I have just returned from the ISME conference in Beijing (funded by myself, in case you were worrying about tax payers’ money). There is no doubt that we continue to lead the world in music education in singing, instrumental tuition, musicians in education, CPD and research. My own paper was on effective partnership working. Do contact me at halla@globalnet.co.uk if you would like a copy.

The power of music to transform lives is enormous when young people receive experiences that are both enjoyable and of sufficient quality, and which form part of a journey of discovery along which the young person can progress and experience success. That means that everyone involved in music education has an influential part to play and carries with them both responsibility and accountability. It also means that it is a tremendously rewarding occupation for us all.

The Comprehensive Spending Review, (CSR) due to report on October 20^th, will inform the future regarding available funding at Departmental level. More detailed information is expected shortly afterwards. Nonetheless, money for the final year of funding from the previous CSR is what is now being spent and most of our energies need to be used to ensure that money achieves the maximum impact for young people.

In the meantime look out for opportunities to inform future policy. Do respond to opportunities to provide evidence.

Review of the Early Years Foundation Stage – call for evidence

http://www.education.gov.uk/consultations/index.cfm?action=consultationDetails&consultationId=1727&external=no&menu=1

You may also wish to respond to this one too

Review of Capital expenditure

 http://www.communities.gov.uk/statements/newsroom/localgovernmentsavings

Confirmation that the Music Standards Fund is indeed still ring fenced. This is a tremendous tribute to the excellent work that you are all doing. It also puts a very great responsibility on us all to ensure that we use this funding to maximum effect. We have plenty of evidence of best practice and what works well. We also know that sometimes, for a range of reasons, you are not always able to use this funding as effectively as you would wish.

Keep up the good work and let’s prove that we continue to warrant the confidence and trust placed in us all.

We know the outcome of the general election, so what’s next?

In the run-up to the general election all parties were supportive of music, playing an instrument and singing, so all that remains is to see how the new government will choose to fund music and how much funding music will receive.

There can be no doubt in anyone’s mind that these are difficult economic times. We now also know that there will be a budget after 50 days and a spending review in the autumn following work over the summer.

Tune In Year of Music and LAMPs and Consultation on funding

Are you gaining additional publicity and being part of the national campaign by badging all musical events this year as being part of Tune In Year of Music?

The website www.dcsf.gov.uk/tunein has support materials for getting more press coverage than you might normally get, and the ‘Join In’ section can list your events with links to who to contact to find out more.

This is an important time for us all to celebrate what we are achieving with the current public funding that is enabling so much excellent musical activity to take place. The more everyone is aware of what you are all doing, the more they will see how brilliant it is and what is being threatened if we do not secure sufficient funding in the challenging economic times ahead.

So don’t hide your light under a bushel. And talking of lights and LAMPs (apologies for the link) do make sure that you are talking to your LA lead person who is responsible for pulling this document together (LAMPs is the Local Authority Music Plan). Whilst in most cases these plans are coordinated by the local music service head, they are not music service plans. They are 3 year rolling Local Authority strategic plans for music. Anything you are doing or planning to do needs to be part of that overall picture. Especially in financially challenging times, we all have a responsibility for ensuring public funding is used most effectively and reaches those who need it most, be that channelled through schools as part of the national curriculum, through music services for wider opportunities, or other organisations such as Youth Music and the Arts Council. If it is part of a coherent music education, it should be part of the LAMP forward planning.

And since finance is underpinning much of this, some of you may be interested in the consultation regarding future funding that has been launched recently: http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/consultations/index.cfm?action=conSection&consultationId=1709&dId=1061&sId=6640&numbering=1&itemNumber=3&menu=1

Music doesn’t get a specific mention in the above as, to quote Ed Balls in a written statement: 15 Mar 2010, “we still have further work to identify savings without cutting into programmes such as short breaks for disabled children, music, sport or support for looked-after children because I am determined to do whatever it takes to protect the front line.”

It is up to all of us to demonstrate that his support is well founded and well deserved. What we achieve now and in the third year of funding (2010 to 2011) will determine all our futures.

The British Council recently arranged for a delegation from Brazil to see what we are doing in England. They have sent information about three programmes that they currently manage in São Paulo:

1)    Tom Jobim – EMESP: São Paulo State School of Music

2)    Guri Santa Marcelina music education programme

3)    Campos do Jordão International Winter Festival

In addition, further to the Campos do Jordão International Winter Festival, they have just opened the application process for 150 fellowships to engage in the Festival’s pedagogical and performance activities during July, 2010.

The fellowship application is open from March 1^st to 26^th 2010. As we have some printed booklets with detailed instructions, we have posted a small amount of them, and hence we would like to kindly ask you to distribute them to potentially interested young musicians from the UK who could be interested in engaging in a intercultural environment in São Paulo.

