Some good news for music in schools in England

The Department of Education has recently published its response to the Curriculum and Assessment Review, setting out plans to 'bring the curriculum into the modern day and help young people step into the future'.

Key reforms include changes to school performance measures to encourage students to study a greater breadth of GCSE subjects. This involves broadening the curriculum to include more music, art, sport, and vocational subjects.

The government issued a positive response this month including the statement:

We will revitalise arts education as part of the reformed national curriculum and through high-quality support for teachers of these subjects. 

It plans to implement changes with the new curriculum being taught from September 2028.

Rebecca Denniff, the Chair of Sound Sense (a UK professional association for Community Music) says of the decision:

For a long time, it has seemed as though the arts and music were being squeezed out of the everyday lives of young people experiencing their secondary school education. However, the tide may be turning!