A model for music education

How can the music and cultural education sector outside the capital be supported and developed following the recent launch of the Cultural Education Challenge, which offers consistent and high-quality arts and cultural education for all children and young people in London? Over the past 18 months we have been developing and testing out a new federated music education hub model across Staffordshire, Stoke on Trent, Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin. It brings together four music services, an In Harmony programme, three music education hubs, Arts Council England-funded organisations and two Youth Music-funded organisations into a shared federated partnership.

The real prize is to close the gap between those who have a rich cultural and music experience and those who don’t

Our aim is to join up the informal and formal music provision across the four local authority areas in order to access new sources of investment and clearer pathways for our young people. This should then close the gap between young people from families more likely to access cultural provision and those families from backgrounds that find it more challenging to access cultural opportunities. For example, one partnership programme funded through Youth Music across all four local authorities works with armed forces families, looked after children, children affected by rural isolation and young unemployed people.

We also share an In Harmony social development programme inspired by El Sistema in Venezuela working with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and the Manchester Camerata. In Harmony’s mission is to transform the lives of children in deprived communities through ensemble music-making. One of its key objectives is to address children’s life chances by raising children’s and parents’ aspirations and enhancing children’s motivations for learning through an in-school and after-school music programme. We have offered a range of performance opportunities at the Southbank Centre in London, Symphony Hall in Birmingham and Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, as well as specialist nurture provision, online digital learning resources, which can be accessed at home and in the classroom, and a combined delivery team of music service teachers, school classroom teachers and orchestral musicians.

Three ingredients have shaped our work and thinking:

Developing leadership: Leadership across the music education hub can develop a shared vision and purpose and lead to innovation and new ways of working to pull together partnerships. Leaders can challenge arts organisations, within schools and other environments, to ensure that they get what they need to deliver high-quality music education opportunities to young people. They can seek new forms and sources of investment from housing associations, apprenticeshipa and EU culture funding. They can develop a programme of peer-to-peer learning and support visits. Succession planning starts now.

Developing a strong and robust research-led evidence basis: Making our case for investment to a range of funders, headteachers, school governors, school business managers and stakeholders with a strong and realistic evidence base.

Telling our combined story around our impact and successes: We can do this best by having a place on school governing bodies and arts organisations boards to develop relationships with school business managers and heads of music. By attending business breakfast events we can also develop corporate partnerships. With simple infographics we can tell our story simply and quickly and use social media to get our messages out. Other media can include case studies and short films and a parents advocacy pack, similar to the arts education alliances in the US, to use parent power when there is a low take-up in schools. We also need to have a presence at parent evenings and transition days.

The real prize is to close the gap between those who have a rich cultural and music experience and those who don’t. It can be done and there are examples of this happening through our programmes funded through Youth Music and the six In Harmony programmes. It needs a well evidenced and targeted use of funding from a variety of public and private sources, putting young people at the centre of the planning and the delivery, and a strong and continued repeat engagement with local families and schools. This needs consistent and strong local music education and cultural leadership with committed partners who are there for the long term.

Ian Thomas is Chair of Telford & Wrekin Music Education Hub.
www.ssmeh.co.uk