Ambitious plan to boost charity’s position as leading music hub

Birmingham education charity Services For Education has launched an ambitious plan to build on its award-winning position as one of the country’s leading music hubs and providers of support to schools both in and beyond Birmingham.

Its newly published Strategy for 2025-2028 commits the £7m turnover charity to being recognised as one of the leading organisations in the UK in delivering music education and opportunities to inspire children, young people and the communities of Birmingham in their love of music, and to further expand its Advisory Services to enable schools and other education places to improve educational and safeguarding outcomes.

The strategy follows a comprehensive consultation programme with schools, community representatives, stakeholders and its leadership teams and builds on the charity’s previous five-year plan.

Last year, Services For Education was selected by Arts Council England as one of 43 new Music Hub Lead Organisations in an ambitious national programme to provide high-quality music education for all children and young people.

Sharon Bell (pictured), chief executive of Services For Education – which was created in 2012 and now employs more than 200 specialist educators and teachers – said Birmingham could be proud of its achievements in education but that it wanted to now build on its national reputation.

“We have been recognised as one of the leading and most dynamic music hubs in the country, teaching music each week to 32,000 children, and supporting nearly 600 schools in Birmingham and beyond to ensure teachers are best equipped to respond to developments in curriculum and policy,” said Sharon.

“At the heart of our approach, is a belief that learning an instrument or singing should be open to all - because such experiences provide long-term skills in all disciplines - and that our schools and teachers deserve support that enables them to meet the demands that are being placed on them.

“We are proud of our expertise in specialist fields where for instance, we undertake pioneering work in special education needs, safeguarding and world music. In recent years, we have also significantly expanded our free music ensembles so that children can benefit from the widest choice in music education.

The strategy replaces Services For Education’s previous five-year plan and reflects a deliberate shift to a three-year horizon to enable the charity to better respond to today’s dynamic external environment where agility and responsiveness are more important than ever.

“This is a commitment to excellence, to collaboration, and to making a meaningful difference in the lives of children, young people, and educators. Our ambition is clear – to bring music and learning to the lives of thousands more young people,” added Sharon. 

Further information on the strategy is available HERE.