Welcome to 2026–27 | Working together for music education across Lincolnshire

Welcome to the new academic year!

I hope you have all had a restful summer and that the new term is getting off to a positive start.

I am delighted to be writing to you at the beginning of 2026–27 to introduce myself as Interim Head of Lincolnshire Music Service and Lincolnshire Music Education Hub for the Autumn Term. I will be working closely with colleagues, schools and partners over the coming months before we welcome Helen Murray, who will take up the role of Head of Service at the beginning of December.

I am incredibly excited about the year ahead and about continuing the strong relationships we have developed with schools across Lincolnshire. Our shared ambition remains simple: to provide excellent, inclusive and inspiring musical opportunities for every child and young person across our county.

Celebrating what we achieved together

Before looking forward, it is worth taking a moment to celebrate what we achieved together last year.

I am pleased to share our Lincolnshire Music Service Celebration Report 2025–26, which captures just some of the extraordinary work taking place across the county. It is a celebration not only of LMS, but of the partnership between our schools, families, tutors, young people and wider community.

Some of the figures are particularly worth celebrating:

• 96% of Lincolnshire schools engaged with Lincolnshire Music Service.
• 14,279 pupils received instrumental and/or singing lessons through LMS, with 100% reporting that they enjoyed their lessons.
• 6,000 young people accessed additional live music and workshop opportunities.
• 666 pupils accessed Music Centres and County Groups.
• 81% of pupils learning through whole-class instrumental opportunities received tuition free of charge through our partnership with schools.
• We delivered training and opportunities to more than 650 school-based teachers.
• 100% of schools described their partnership with LMS as good or better, and 100% described LMS as good value for money.
• Families rated the quality of LMS lessons exceptionally highly, with 96% describing them as good or better.
• We secured around £1.6 million in successful external grants, supporting further opportunities for children and young people.

Behind every one of these numbers is a child discovering something new, a young person developing confidence, a teacher finding a new way to engage a pupil, a family celebrating an achievement or a school creating an opportunity that may stay with a young person for life.

Thank you for being part of that success

A year of opportunity and possibility

There is no doubt that this will be an exciting and important year for education, and particularly for music and the wider cultural life of our schools.

Nationally, we are seeing significant developments in curriculum, enrichment, music education and the infrastructure supporting schools. These changes bring new opportunities to strengthen the place of music within the wider educational experience of children and young people.

For schools, our commitment is simple: you will continue to receive the same high-quality support, opportunities and partnership from Lincolnshire Music Service throughout this period of development and change.

We will keep you informed as developments emerge, help you make sense of what they mean in practice, and work alongside you to ensure that opportunities translate into positive experiences for your pupils.

We see this as a time to be curious, ambitious and optimistic about what the future can offer. There is a real opportunity to build on the excellent work already taking place across Lincolnshire and to ensure that even more children and young people can experience the creativity, confidence, belonging and joy that music can bring.

The Enrichment Framework – building a rich experience for every child

The new Enrichment Framework for Schools and Colleges provides a national framework to help schools plan, strengthen and evaluate their enrichment offer. It is non-statutory guidance, but it sets out a clear ambition that every child and young person should have access to a broad and meaningful range of experiences alongside the curriculum.

The framework encourages schools to consider whether their enrichment offer is:

• strategically aligned with the school’s priorities;
• broad and well-rounded;
• accessible and engaging;
• shaped by the school community;
• developed through partnership;
• focused on meaningful outcomes; and
• continually reviewed and improved.

Importantly, arts and culture are identified as a core area of enrichment, creating a significant opportunity for music.

For us, this is about more than simply counting the number of activities available to pupils. It is about considering the quality, breadth, accessibility and impact of those experiences.

Music can make a powerful contribution: from first musical experiences and whole-class opportunities, to ensembles, performances, creative projects, workshops, cultural experiences and pathways for those who want to progress further.

Over the coming year, LMS will continue to develop our support for schools in this area, including school-level conversations, curriculum and enrichment planning, CPD, inclusive practice, whole-class opportunities, ensembles, workshops, performances and progression pathways.

