February 2004

Youth music-making could be better supported if the wide range of formal and informal music education providers shared opportunities for training and continuing professional development (CPD), according to new research.
 
The good news is that all sectors are interested in cross-sector training initiatives. Despite their different ways of working there is “growing evidence that a traditional divide between formal and informal music making provision is breaking down.” 
 
The research, Towards a Youth Music Makers’ Network, was carried out during 2003 by Sound Sense, the UK development agency for community music. It was commissioned and funded by national charity Youth Music, which funds and facilitates music-making for young people who might otherwise lack opportunity.
 
Key findings include:

• While the formal music education sector (music services) and the informal sector (community music and youth services) work in different ways, both are interested in cross-sector CPD initiatives. “There is the best opportunity yet for closer collaboration between the formal and informal sectors," says the report.
  
  
• Across the sectors, both musicians and those using their services had mixed opinions on the value of and need for formal accreditation of learning. The report recommends a more pluralistic approach: “a way of threading together all learning experiences and ensuring they have validity and acceptance” which it calls The Patchwork.
  
  
• A lack of training opportunities is not a key problem: uptake of what’s available is of more concern. As there is already a “glut of information provision”, this has to be handled in very focused ways. Training opportunities need to be marketed across sectors.
  
  
• Those hiring musicians for work want to know more about them: who’s available; how can they be sure of quality.
  
  
• To ensure equity, all initiatives must continually take into account the needs of musicians working outside the dominant cultures and disabled musicians.
  
  
• Musicians frequently mention the same barriers to taking up CPD: money and time on the one hand; and a lack of knowledge of what’s available on the other.
  
  
• There were clear messages from both sectors as to the sort of professional development they wanted. Networking and conferences were high on the list.

The report’s recommendations have been swiftly acted upon, by both Sound Sense and Youth Music. 
 
Sound Sense is preparing a plan to improve the availability of CPD information by linking into existing professional development information systems including CreativePeople, the national network of providers of information, advice and guidance on CPD for artists; and Arts Connect, the web search engine for the arts. It is looking for funding to develop the Patchwork concept. 
 
In collaboration with Youth Music, Sound Sense will develop joint professional development across the formal and informal sectors. And, in conjunction with developers NAWE (National Association of Writers in Education), it is promoting artscape, the new national web-based directory of artists in formal education. artscape is the first directory to include information on quality issues; entry is conditional on musicians providing a clean and recent CRB disclosure, evidence of engagement with CPD, valid insurances and references.
 
Kathryn Deane, Sound Sense Director, comments: "Young people these days learn their music making through a mix of formal and informal provision, but we don’t make it easy for those who support them to work together. Our research has shown that it won’t take much to make the necessary connections, and we’re excited at being able to take the report’s recommendations so quickly forward."
 
Youth Music is committed to developing programmes that tackle learning and skills development for music leaders. As a direct result of the research, it has appointed Rachel Gardiner to the new post of national learning and skills coordinator. Her remit is to support the development and implementation of Youth Music’s Learning and Skills Programme.

Download YMMN summary (100KB PDF)
Download YMMN report (235KB PDF)
Download YMNN appendices (448KB PDF)