Unfortunately this information has only just reached me, but I bring it to your attention in case you can still get it to anyone who may be interested. I suggest interested parties contact me with a postal address and I will send on the details urgently. halla@globalnet.co.uk

Here are two addresses that you may find helpful:

The first is an introduction to the new primary curriculum 

http://curriculum.qcda.gov.uk/new-primary-curriculum/curriculum-tools/curriculum-tour/index.aspx

The second is the passage of the bill which will make the changes to the curriculum a reality.

http://services.parliament.uk/bills/2009-10/childrenschoolsandfamilies.html

There is also much interest in In Harmony with two panel discussions held recently to consider whether El Sistema can translate into English. The British Council is hosting a visit from some Brazilians who are keen to learn more about our music education programme and the British Council is also hosting a conference in Spain at which Peter Garden from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra will present a session on the In Harmony Liverpool project along with a presentation also giving the wider context of music education in England.

We have just had the impact assessment of Wider Opportunities; Sing up has reached 84% of primary schools; Youth Music is celebrating its 10th birthday having supported many young people's music making and this is Tune In Year of Music. So why do we get articles like this one in the Spectator?

http://www.spectator.co.uk/susanhill/5756538/more-news-from-the-unlevel-playing-field.thtml

There is lots of excellent work that you are all doing. Can we use the vehicle of Tune In Year of Music to celebrate our achievements?

If we are to get our message across and secure funding to continue our excellent work in the future, we need to ensure many more people, other than those directly involved, get to know, see and hear just how good you and the young people you work with really are! Keep up that good work, but make it a priority to ensure even more people get to know about it.

The report leads me to ask two questions:

1.       Are all programmes achieving these outcomes for children? If not, together, we must look at what steps need to be taken so that they do.

2.       Are all secondary schools ready to build on this work so that all children’s musical abilities can be nurtured and developed?

For copies of the full report visit http://www.thefms.org/2010/01/29/impact-evaluation-of-wider-opportunities-programme-in-music-at-key-stage-two/

There is no doubt that we have been living through a period in which music education has been better funded than ever before.

There is also no doubt that there is a period of financial austerity coming.

We still have one year left in which to make the money we do have work as effectively as possible. What we manage to secure in the next 3 year funding period will depend on how well we have spent the current money.

Whatever funding we secure the responsibility is ours to take a professional stand to ensure that the 2010/2011 funds for music are spent as well as they possibly can be.

Programmes such as Sing Up, Wider Opportunities and In Harmony have all given us a blueprint, alongside the National Curriculum, for a really meaningful and worthwhile music education programme for ALL young people. It is up to us to turn that blueprint into a reality.

So much to do, so little time to do it. I’m sure that is something we all recognise, especially in the run up to Christmas! So here’s a quick look at a few of the things that I hope may be of interest to anyone who is taking the time to read this blog.

Congratulations to Richard Jones for an excellent SSAT conference and to Lincoln Abbotts, all at Music for Youth, and in particular all the children and young people, teachers, parents, councillors and sponsors who made the three nights at the Schools Prom such a glorious success and enabled 6 teachers to receive national recognition for the exemplary work that you all do, day in and day out.

Thanks to all colleagues who have sent their October data to me – suffice to say that it again is good news and demonstrates the progress we are all making to give young people the best musical opportunities. Local Authority Music Plans 2009 to 2012 are due in at the end of this term so do get involved if you possibly can.

If you are interested in singing or rarely cover read on. If not, have a great Christmas and look out for announcements in the New Year – lots of things have been going on behind the scenes!

Interested in quality singing? If you haven’t visited the Sing Up website and commented on quality, please do. www.singup.org.uk/quality/

Having problems with ‘rarely cover’? Read on.

Rarely Cover and LOtC

In response to the many expressions of concern about how Rarely Cover will impact on

LOtC activities, DCSF and CLOtC have jointly issued the following statement:

To be most effective, LOtC activities should be built into an integrated curriculum. LOtC

activities will then be timetabled in advance and will only be subject to Rarely

Cover provisions if the person timetabled to take the class or group is unforeseeably

absent.

The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) has published the School

Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document 2009. Paragraphs 47 to 90 in section 4 of this

document set out information about cover and what schools need to do to ensure that

teachers and the head teacher may be required to cover only rarely from 1 September

2009.

Paragraph 73 explains that learning outside the classroom is an important part of the

curriculum and provision for it should be included in school calendars and timetables.

Appropriate arrangements should be included in the timetable for both the staff and pupils

who will be participating in learning outside the classroom and for those who are not.

For further information on rarely cover, please go to:

http://www.tda.gov.uk/remodelling/nationalagreement/cover.aspx

And to see the full guidance in Section 4 of the 2009 STPCD go to:

http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/docbank/index.cfm?id=14150

And to see the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document 2009 go to:

http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/_doc/14150/STPCD%202009.pdf

The following school workforce unions are amongst those organisations which have

endorsed the aims of the LOtC manifesto: ASCL, ATL, NAHT, NASUWT, NUT, VOICE.