Furthering Talent

Furthering Talent helps musicians from the earliest stage in their musical journey.

The move from primary to secondary school is a transition where many musically talented young people get lost. Furthering Talent is specifically designed to help young people from low income families sustain their musical learning after initial state-funded whole-class lessons end, so they can keep on progressing and playing music well into their teens and beyond.

Everyone selected for the programme receives weekly instrumental tuition for a minimum of two academic years, as well as wider help for their musical progression in the form of an Individual Learning Plan. If they continue to show commitment and musical progress, then we’ll support them for at least another year, helping boost both their musical learning and achievements.

To identify young people we work closely with our partners, including schools and Music Education Hubs to find the young people who could benefit most from our help. Many are living in challenging circumstances, which makes effective communication with them, their families and their schools even more critical. We're currently working in partnership with 14 Hubs across England. With Youth Music’s help we're now supporting upwards of 500 young people across England. The programme currently has a 91% continuation rate.

Described as ‘overwhelmingly successful’ by music education expert Richard Hallam, in his external evaluation of the programme’s impact (January 2013), Furthering Talent has received significant support from Youth Music over a number of years.  We were also a founding member of the Alliance for a Musically Inclusive England. The work has been made possible by funding from the National Lottery via Arts Council England.