Great Pottery Throwdown contestant opens new pottery studio in Scarborough thanks to £10,000 grant
A Scarborough artist who took part in the popular Great Pottery Throwdown TV show has been awarded £10,000 to support their businesses’ future growth plans and ambitions.
Scarborough-based Rebecca Norris and her business Rebecca Norris Designs have been given grant funding by the entrepreneurship charity Hatch Enterprise in partnership with NatWest. It is one of 10 businesses across the UK to receive a share of the £100,000 grant funding round in celebration of Hatch’s 10th anniversary.
Rebecca is an artist living in Scarborough running a pottery studio with courses, workshops, and community events that inspire and promote creativity. She appeared on Channel 4's ‘Great Pottery Throwdown’ in 2023 and the experience has given her the confidence to take her creative business from strength to strength.
Rebecca Norris, Founder of Rebecca Norris Designs, said: “I am absolutely over the moon to get this life-changing grant. This money will allow me to move my business to the next level. I will be able to purchase equipment for my studio, gain vital training to enhance my own skills.
“Crucially I will be able to open a physical studio that will enable me to hold more workshops and pottery courses. Without this grant and the belief, I would not have been able to take this major step in my small business.”
Rebecca’s new pottery studio is called The Clay Place and it opened on September 16. It can be found on Hoxton Road in Scarborough and is a new exciting creative space to host Rebecca’s courses or to host private bookings.
Rebekah Capon, Managing Director at Hatch Enterprise, said: “Our mission at Hatch is to build a better world through entrepreneurship, supporting those typically underrepresented in the sector to launch and grow sustainable, successful businesses.
“This partnership with NatWest is the perfect way for us to mark our tenth year as a charity, and we’re so pleased for the ten incredible founders awarded funding. Receiving these grants of £10,000 will make a real difference to the founders themselves, their businesses, and their wider communities.”
For more information about Rebecca Norris Designs and the new Scarborough studio, visit: https://www.rebeccanorrisdesigns.com/