In a U-turn announced on 15 August, the DfE has committed to providing music hubs previously not eligible for funding with additional payments to cover their contribution towards the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) until March 2025.
The decision was made after pressure to reconsider was brought to bear by the ISM, Musicians’ Union and Music Mark, and by evidence given at the Education Select Committee on 21 May.
Following the Select Committee hearing, chair Robin Walker MP wrote to the government, expressing concern at how the removal of support from non-local-authority-based hubs for employer contributions to the TPS had resulted in hubs exiting the scheme, with 1,100 teachers affected.
The Committee heard, from the ISM, how some music teachers could lose access to the TPS forever.
Arts Council England (ACE) responded by sending an email to hubs in which it said: ‘The Department for Education has reviewed the information provided and has agreed to provide funding to cover the TPS contribution for non-local authority employer organisations who are Hub Lead Organisations (HLOs) or partners in music hubs, from September 2024 to March 2025.’
ACE also outlined steps that should be taken by hubs who believe they are eligible for the funding.
In a statement from the ISM, its chief executive Deborah Annetts said, ‘It’s very welcome that the new Government has listened and provided additional TPS support which will help ISM members who work in hubs. However, this decision could have been taken earlier in 2024. It comes too late for some hubs, who have already left the TPS.’
Music hubs were created in response to the Conservative government’s National Plan for Music Education, published in 2022. The creation of 116 hubs to provide music across communities, including in schools, followed. From September 2024, and following a bidding process, these will be replaced by 43 new Hub Lead Organisations, or HLOs.
