MIA NEWS an update from your industry trade association
MIA dealer members
involved in school
initiatives
The Henley Review M
any of you will have seen the news about this important review,
ordered by Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Education. The MIA has received many submissions from both shops and suppliers in relation to the review. I would like to extend a big thank-you to everyone who either sent their thoughts directly to the government or sent them to the MIA.
SO, WHAT’S BEEN HAPPENING? The MIA was asked to present the case for the musical instrument industry direct to the Henley Review. It is (rightly) understood by Darren Henley, the MD of Classic FM and the man charged with conducting the review, that without our industry, there would be no music education in schools. On November 2nd, various MIA members met with Henley, along with Dick Hallum (director of the National Music Participation) and representatives from the Department for Education and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.
70 miPRO DECEMBER 2010
The final report from the MIA contained industry-related matters and thoughts that are pertinent to music education. It was not aimed at turning everything on its head, but the MIA felt it was important to recognise that music education can be excellent and we have some amazing examples of schools and local authorities teaching children music. Equally, there are many examples where this is not the case.
There was no point going to the review pretending that the status quo
“
was acceptable. Paul McManus
We have many shops and
suppliers that work closely with schools throughout the country and we had to make sure that the variance in the quality of delivery of musical education was tabled. There was no point going to the review pretending that the status quo was acceptable.
tendering process excludes the majority of UK shops from the market. A form of over 20 pages needs to be completed for a retailer to supply a local authority. This is prohibitive. 2. The need to source quality
musical instruments for school children. The current sourcing format encourages ‘lowest
The full MIA report is available
to anyone in the industry (e-mail
paulmc@mia.org.uk if you would like a copy).
WHAT WAS RECOMMENDED? For the purpose of this article, what follows is an update on the four major themes concentrated on during the meeting. 1. The need to review the methods of sourcing musical instruments for school children. The current buearocratic
local music shop in to the local education authority. There are many shops marginalised from local schools by virtue of the two points above. This is a lost opportunity, when local shops can be a source of supply and support to schools. 4. The need to ensure that
schools have access to a number of educational providers in order to offer music education services that best suit the children. There is a vast range of education providers in the UK that include music services, music shop teaching academies, online tuition providers, networks of teaching schools, such as Roland/Musical Futures,
Paul McManus looks at the progress of Darren Henley’s commissioned review of music education and puts forward the the contribution the MIA has made in the form of an evaluation report, making the case for the value of quality….
common denominator’ prices and results in many instruments ending up in schools that are not giving children the best chance to learn. There are hidden costs with these instruments regarding repair and maintenance and the warranties are not always fit for purpose. Equally, there are shops that can’t carry out work on unknown brands. The report focused on value for money in future sourcing. 3. The need to integrate the
Charanga, Scamps, Yamaha Music Schools and so on. We stressed the need for a level playing field for all providers. VAT charging for lessons is a good example. It is clear that changes are inevitable, if for no other reason than government cost-cutting, and we will have to monitor events closely. The MIA is represented at
board level on the major education bodies and it will be part of an ongoing dialogue on the Henley Review. Furthermore, the MIA’s education committee met to discuss any further steps and all MIA members are welcome to contribute their thoughts.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? Henley will probably compile his report and recommendations in time for the Christmas break. This means that Gove is unlikely to make any announcements until the New Year. A lot of current funding arrangements relating to schools and local authorities are due for renewal in 2011/12.
In the meantime, let us hope we have been heard.
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