National Plan for Music Education 2022: The Power of Music to Change Lives

Titled The Power of Music to Change Lives, the refreshed National Plan for Music Education in England was released on 25 June 2022 by the Department for Education.  Read the Plan here.

Our CEO Bridget Whyte was honoured to be on the expert panel on behalf of our membership. The panel contributed to several discussions which influenced the governments authorship of the plan. This weighty document could have a significant positive impact on the future of music education for children and young people and clearly identifies the ambitions of government, but we recognise in many areas there is more detail to be worked out. You can read more about Music Mark’s response here.

In November 2022, Arts Council England announced details of the Music Hub Investment Programme which will allow organisations to apply to become a Hub Lead Organisation for the new Music Hub programme sarting in September 2024. Find out more about the Music Hub Investment Programme.

Below we have collated resources and information relating to the National Plan.

What does the refreshed National Plan for Music Education in England mean for you?

On 29 June 2022, Music Mark hosted two webinars and Big Meets to discuss NPME2 with presentations from Stefano Pozzi (Department for Education), Gwyn Owens (Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport), Hannah Fouracre (Arts Council England), Sarah Alexander (National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain), Catherine Barker (United Learning), and Carolyn Baxendale (Bolton Music Service).

• Recordings: Watch the recordings of the two webinars.
• Q&A Summary: Download answers to questions which were not covered during the live Q&A.

For Music Education Organisations & the Industry (including Hubs and Music Services)

• FAQ’s for Hubs from Arts Council England – Available here
• Music Mark’s summary for Music Hubs, highlighting key points and timeline notes – Available here
• A report on Music Mark’s member consensus workshop about the future of the National Plan for Music Education (2020) – Available here
• Music Mark’s consultation on the National Plan for Music Education (2018) – Available here

For Teachers and Schools

• Resources relating to the Plan for schools and teachers from the Music Teachers Association – Available here
• A poster for Primary Schools – Available here
• A poster for Secondary Schools – Available here

National Plans from across the UK

• The Welsh National Plan for Music Education (2022) – Available here
• The Welsh National Plan for Music Education – Easy Read version (2022) – Available here
• The Scottish Strategy for Music Education from MEPG (2022) – Available here

More from the Department for Education

• The Power of Music to Change Lives, resources from the DfE – Available here
• The DfE’s press release relating to The Power of Music to Change Lives – Available here
• ‘Everything you need to know about music in schools’ Blog from DfE – Available here
• Case Studies relating to The Power of Music to Change Lives – Available here
• The DfE’s report on their 2020 call for evidence (2021) – Available here
• The previous National Plan for Music Education, titled ‘The Importance of Music’ (2011) – Available here
• The Model Music Curriculum (2021) – Available here

More from Arts Council England

• Darren Henley’s blog responding to the publication of the National Plan for Music Education – Available here

The Expert Panel and The Consultation

In Augist 2021, Music Mark CEO, Bridget Whyte was asked to be part of the Government’s expert advisory panel as it continued its work on the refreshed National Plan for Music Education for England. Find out more.

Music Mark supported its Members and the wider sector throughout the consultation process for the refreshed National Plan for Music Education. Read our guide to completeing Department for Education’s consultation.

On  24th February 2020 a group of CEOs and senior managers from across the Music Education and Industry met together to discuss the key points they felt should be considered as the ‘refresh’ of the National Plan for Music Education begins to move forward. The meeting, facilitated by Music Mark, pulled together, through a consensus workshop, a set of 11 key areas that were thought to be of particular importance. Read the report from the meeting.