We write, as music learned societies and the voice of conservatoires in the United Kingdom, to strongly protest the cancellation of the Initial Teacher Training bursary for Music for 2026-27. This is a deeply frustrating, disappointing and counterproductive development for the study of music in the UK, and for the UK arts and cultural sectors more generally.
As extrapolated from Department for Education data, music education in schools is facing difficult, complex and protracted challenges. According to the DfE, targets for the recruitment of music teachers have been missed by significant margins in five of the last six years (between 2019-20 and 2024-25); 433 fewer musical teachers were in post in 2024-25 than in 2011-12 (7610, against 8043); and total music teaching hours went down by 5634 over the same period. Ofqual statistics also reveal that GCSE and A-level applicant numbers have decreased by 40% and 48% respectively since 2008. This state of affairs confirms that there should be no let-up in support for attracting music teacher trainees through the bursary scheme. Indeed, it suggests that these bursaries should be increased financially, rather than reduced, or – worse still, as currently proposed – eliminated entirely.
At the General Election in July 2024, the Labour Party made a pledge to boost teacher numbers, and several prominent Labour politicians (including Keir Starmer) explained the importance and impact of music education on their formative development. The Government’s decision to cut Initial Teacher Training bursaries for music is, therefore, completely at odds with a principled position and a practical pedagogical and cultural reality. The All-Party Parliamentary Group for Music Education has criticised the decision to eliminate the music bursaries as detrimental both to recruitment to the profession and to teacher morale, and a backward step in the pursuit of equal access to Key Stage 4 and 5 music, including GCSE and A level, for all students. We at the Royal Musical Association, the Society for Music Analysis, the British Forum for Ethnomusicology, and Conservatoires UK wholeheartedly agree.
The health of the UK music industry as a whole depends on the existence of a robust music education system, with deeply committed and highly motivated teachers from primary through tertiary education and beyond. Indeed, the health of the nation benefits from such a system, with proven links (for example) between music pedagogical experiences and positive mental health, as well as between physical and mental illness and the benefits of music therapy. We urge the Government in the strongest terms to reverse its decision to end the initial teacher training bursary for music in 2026-27 and to redouble its commitment to encouraging and facilitating prospective music teachers’ entry into the profession.
The Royal Musical Association
The Society for Music Analysis
The British Forum for Ethnomusicology
Conservatoires UK