<p><strong>The woman</strong><br />As a teenager, Esther built up a vast record collection which she found in charity shops and car-boot sales. Nights, Esther was DJ-ing in clubs and this is where she met the man who is now her husband. Their relationship was a meeting of two great vinyl collections, which gave her an idea... Why not open a record shop trading hard-to-find albums? After a year, Esther felt the business was stable enough to begin developing the philanthropic side of Factory, which she'd dreamt of from day one. And so the Factory Foundation was born, funded by money raised from music events organized by Esther, which enabled her to launch the first of her Decks4Schools courses.</p><p><strong>Her fight: « Decks4School »</strong><br />Decks4Schools provides troubled or in-trouble teenagers with access to music learning through after-school workshops. These free courses teach DJ-ing, MC-ing, beatboxing, music production, technology and radio skills. In particular, Decks4Schools targets disadvantaged young people from some of the most deprived areas of Greater Manchester and gives them an opportunity to experience something that could change their lives in a positive way.</p><p><strong>What about now?</strong><br />Alongside Esther, the Decks4Schools workshops are staffed by local DJs and music professionals. The eight-week course builds up to a final performance in which everyone in the group has an opportunity to shine.</p>
