Welcome to Youth Music’s South West North’s regional homepage.  This is a new site section dedicated to information specific to our region.

The South West North sub-region covers the counties of Bristol, BANES (Bath and North East Somerset), Somerset, Swindon, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire and South Gloucestershire.  It is part of the South West Region, which also incorporates Dorset, Devon and Cornwall (South West South region).

South West North is a sub-region of contrasts, incorporating areas of affluence and deprivation, both rural and urban.  Some coastal and rural areas experience levels of deprivation which rank as highly as those found in the most deprived inner city wards.

The distinction drawn between South West North and South West South is not solely an administrative one:  indices of multiple deprivation show to what extent the two sub-regions differ significantly in terms of population, demographics, income, employment, health, access to services and benefits dependency.

Overall, the statistics show a younger, more economically active population in South West North than in South West South, with stronger transport links and access to services.  Taken as a whole, people living in the north of the region have greater access to professional, social and cultural opportunities than those living in Dorset, Devon and Cornwall.

This generalisation conceals the sub-region’s multi-faceted nature, however:  Bristol’s sleek Harbourside complex lies only 15 miles from the sea front at Weston-super-Mare.   As recent Government studies have shown, years of under-investment in coastal towns such as Weston, combined with poor transport infrastructures and a ready availability of cheap housing, have created real problems with social inclusion and integration.

More rural areas also contain pockets of deprivation, often too small to show up in statistics.  In such areas, low income and benefit dependency can easily hold young people back from developing their full potential, or drive them away;  especially when opportunities to develop skills, start businesses or find work are scarce.  These localities are not sufficiently visible – on the statistic radar – to attract the large-scale investment and funded which has kick-started regeneration in Cornwall and Devon, and which is beginning to make a measurable impact on economic and skills development.

Of course, whilst there are areas of outstanding natural beauty in the South West North sub-region, overall people enjoy a lower quality of environment and higher levels of pollution than those living in the South West’s westernmost counties.  The vibrancy and diversity of the cities of Bristol, Bath, Swindon, Salisbury and Gloucester are tempered by the problems associated with the poverty, high density housing and under resourcing found in any UK city.

The dynamic between the rural and urban is also an interesting characteristic of the sub-region, with the development of the larger conurbations – and especially Bristol –  heavily influencing both the composition and the nature of surrounding rural and coastal communities.

Musically speaking, the sub-region is rich and diverse.  County music services and music centres provide an essential backbone of peripatetic music teaching in school, together with county-based choirs, orchestras and other ensembles.  Ongoing ‘first access’ work takes place through REMIX, the Youth Music Action Zone for Bristol, often in collaboration with pre-schools and youth clubs.  At the same time there are ‘pathways to progression’ for the most promising young musicians and vocalists, through the newly established South West Music School, Bristol’s Regional Youth Music Awards, with its emphasis on urban music (see the Studio 7 website for more information) and our hosting of the prestigious National Youth Orchestra and National Childrens’ Orchestra both supported by Youth Music.

Individual music leaders and community music organisations play a key role in our sub-region, identifying opportunities for music to make a difference, and building the projects, partnerships and organisations to sustain this work.  There is a real energy and dedication in South West North, with organisations including Take Art, Community at Heart, Studio 7, The Groove Project, Creative Factory, Frome Festival and Forest of Dean Music Makers all achieving fantastic outcomes from time-limited Youth Music investment.

Youth Music’s policy from 2005-10 focuses on 5 priorities: early years; singing; transition between primary and secondary school; young people at risk; workforce development.

Visit the Regional Policy page for the South West North

To find out more about the South West region in statistics,  visit the South West Observatory website.