Schools: Music and Drama Access

Baroness Wolf of Dulwich Excerpts

Tuesday 17th December 2024 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent (Lab)]

I thank the noble Lord and reassure him that our independent review is about the curriculum and assessment. We look forward to the recommendations that will come forward in due course. I agree with the noble Lord that this is a success story, with £124 billion as part of our economic development and 2.4 million jobs. We need to make sure we get this right.

[Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (CB)]

My Lords—

[Lord Dobbs (Con)]

My Lords—

[Noble Lords]

Cross Bench!

[Baroness Wolf of Dulwich (CB)]

My Lords, in the years before we had a national curriculum, this country was a world leader in the amount of music and drama that took place in its schools, and there were worries at the time that we introduced it that everything that was not mandated would be excluded. Could the Minister comment on whether the curriculum review that is going on will look not only at what should be mandated to schools but at whether they will have any space to do things that are not decided in Whitehall?