Ed Sheeran has called on UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to commit to a £250 million package to support music education, urging the Labour government to get to work straight away to “repair decades” of damage caused by past governments de-prioritising music in schools and more generally “dismantling” support for young musicians.
Sheeran makes that demand in an open letter that is also backed by numerous other artists, including Harry Styles, Central Cee, Paloma Faith, Maisie Peters, Stormzy, Dave and Elton John, as well as members of Mumford & Sons, Snow Patrol, Coldplay and Sleaford Mods, among others.
“Learning an instrument and getting up on stage - whether in school or a community club - is now a luxury not every child can afford”, the letter begins. As a result, while the music industry currently delivers a £7.6 billion benefit to the UK economy, “the next generation is not there to take the reins”.
Sheeran then notes that last year was the first in over 20 years without a UK single or album in the year-end global top ten music charts. Citing comments made by Ezra Collective and Myles Smith at this year’s BRIT Awards, his letter continues, “we can’t just celebrate success, we have to protect the foundations that make it”.
“The time to act is now”, Sheeran insists, adding “state schools - which educate 93% of the country’s children – have seen a 21% decrease in music provision”. To that end, “we collectively ask for a £250 million UK music education package this spring to repair decades of dismantling music”.
Sheeran notes that Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy talked about instigating a ‘ten point plan for music’ in the House Of Commons earlier this year, something her colleague Chris Bryant immediately expanded into a twelve point plan. But more needs to be done, and - says Sheeran - not just by the government’s culture department.
Fixing music education requires “cross departmental” work, the letter says, adding that input will be required from the departments of Education, Health & Social Care and Business & Trade, as well as the Foreign Office, to truly deliver.
The Labour Party did make some commitments relating to music education in its manifesto before last year’s General Election.
Music educators and the music industry have long complained that, because the UK government doesn’t include creative subjects like music when measuring the success of English schools at GCSE level, investment in those subjects has been cut. Meanwhile youth organisations outside of schools that provide music support have also seen their funding reduced.
The government does seem keen to make good on that manifesto commitment. Just last week the Department For Education announced plans for a new National Centre For Arts And Music Education.
That, it said, would “support the delivery of high-quality arts education through a new online training offer for teachers, promoting opportunities for children and young people to pursue their artistic and creative interests in school - including through the government’s network of music education hubs - and boost partnerships between schools and cultural providers”.
Sheeran’s letter sets out five specific measures that the government should consider.
First, it should fund music in schools like it funds sport, by replicating the Sports Premium funding scheme that already exists in arts and music.
Second, it should urgently train 1000 music teachers “to end the 56% fall in recruitment”.
Third, it should launch a UK-wide fund for grassroots music collaboration outside of schools, because a quarter of “youth music spaces are considering closing”.
Fourth, it should launch “fair and industry-fit music apprenticeships”. Only 0.5% of apprenticeships are in the creative sector, the letter notes, so the government should “launch 500 music apprenticeships UK-wide, with new festival apprenticeships and industry readiness support for youth at-risk”.
And finally, the government should “establish a teacher and industry special task force for a diverse, industry-informed” music curriculum, and ensure music is included in the way schools are assessed.
The open letter follows the recent launch of the Ed Sheeran Foundation, which is actively supporting music education initiatives. The musician says that, through the new Foundation, he has recently met “a number of young kids and teachers across the UK”, and that has “confirmed to me that music education is suffering”.
Explaining why he has sent his open letter to Starmer, he adds, “This creative industry brings so much to our culture, our communities, our economy, our personal wellbeing, but music education has fallen through the gaps. That’s why I’m tasking government, collectively, to correct the mistakes of its past and to protect and grow this for generations to come”.