New funding has been awarded by Youth Music to Worcestershire, Gloucestershire and Warwickshire Music Hubs to improve musical inclusion within the three areas.
Working together the three Hubs, led by Severn Arts (lead for Worcestershire Music Education Hub) aim to improve and embed inclusive practice within their organisations. The project entitled ‘Fair Play’ will bring together the skills and experience of the three lead organisations and partners to focus on workforce development and training, establishing youth voice and removing barriers to musical engagement. Experimenting with new ways of delivering musical learning with community groups and schools will be an exciting part of the project.
Cllr Colin Hayfield, Warwickshire County Council Portfolio Holder for Education and Learning, said: “We are hugely proud of the work that the Warwickshire Music Service does around the county and their collaborative ethos, which aims to make the joys of music accessible to all. It is integral to our goal of making Warwickshire the best it can be that all our services continue to make their own strides towards inclusivity and innovation, so I am delighted by the announcement that our joint funding application with Gloucestershire and Worcestershire, has been successful.”
Laura Worsfold, Severn Arts CEO said: “This project is enormously important to us as we want all children and young people in Worcestershire to experience the joy, new skills and social benefits of music-making. For this to be the case we need to improve equality, diversity and inclusion practices in music education. With this grant from Youth Music and working in collaboration with our partners we can make a real difference and take a lead in ensuring accessible, inclusive arts opportunities for everyone.”
Cllr Patrick Molyneux, Gloucestershire County Council cabinet member for economy, education and skills, said: “As a keen and lifelong musician myself, I am passionate about the benefits of learning and playing a musical instrument, so I’m delighted that our joint application has been successful.
“This is a fantastic opportunity for music education hubs to work together and a chance to be both innovative and creative to further our aims around equality, diversity and inclusion practices.”
The Fair Play project will run from now until June 2022. It is supported by Youth Music, using public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England.
A Project Manager will be appointed to work with the three Hubs and steer the project successfully through all its stages. For more information about the role see https://www.severnarts.org.uk/project-manager