Issue - meetings

The Director of Regeneration submitted a report which sought approval to allocate £15,000 from centrally held resources to the Music in Secondary Schools Trust (MiSST).

The report stated that Middlesbrough Council has worked with MiSST over the last year to trial a program of musical inclusion within secondary schools, working with Kings Academy to support over 240 children to learn an instrument. MiSST will expand the program into Outwood Riverside Academy to support another 390 children over three years to learn an instrument.

The drive and purpose of this work is to offer all students the opportunity, but especially those students from disadvantaged areas who would have been unlikely to have the opportunity to take up such an option. This programme will significantly improve musical and social outcomes for young people inside and outside of school and improve creative education. MiSST follows the Andrew Lloyd Webber Programme and at its core is a skills based classical music curriculum that allows students to perform, listen, respond and be exposed to music from a diverse range of genres, traditions, styles and historical periods.

The programme will embed instrumental teaching into the weekly curriculum of the school, providing an opportunity for every pupil in Year 7 to have a free instrument and a weekly lesson.

The report provided information relating to the programme and explained how this would improve outcomes for students.

OPTIONS

Other potential decision(s) and why these have not been recommended

Do nothing to further develop musical education opportunities within schools locally. Doing nothing would further cement the issue of young people’s participation within the arts and fail to respond to an opportunity for external funding to be invested.

ORDERED

That the Executive approval to allocate £15,000 of centrally held resources to the Music in Secondary Schools Trust.

REASONS

The decision was supported by the following reasons:

1.    The MiSST project provides the Council with the opportunity to not only increase provision in a targeted area but also support the wider communities and schools directly impacting positively on children and young people in Middlesbrough.

2.    MiSST are providing match funding of £17,000 from their central budget into the programme and Outwood Riverside have confirmed £10,000 from their school budget.