Awards for Young Musicians are recruiting new MEH partners
Awards for Young Musicians (AYM), will be recruiting 10 more Hub partners to deliver their fantastic Furthering Talent programme over the next four years. AYM have been developing Furthering Talent since 2009 and it’s currently being delivered in partnership with five MEHs: Brighton & Hove, Greater Manchester, North West Midlands, Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire, where the programme supports over 200 musically talented children from low income families. Thanks to a successful grant application to Youth Music, AYM, along with the 12 other Fund C organisations now make up the Alliance for a Musically Inclusive England (AMIE: https://network.youthmusic.org.uk/alliance-musically-inclusive-england) and will be expanding Furthering Talent into 10 new Hubs with two groups of five joining in two stages over four years This is a wonderful opportunity for MEHs to get involved with an innovative programme that has inclusive practice at its heart, develops the workforce’s toolkit and gives individual support to children who face the greatest barriers to their musical progression.
Furthering Talent’s continued evolution has drawn on findings from the Musical Progressions Roundtable (MPR), hosted by AYM and involving over 300 colleagues working across music education. The MPR identified a series of key principles needed for a successful progression environment which the Furthering Talent model addresses in a range of ways including:
Personalised learning: each young person has an Individual Learning Plan (ILP). Technical goals are taken as a given so the ILP focuses on personal musical development, widening musical horizons and identifying diverse progression opportunities. The young person and their instrumental teacher collaborate to set three goals per school term, giving the student more ownership of their own musical journey.
Personal progression budget: each child has a bursary to use to help them achieve their goals. It can be used for gig tickets, exam books or a visit to a recording studio for example. Building communities of support: each Hub holds a termly Get Together which is an opportunity for all Furthering Talent students and their parents or carers to come together for a performance, workshop or other musical opportunity. This really helps families to become involved with their child’s music making and helps to encourage ongoing support outside lessons. Teachers’ Forums are also held termly where Furthering Talent teachers come together to discuss their students’ progress and develop their inclusive practice, supported by external speakers and facilitators. Diverse musical journeys: AYM engage a Local Furthering Talent Coordinator in each Hub who liaises with the learners, families, teachers and wider Hub network to maximise the musical opportunities in each area and make best possible use of the richness of Hub partners’ musical resources to support and sustain each student’s progress
AYM would like to offer all Music Education Hubs the opportunity to apply to be part of this exciting next phase of Furthering Talent. The first round of recruitment closes on Friday 28 September 2018. If you would like an application pack or to find out more please contact Programme Manager Neil Phillips on 07711953866 or neil.phillips@a-y-m.org.uk