is a great honor for me to be your scholar. In my future memories of the best years, I will always note your support and the fact that you chose me among many strong competitors. Thank you and all people of goodwill who are now supporting my native Ukraine and all Ukrainians who defend freedom and independence.

    Stefan Bulyah

    Royal Academy of Music - Clarinet

  • The Wayne Sleep Foundation award will help to ease my financial worry while I study and pursue my passion for the classical guitar. My heartfelt thanks to the Foundation for giving me this support in my journey towards a successful career in music.

    Rocco Dal Cin

    Royal College of Music - Guitar

  • I am so grateful for this award from the Wayne Sleep Foundation, which will allow me to focus on my studies without having to worry too much about living costs. I'm also planning to attend some chamber masterclasses and international competitions next year and the award will be a great help with that too. This is such an important stage in my development as a musician and any support is invaluable in helping me work towards my career goals!

    Berniya Hamie

    Guildhall School of Music and Drama - Piano

  • Thanks to the generosity of The Wayne Sleep Foundation, I am able to dedicate more time and effort to my studies at the Royal Academy of Music. For this, I am incredibly thankful.

    Oliver James

    Royal Academy of Music - Musical Theatre

  • I am deeply grateful to The Wayne Sleep Foundation for their generous financial support as I head into my first year at The Royal College of Music’s International Opera Studio. This award has enabled me to focus on my course and training, meaning I am able to spend more time honing my craft and balancing the pressures of a professional opera career than focusing on the burden of financial stress. I’m also thankful to the WSF for seeing the potential in me as an artist and for their willingness to support my journey more widely.

    Charlotte Jane Kennedy

    Royal College of Music - Opera School

  • Working in the artistic profession is a beautiful and challenging career. I am so grateful to The Wayne Sleep Foundation for their openness and generosity in supporting my musical journey and therefore my dream.

    Joanna Lam

    Guildhall School of Music & Drama - Piano

  • Receiving continuing support from the Sleep Wayne Foundation is allowing me to continue focusing on my music studies, studying new music works and working towards future projects. I am grateful to be in this position for the final year of my master's studies, and very excited to see where this year takes me!

    Kasparas Mikužis

    Royal Academy of Music - Piano

  • I’m so grateful to be in receipt of this award from the Wayne Sleep Foundation. This support will allow me to better focus on and enhance my training at Rambert School, and enable me to engage in more extra curricular practice.

    Scott Millar

    Rambert School - Dance

  • I am full of gratitude to be able to continue my artistic journey by way of an Artist Diploma at the Royal College of Music. This would not be possible without the generous and meaningful support of the Wayne Sleep Foundation, for which I am sincerely thankful.

    Joel Munday

    Royal College of Music - Violin

  • The Wayne Sleep Foundation Scholarship has allowed me to enter my final year of training with both confidence and boldness. I can now worry less about my finances and apply myself in a focused way to all our upcoming professional productions and present myself to the industry with my best foot forward!

    Gloria Olajide

    LAMDA - MFA Professional Acting

  • The Wayne Sleep Foundation Award has changed my entire year of studies at Artsed. The relief of financial pressure has given me the opportunity focus on what I love and want to achieve. The Foundation has done so much for myself and my family and I couldn't be more grateful for their support. 

    Reese O’Connell

    ArtsEd - Acting

  • Being able to be an awardee of the Wayne Sleep Foundation Award 2024-25 has made a significant difference to my situation as an international student living in London. Having this support towards my living expenses has lifted the financial burden for me greatly, to be able to concentrate on my studies and towards developing my career as a violinist, to which I am incredibly grateful for. 

    Esther Park

    Royal College of Music - Violin

  • I am enormously appreciative to Wayne Sleep, and the foundation for its generous support in my path as a dance artist. The foundation is like no other; the opportunities given, financial support, and most importantly the mentoring and inspiration Wayne, Jose and Matthew have shown continuously through my training. The Foundation's support and generosity to emerging dance talent is transforming the lives of many young people and I am honoured to be apart of that. Thank You

    Matthew Potulski

    Rambert School - Dance

  • The bursary I have received from the Wayne Sleep Foundation is so gratefully received. With it, I can be more financially comfortable living in London and thus be able to more fully concentrate on my actor training at Central. Furthermore, by supporting my living costs, this bursary has allowed me to put earnings from my job towards other development opportunities, like external acting workshops and seeing theatre productions. I believe that this will help me fulfil my career goal of being an actor, and I am so grateful to the Wayne Sleep Foundation for assisting in that.

    Lauren Ramsden

    Royal Central School of Speech and Drama - Acting

  • I feel honoured to have received an award from the Wayne Sleep Foundation, to support me during my second year of training at the Urdang Academy. I am extremely grateful to the foundation for this opportunity, helping me to pursue my passions and work to my full potential during the demands of full time training.

    Oliver Tehrani

    Urdang - Dance & Musical Theatre

  • I am enormously grateful to The Wayne Sleep Foundation for their generous award. The support has been invaluable in enabling me to pursue a career in the art I love. By providing financial assistance at a crucial time of my training at the Royal Academy of Music, I am able to spend more time dedicated to my craft as I prepare for graduation and my career beyond.

    Emily Varney

    Royal Academy of Music - Soprano