Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 27 November 2023 to Question 2118 on Music: education, what the cost to the public purse was of (a) consultations and (b) legal advice on proposals to change the structure of music education hubs.

As set out in the Answer to Question 2118, as part of the refreshed National Plan for Music Education, published in June 2022, the government set out its intention to re-compete the hubs lead organisation (HLO) role and reduce the number of HLOs. Alongside these reforms, the Department also committed significant funding for the Music Hubs programme, with £79 million per annum revenue funding to academic year 2024/25 and an additional £25 million capital for instruments and musical equipment.

Music Hubs are partnerships co-ordinated by a HLO and made up of schools and academy trusts, local authorities, music and wider arts and education organisations and charities, community or youth organisations, and more. When launched in 2012, there were 123 Music Hubs covering the 152 upper-tier local authority (LA) areas in England. Following various transfers and restructures over the last ten years, there are now 118 HLOs: 98 covering single LA areas and 20 covering multi-LA areas. These changes reflect the approach which other similar initiatives and infrastructure that are relevant to the lives of children and young people have taken, including Teaching School Hubs, English and Maths Hubs, Multi Academy Trusts, Local Enterprise Partnerships and Sport England’s Active Partnerships.

Having 43 HLOs working across a wider set of music education partnerships from September 2024 should bring significant benefits to children, young people and schools, as HLOs will be able to more strategic, building stronger partnerships with schools, academy trusts, local authorities and others, resulting in high quality support in every local area and to ensure there are no local ‘cold spots’ where access to provision is limited. This should also support a more consistent high quality approach to music education for all children regardless of where they live or go to school, by offering:

• improved and more equitable access to a diverse range of musical activities, opportunities, teachers, instruments and equipment
• greater consistency of provision and ability to scale up effective programmes and ways of working for children and young people and schools
• greater access to more advanced ensembles and a wider range of progression opportunities
• greater access to the cultural capital centred around urban centres, thus improving connections and reducing isolation for rural communities
• more strategic leadership and governance, plus a wider range of employment opportunities and progression routes for the music education workforce
• access to greater resources, capacity and capability to use government funding to leverage further investment, and
• an increased profile with wider musical stakeholders and a stronger connection with the music industry.

The current Music Hubs investment programme led by Arts Council England (ACE) is due to conclude next year, with newly competed HLOs commencing from September 2024. In relation to costs competition and legal costs to date, the department has provided funding to ACE to deliver the investment programme and, as part of this programme, ACE has spent a total of £21,000 on consultation and legal advice. The department has also sought specialist legal advice in relation to aspects of the competition, and has spent a total of £29,000.