Music education: The Labour Party's view

Music education is my life's work. I don't make this statement lightly. Most teenagers engaging with the joys of music-making want to be rock stars, but I knew I was going to be a teacher quite early on. Before finding my niche in an inner-London primary school, I worked my way through a wide variety of educational settings: state, independent, selective, mixed, single-sex and special educational needs and disabilities (SEND). I've even made this profession my hobby: I spend Saturday mornings working with ensembles at a local music hub.

So when the opportunity arose last November to meet with the Shadow Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, I wasn't short of subject matter to bring to the table. Should the Labour Party find itself in government in the not-too-distant future, that table is already looking as cluttered as most teachers' desks in the last week of the summer term. It's doubtless that by January 2025 the ministerial in-tray will overflow with a host of legacy issues; among these is an inspectorate deemed ‘not fit for purpose’ and found, by an inquest, to have contributed to the death of a headteacher. Add to this the lack of funding and (literally) crumbling infrastructure, and Phillipson could be forgiven for having bigger fish to fry than the concerns of a lowly music teacher such as myself. But this Member of Parliament cares about the detail as well as the bigger picture.