“Congratulations to EPOC, a group of people who really know about children.” Hackney Music Service
“This week English Pocket Opera Company came into the school to give an hour’s presentation. It went down a storm. It was one of the most popular events the school has arranged.” Lambeth teacher in The Guardian
English Pocket Opera Company (EPOC) is a charity in its own name, and as such we often create our projects on a shoestring budget. Making a donation is a great way to help us reach more children. With cutbacks looming, a growing number of generous individuals have donated money to the cause. We hope you will feel moved to join them.
- £25 – sponsors one child’s involvement in one of our projects
- £50 – buys a costume for a child taking part in an opera
- £100 – provides a EPOC music leader for half a day in a school
- £250 – buys a complete set of basic EPOC singing resources for a class of children – song books, CD’s, Karaoke versions, teachers packs, lesson plans etc
- £500 – pays for one of our famous Interactive Presentations – Opera Hotpot, Opera Blocks etc, for 200 children in a school
Every little helps!
A number of friends, made up of audience members and fellow professionals, have generously supported the company over the years. They have included the Marchioness of Cholmondeley, Sir Geoffrey Cass, Tessa Jowell MP, Julia McKenzie, Caroline Quentin, Simon Callow, Dame Josephine Barnes, Alun Armstrong, and Nicholas Parsons and, from the world of music and opera, Richard Jones, Simon Keenlyside CBE, Jane Glover, Andrew Shore, Stephen Daldry, Stephen Pimlott, Graham Vick and Deborah Warner.
Gift Aid
If you are a UK taxpayer at the basic rate, using the gift aid scheme means that every £10 you donate is worth £12.50 to EPOC.
If you pay higher rate tax, not only do EPOC benefit, but you can get money back too – the difference between the higher rate of tax (40 per cent) and the basic rate of tax (20 per cent) on the total (gross) value of your donation to EPOC. For example, if you donate £100, the total value of your donation to the charity is £125 – so you can claim back 20 per cent of this (£25) for yourself. You can make this claim on your Self Assessment tax return.
The Gift Aid scheme is for gifts of money by individuals who pay UK tax. Gift Aid donations are regarded as having basic rate tax deducted by the donor. EPOC receives take your donation – which is money you’ve already paid tax on – and reclaims the basic rate tax from HMRC on its ‘gross’ equivalent – the amount before basic rate tax was deducted.