distribution of over 500,000 to date. The cultural life of the city has also benefited from the society's attentions. On its recommendation, the City Council set up an Advisory Art Committee in 1922; it played a critical role in saving the Repertory Theatre from closure in 1924, and again in 1934–35. The link with the Repertory Theatre continues through ex officio membership of the Sir Barry Jackson Trust which holds the shares of the Birmingham Repertory Theatre Ltd. The Centenary Concert for Birmingham Town Hall in 1934 was organised in the manner and form suggested by the society jointly with the City of Birmingham Orchestra. During the Second World War the society played a pivotal role in saving Edward Burne-Jones' stained glass windows in Birmingham Cathedral from exposure to bomb damage. The Society had them removed and later reinstalled, whilst during the interim, most of the other windows were blown out by heavy bombing. It has worked successfully with the City Council in organising major events; in the 1920s it organised the city's Armistice Day commemorations and more recently this involved being the council's principal partner in celebrating the bi-centenary of the Battle of Trafalgar and the 80th Birthday of Queen Elizabeth. The Society has played a leading role in preserving the city's statues, especially in the 1950s when many were in danger of being scrapped. Subjects that have been preserved in total or in part (the head being cast as a bust) by the action of the society are Queen Victoria's statue, which was cast in bronze and placed upon a new plinth paid for by the society for the Festival of Britain in 1951; the busts of Josiah Mason; George Dawson and John Skirrow Wright. More recently the society has been involved in raising half of the £30,000 needed for the restoration of the Joseph Sturge memorial at Five Ways and initiated the process for the relocation and restoration of the King Edward VII Memorial, which is now in Centenary Square. Within the wider community, the society has taken a number of significant initiatives. It played a key role in establishing the Consultative Committee (later the Birmingham Council for Community Associations), to foster the development of local community associations and the building of community halls. Currently, it runs two programmes aimed at promoting active citizenship among young people, noting in particular the growing ethnic diversity of the population.