I'm Graeme Smith, head of Croydon Music Service and a member of the Music Manifesto Partnership and Advocacy Group (MMPAG). All of us in the MMPAG have a passion for music education and we share a belief that it is so important that every child should have real access to it. At the first meeting it was encouraging to hear the ambition of government articulated by Andrew Adonis, the schools minister, which was then backed up by the funding announcement. We now have the exciting, if not a little daunting, task of delivery. In Croydon we have three main priorities:

Firstly there is the three-year plan we are developing using the additional funding to ensure every child has their Wider Opportunities year of free instrumental tuition. Secondly, we are looking at the musical experience children will have either side of their Wider Opportunities year. We want to support schools in developing a holistic musical offer, joining up the singing and instrumental strategies with curriculum music.

Then there is the question of moving into KS3. This week I attended a fascinating meeting with colleagues in NAME (National Association of Music Educators) where we discussed Musical Futures and the Secondary National Strategy KS3 music materials in the context of the new secondary curriculum. There is much good practice out there to draw on.

Our third priority is related to the aim in the government's Children's Plan to give all children, regardless of background, top quality cultural opportunities in and out of school, working towards a five hour offer. Music and the arts have much to contribute to the Every Child Matters outcomes, by developing creativity and cultural understanding, by being a part of programmes such as SEAL (social and emotional aspects of learning), and by supporting literacy, numeracy and foreign languages; in fact, by being a natural part of any learning because music and the arts are a natural part of life.

We are planning a conference to demonstrate and celebrate the contribution cultural activities can make, and like the State of Play last year, and Music Learning Live last week, we plan to involve musicians, artists and young people themselves. However, our remit will be wider. Following the recommendation in Ken Robinson's inspirational speech at State of Play, we are seeking to make links with others who have the same beliefs in the nature and purpose of education, culture and creativity.

Graeme Smith

Head of Croydon Music Service

(from Music Manifesto News)