Music Education Hubs and Grants for the Arts
Contents
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Grants for the Arts ........................................................................ 2
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Music Education Hubs and Grants for the Arts .............................. 2
2.1
What you can apply for................................................................................... 3
2.2
What you cannot apply for ............................................................................. 3
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How to apply ................................................................................. 4
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Contact us ..................................................................................... 5
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Grants for the Arts
Grants for the Arts (GFTA) is our Lottery-funded grant programme for individuals,
arts organisations and other people who use the arts in their work. Grants are
available for activities carried out over a set period and which engage people in
England in arts activities and help artists and arts organisations in England carry
out their work.
Activities we support must be clearly related to the arts and must be project-based,
up to a maximum of three years in length. Grants normally range from £1,000 to
£100,000 and we can fund up to 90 per cent of the cost of an activity.
All applicants must also read the ‘How to apply guidance’. Download it from our
website or contact us for a copy.
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Music Education Hubs and Grants for the Arts
The information sheet is for applicants applying to Grants for the Arts for activity
by, for or relating to Music Education Hubs.
Applicants wishing to work in or with a Music Education Hub should also read
‘Children, young people and learning and Grants for the Arts’ to find out more
about how our funding can and cannot be used in educational settings.
Music Education Hubs (MEHs)
On behalf of the Department for Education, we are investing over £75 million
between 2015 and 2016 in a network of 123 Music education hubs across
England. You can download a list of the hubs from our website.
The Importance of Music: the National Plan for Music Education outlined the
vision for Music Education Hubs:
Music Education Hubs will have partnership working at their core. This
will enable them to establish sustainable provision with adequate
breadth and capacity. Such partnership working should see arts-based
and education-based organisations working much more closely together,
pooling their resources through a shared interest in improving children’s
music education.
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A Music Education Hub is a collection of organisations working in a local area to
create joined up music education provision for children and young people, both in
and out of school. Each Music education hub has one designated organisation
acting as the lead organisation.
Music Education Hubs will ensure that every child aged 5-18 has the opportunity
to sing and learn a musical instrument, and to perform as part of an ensemble or
choir. They will also allow young people to take their talent further. This might be
through local ensembles, partnerships with nationally funded music
organisations, including national portfolio organisations, national youth music
organisations or through involvement in the Music and Dance Scheme.
2.1
What you can apply for
Applications to support this extension role
Grants for the Arts could potentially support projects from Music Education Hubs
and organisations who wish to work with them in this extension role:

2.2
Provide access to large scale and/or high quality music experiences for
pupils, working with professional musicians and/or venues. This may
include undertaking work to publicise the opportunities available to schools,
parents/carers and students. Applications to support the extension role
should demonstrate how the proposed project is of larger scale or of higher
quality than the hub is otherwise able to provide.
What you cannot apply for
Core activity
Grants for the Arts would not be able to support projects related to the core roles
for Music Education Hubs that are already supported by Department of Education
funding through Arts Council England:

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To ensure that every child aged 5 – 18 has the opportunity to learn a
musical instrument (other than voice) through whole-week class
ensemble teaching programmes, with weekly tuition on the same
instrument for ideally a year (but for a minimum of a term)



Provide opportunities to play in ensembles and to perform from an early
stage
Ensure that clear progression routes are available and affordable to all
young people
Develop a singing strategy to ensure that every pupil sings regularly and
that choirs and other vocal ensembles are available in the area
Applications to support the following extension roles
Grants for the Arts would not be able to support projects related to the following
extension roles:


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To offer Continuous Professional Development (CPD) to school staff,
particularly in supporting schools to deliver music in the curriculum
Provide an instrument loan service, with discounts or free provision for
those on low incomes
How to apply
Music Education Hubs, and organisations intending to work with them, need our
permission to apply to Grants for the Arts before they can begin their online
application.
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i.
If the Lead organisation of a Music Education Hub plans to apply to Grants
for the Arts it must have a mandatory conversation with its Relationship
Manager prior to making an application.
ii.
Where another organisation that wishes to work with a Music Education
Hub plans to apply, it must notify the lead organisation of the Music
Education Hub prior to application. The lead organisation of the hub must
then have the mandatory conversation with its Relationship Manager to
establish that the project is eligible for funding from Grants for the Arts.
iii.
The Relationship Manager will establish during this conversation whether
the activity proposed is additional to the work already funded by the
Department for Education grant through the Arts Council. If the Relationship
Manager is satisfied that the activity is additional and eligible for funding,
they will issue the Music Education Hub Lead organisation with a
permission to apply letter.
iv.
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The applying organisation makes its application online. The applicant will
need to upload a copy of the permission letter to the ‘Letter Attachments’
section, as part of the online eligibility questionnaire.
Contact us
Phone:
Textphone:
Email:
Website:
Post:
0845 300 6200, 0161 934 4317
0161 934 4428
enquiries@artscouncil.org.uk
www.artscouncil.org.uk
Arts Council England - Grants for the Arts,
The Hive, 49 Lever Street, Manchester, M1 1FN
© Arts Council England February 2016
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