Call for DfE to address music education funding shortfall

The Musicians' Union has written to Education Secretary Gillian Keegan calling for urgent financial support for music education hubs.

An open letter from the union highlights the potential impact of increased employer pension contributions on the finances of hubs, stating that it could lead to "extreme financial difficulties" for the organisations that run hubs. 

It says that, in turn, this could result in a drastic reduction of what hubs will be able to deliver.

Chris Walters, MU National Organiser for Education, said: “In its National Plan for Music Education, the government has asked the music education sector to deliver more than ever, and yet it has offered no increase in funding for well over a decade. 

"On top of this, it is expecting the sector to self-fund a significant increase in mandatory pension contributions.

“We are simply asking that funding for music education be unfrozen and linked to inflation and that the government funds employers’ pensions contributions for teachers who are employed to deliver the vital work of music education hubs.”