Our ambition is to be a partner in helping you build an enrichment offer that is rich, inclusive and meaningful — complementing your curriculum and responding to the needs and interests of your children and young people.

A new National Curriculum for Music

Alongside this, the Government is progressing significant changes to the National Curriculum.

The Government has committed to a reformed National Curriculum being taught from September 2028, with the final revised curriculum expected to be published in Spring 2027.

For music, the direction of travel is particularly exciting. The revised curriculum is intended to provide every child with a strong foundation in musical understanding, while supporting greater breadth across genres, musical traditions and performance styles.

The broad timeline is:

Autumn 2026
Curriculum development and consultation activity continues.

Spring 2027
The final revised National Curriculum is expected to be published.

September 2028
First teaching of the reformed National Curriculum.

September 2029 onwards
Reformed GCSEs begin to be introduced, followed by phased changes to A levels from 2031 onwards.

We recognise that curriculum change takes time, and that schools will want clear information and practical support.

You will not be expected to navigate these changes alone.

Lincolnshire Music Service will provide support to all schools as we move towards implementation. We will share updates as the national picture develops and, once the final curriculum is published, will work with schools to interpret the requirements and consider what they mean for curriculum planning, progression and musical opportunities within your own context.

There is no need to make wholesale changes in anticipation of a curriculum that has not yet been published. For now, this is an opportunity to understand, explore and prepare.

Turn It Up – a renewed national ambition for music

The publication of DCMS’s Turn It Up: Our Plan for Music marks an exciting moment for music education and the wider music sector.

The plan sets out an ambitious long-term vision for music, with a strong focus on ensuring that children and young people have opportunities to experience, enjoy and develop through music, regardless of their background or starting point.

One of the most significant developments arising from the plan is the creation of the National Centre for Arts and Music Education.

Introducing the National Centre for Arts and Music Education

The new National Centre is being established to provide national leadership and support for arts and music education, helping schools and teachers access high-quality professional development, resources and expertise.

Backed by £13 million of funding over three years, the Centre will have an important role in supporting schools as they prepare for the new National Curriculum.

Its work will include:

• providing Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and professional learning opportunities for teachers;
• supporting schools to prepare for and implement the reformed National Curriculum;
• sharing effective practice, resources and expertise across the education and music sectors;
• strengthening opportunities for children and young people to engage with music and the wider arts; and
• working alongside the Music Hub network to strengthen and support music education locally.

The Centre is due to launch during 2026, with its role developing further as the new curriculum is introduced. From August 2027, it is expected to take oversight of the existing Music Hub network, creating a stronger national infrastructure for music education and more consistent access to support across the country.

For schools, this is an exciting development. It means there will be additional national expertise, professional learning and resources available to support the development of music education.

Lincolnshire Music Service will continue to act as your local partner and advocate, helping to connect national developments with the needs of schools and communities here in Lincolnshire.

We will keep you informed about opportunities arising through the National Centre and, where appropriate, help schools access and make the most of the support available.

Together, these developments give us a real opportunity to strengthen music education — ensuring that every child and young person has the opportunity to learn, perform, create and thrive through music.

Ready and raring to go!

We are delighted to be back in schools this week following a hugely productive two days of INSET.

Our time together focused on our shared purpose and priorities for 2026–27, including opportunity, quality, inclusion and partnership. We explored what it means to learn something new, to take a risk, to listen to others and to create something together — ideas that feel particularly relevant as we begin a new year.

We are therefore ready and raring to go!

Our commitment to you remains to be a responsive, supportive and ambitious partner.

We will listen. We will share what we know. We will keep you informed about developments that matter to schools. We will provide practical support where you need it. And, most importantly, we will continue working alongside you to create excellent musical opportunities for children and young people across Lincolnshire.

There is a huge amount to look forward to.

Thank you for your continued partnership, your trust and your commitment to ensuring that children and young people across Lincolnshire have the opportunity to learn, perform, create and thrive through music.

I look forward to working with you throughout the Autumn Term and to meeting many more of you in schools over the coming weeks.

Here’s to a fantastic 2026–27!

Best wishes,

Sally Howley
Interim Head of Lincolnshire Music Service
Lincolnshire Music Education Hub