Music education hubs facing £160m ‘black hole’

There is a £32.3m annual budget shortfall between the demands being placed on music education hubs to deliver the National Plan for Music Education (NPME) and the income they currently receive from the government, a new report claims.

Introduced in 2011, the NPME was refreshed in 2022 (NPME2), introducing changes, including widening the plan’s age range to cover the early years through to 16- to 25-year-olds and emphasising progression into lifelong appreciation of music or professional music careers.

However, cross-party think tank Demos, which published its Facing the Music report this month, warns that implementing NPME2 has “new and hidden costs” that have not been accounted for in current government spending plans, describing it as a “black hole for music education”.

Drawing on original survey data, Arts Council England (ACE) data and workshops, the report says music hubs require “a clear, long-term investment strategy” and calculates that over the next five years, an additional £161.4m will be needed to keep up with cost increases associated with NPME2, based on expenditure in 2022/23.

Additionally, it estimates that a further “immediate one-off £1.4m injection” will be needed to cover the costs of changing the structure of music education delivery introduced under the previous Conservative government, which reduced the number of music hub partnerships from 116 to 43 Hub Lead Organisations (HLOs).

‘An impact on the quantity and quality of music education’

Since September 2024, the new 43 HLOs receive funding from government via ACE as two income streams – a £76.1m revenue grant and a one-off £25m capital grant that can be spent on new musical instruments, equipment and technology – as well as income they generate from other sources.

Calculating current annual expenditure on tasks related to delivering NPME2 as £196.4m, survey respondents said they believed spending would need to increase by at least 10% to deliver all aspects of the plan.

Hub leaders were particularly concerned about salary and training costs, pensions, pay awards and National Insurance contributions.

“If hub partnerships do not have the resources to employ enough staff, there will clearly be an impact on the quantity and quality of music education provision in local areas,” the report states.

“Moreover, where hub partnerships cannot properly compensate staff for their expertise and the hours they are putting in, staff will be more likely to leave – exacerbating existing staffing challenges and placing further threats on the quality of provision.

“In the context of high inflation and increasing demands on music hub partnerships, the government urgently needs to address the current funding shortfall.”

The report also notes that at least 50% of a music hub’s total income – excluding the capital grant – is expected to come from outside sources such as parents, schools, trusts and foundations. However, most respondents said they were not confident they could raise the money needed to implement NPME2 effectively.

Reduce restrictions

In addition to calling for extra funding, the report calls on government to reduce restrictions on capital grant expenditures so that hubs can use the cash to repair and refurbish existing instrument stocks.

It also calls for ACE to streamline reporting requirements placed on music hubs as “significant cost and time spent on reporting is taking funding away from delivery of activity to children and young people”.

Demanding that “unnecessary data asks” be dropped, the report says: “Hubs should be supported to use data to inform their decision-making, rather than just looking at it through the lens of external accountability.”

The recommendations also include placing music at the centre of a “well-rounded education,” making it a statutory obligation for schools to engage with hubs, engaging music industry partners to help deliver NPME2 and providing “strong local investment” in culture.

Citing the ongoing review of ACE, the report said government had an “excellent opportunity” to consider both the current financing arrangements for music hubs and called for music education funding to be simplified to “reduce reliance on time-consuming competitive bidding to underpin core work, and instead encourage long-term, joined-up community decision-making”.

Enough money in the system?

Bridget Whyte, CEO of the UK Association for Music Education – Music Mark, which supported the report, said that although current and previous governments had recognised and funded music education provision, “the funding has never met the ambitions of successive governments,” and asked: “Is there enough money in the system?”

“This new report outlines, among other things, why more money is needed and how much it would cost to ensure all children and young people can have a life with music.

“We now await a response from government and we stand ready to work with them to ensure that their ambitions for children and young people in England is realised.

“Whilst the national purse is challenged, the power of music makes the relatively small increased investment identified by this report not only worthwhile but essential for the cultural, social, and economic growth that this government has put at the heart of its mission.”

A Department of Education spokesperson noted that the National Plan for Music Education was created under the previous government and said that the new administration would take into account the changes made in 2022, informed by its ongoing evaluation of the Music Hubs.

“High and rising standards are at the heart of this government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity and we are committed to ensuring access to the arts is no longer the preserve of a privileged few,” said the spokesperson.

“To achieve this, we are investing in music education through our £79m Music Hubs programme, the £25m funding of new instruments, the Music Opportunities Pilot and plans to launch a National Music Education Network.

“This along with our curriculum and assessment review will ensure all pupils can discover their musical talents and creativity.”