Charitable status enables Derbyshire husband and wife to gift boudoir photoshoots aimed at promoting body positivity and boosting self-confidence

James and Kirsty Corbett are the founders of the Be Bold Be You movement that uses boudoir photography to promote body positivity and boost self-confidence. Their photography business is based at Studio1825 on Spanker Lane on the outskirts of Belper.

Charitable status is due to be awarded in spring 2024 which will enable Be Bold Be You to become an entity that is separate to the Studio1825 business which portrait photographer James opened four years ago.

Kirsty and James said: “The joy of the registered charity status is that we now extend our “random act of kindness pot” to be able to gift the Be Bold Be You Experience including finished imagery to those who have been referred to us, by both private and public sector health professionals. Situations can include anything from cancer survivors and those with physical scars to individuals on the road to recovery from things such as eating disorders, abusive relationships and postnatal depression.

"Any monies made from those who want to book a shoot with us simply goes straight back into the charity, now, which creates a wonderful cycle of community care.

"The charitable status not only allows us to gift professional photography to those who need it, to boost their self worth, but it also now means that we can continue our awareness campaigns in regards to body positive image and mindfulness of photographer and filters in the wider media – from META through to catwalks. It’s fair to say we’re very excited to finally be able to fulfil this ambition we’ve had for many years."

Gaining charitable status has not been easy for the couple who say that it has been in planning for nearly two years. Kirsty said: “From the research that has been done, both by us and Howard Nelson at Main Street Consultants, there is nothing else like Be Bold Be You – as a charity – in the UK or Europe. James added: “It’s meant that there’s been a lot more hoops to jump with the Charity Commission in proving that the work we do is both genuine and needed, right now.”

James and Kirsty launched an appeal earlier this year to raise £2,000 for accessible hoodies to support cancer patients who were shy about removing their clothes for medical procedures. They thought it would take four months to raise the money but it took just four weeks. By week three, they had raised £302, with the two pounds coming from a client’s grandmother. Kirsty said: “Our client had had a shoot with us and we bumped into her, and Grandma, at the supermarket. Her grandma was thrilled by what we do, at BBBY, and gave us her trolley money - two £1 coins - to add to the pot as it’s all the cash she had on her! One week later, on a Friday evening I received an email from “People’s Fundraiser” to say we’d received an anonymous donation for £2000. My initial reaction was that it was a spam email and it’s only when I saw it on to the fundraiser website that I believed what had just happened. BBBY talks of random acts of kindness and this was such a big one and we’re so grateful to the donor for doing such a wonderful thing for the Royal Derby Hospital’s Combined Day Unit. Thanks to this, and the £402 already raised, we can now gift 60 of the accessible hoodies to men and women undergoing treatment for cancer right here in the East Midlands.”

James has a degree in fine art photography and Kirsty has a degree in therapeutic arts. The couple, who have three daughters, said: “We fully intend to stay in Belper, at Studio1825, delivering the family and newborn portrait experiences people have always known James for. The joy, now, is to be able to network with healthcare professionals and extend our reach and our goal even further to be able to help more people using the art of photography.”