Welcome to Youth Music’s South West South’s regional homepage.  This section is dedicated to information specific to the region

The 'South West South' region covers the counties of Devon and Dorset, and includes the unitary authorities of Bournemouth and Poole, Plymouth, Torbay and Cornwall. It is, in the main, a very rural region with only three large conurbations of Bournemouth, Exeter and Plymouth. It covers in excess of 630 miles of coastline and the combination of the pastoral and coastal, together with a very low grade transport infrastructure across all three counties, results in huge difficulties with social inclusion and interaction.

Musically, the region is rich with the tradition of brass and silver bands, youth and wind bands, choirs, community festivals, fairs and celebrations where young people can participate and perform. However, outside the festivals, the opportunities and venues for gigging are few, and many of those venues that are established are inaccessible to the majority because of transportation difficulties. Through YM funding, Cornwall and Plymouth have flourishing Youth Music Action Zones - CYMAZ in Cornwall and PMAZ in Plymouth, and Creative Partnerships is active in both. The South West Music School is funded through the DCSF Music and Dance Scheme and works with gifted and talented young people. Sing Up is active in the region in Cornwall – Angela Renshaw, Devon – Bernie Artuso and Dorset – Christine Page.

If you are a musician based in the region you might consider checking out MusicLeader. This is a Youth Music initiative providing access to professional development for music leaders at every stage of their career.  The MusicLeader for the South West is Jacqui Haigh.

Other key regional contacts include:

Arts Council England South West (ACESW) 
Cornwall Music Service
Plymouth Music Service
Dorset Music Service
Devon Music Service

The five Arts in Education departments across the region
KEAP in Cornwall
DAISI in Devon
Barefoot in Plymouth
DepARTure in Dorset &
WAVE in Bournemouth and Poole

The region has a population of approximately 2.5 million, the lowest population density in the country, but with the highest percentage of people of retirement age. Of this population, we have the highest percentage in the country living in rural settlements and the least accessible public transportation system across the country! Our annual gross pay is below the English median (in some parts, well below), but our average house prices are above the English median (in some parts, well above). Though crime rate is apparently the lowest in the country, there is a burgeoning drug problem for our young people, and not just in the larger conurbations.
Though perceived by many to be affluent because of its outstanding natural beauty and its tourism industry, many areas are high on the national indices of deprivation, particularly Cornwall (where wages are among the lowest in the country and house prices amongst the highest), and large parts of Plymouth, Torbay and Bournemouth. There are also many other districts of Devon and Dorset that have a high level of economic and social privation. Ethnic mix is very low though rising in parts of Bournemouth: and in Plymouth where refugees and asylum seekers are looking to find a new life.

Visit the Regional Policy page for the South West South