Facts and Figures
Annual Report
Chair's introduction
2024 was a year of significant achievement for Young Sounds UK. In the spring we rebranded from Awards for Young Musicians: a change that has been well received by our young people and their parents and carers, by our supporters and more generally across the music education community. The new name has brought with it renewed energy and focus on our mission to give musically talented young people the chance to be the best they can be.
Working with others in an open and collaborative way is a core value of our organisation. We continued to strengthen our relationships and partnerships across the sector, particularly this year with the BBC, and we especially welcome a new four-year partnership with the Department for Education (DfE) to evaluate how best to support young people’s musical progression.
Of course the funding environment is as tough as ever, so we are particularly pleased that yet again we have been able to increase our annual income, this year by an impressive 36%. We are enormously grateful to all our supporters; public, trusts, individual donors and legators, who recognise the quality and value of what we do, and for our team’s professionalism and hard work.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank our whole team; trustees, staff and volunteers. It is their passion and commitment that makes Young Sounds UK such a great organisation.
Philip Jones
Chair of Trustees (now Chair Emeritus)
Thrive
Formerly known as Awards programme
197
Instrumentalists, singers and music creators offered Awards,
joining 217 young musicians already receiving support.
£85,600
in funding was granted, providing young musicians with instruments, travel, 1,248 instrumental lessons and much more
£18,688
Average household income of Award winners
41%
of Award winners identified as Global Majority, 11% as disabled
Our Thrive programme aims for the following outcomes for young people:
- Increased musical development as a result of the funding and experiences provided by the programme.
- Expanded musical horizons, skills, knowledge, experience and networks.
- Increased confidence and raised aspirations in pursuing a creative career, whether on or off the stage.
85% of Thrive participants agree that the programme has increased their ability to reach their musical goals.
85% say that the programme has increased their confidence in pursuing a musical career.
Our Thrive team and External Evaluator will use our young musicians’ feedback to develop the programme further and offer new opportunities. In early 2025 we also commissioned a Needs Analysis for the Thrive programme, to help inform the next few years of its development.
Connect
Formerly known as Furthering Talent
A look back at 2024
866
Young people participating in the programme
22
Partnerships with Music Education Hubs
13,180
Instrumental lessons delivered
32
Get Together events held
By being involved in Connect, we’re aiming for young people to:
- have an increased sense of ownership of their musical journey and to have experienced the joy of becoming better musicians, of discovering new music, and playing with others.
- have an increased self-belief, resulting from playing an instrument to the best of their ability and seeing themselves succeed musically.
Results from our termly surveys completed by Connect students and their teachers demonstrate the effectiveness of the programme.
Young people participating in Connect
90% of young people agreed or strongly agreed that they were more confident in playing their instrument.
89% of young people agreed or strongly agreed that they were comfortable trying new things.
95% of young people agreed or strongly agreed that Connect has given them the opportunity to access musical activities they otherwise wouldn’t have experienced.
85% of young people agreed or strongly agreed they have a say in what they do in their music lessons.
83% of young people agreed or strongly agreed that they did something they didn’t know they were capable of.
Teachers participating in Connect
89% of teachers said that being part of Connect has opened their mind to new possibilities.
78% of teachers said that being part of Connect has helped them to develop their student-centred teaching practice.
Discover
Formerly known as Identifying Talent
A look back at 2024
27 Training sessions
671 teachers reached
Innovate
Formerly known as Innovation and Research
We use our independent role in music education to lead new thinking and action on talent development. Across 2023 and 2024 we convened a national conversation with Music Mark, Youth Music and UK Music, supported by the DCMS and the DfE, looking at how music education and the music industry could work together more effectively to support young people’s individual journeys into the profession. With the change of government in July 2024 the focus has shifted, and Young Sounds are now at the forefront of discussions around the planned new National Centre for Arts and Music Education.
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Our EDI Committee continued to meet quarterly during the year, chaired by Trustee Beverley Mason, inputting into two major developments this year:
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion was at the heart of our motivation for changing our name: we believe it will help us reach more young people who need us, particularly those facing the most barriers to progressing musically. We believe it captures the incredible diversity of musical talent, creativity and energy that young people bring to our communities. It reinforces our commitment to embracing all musical genres and opens new conversations about the most sustainable ways for young people to flourish in dynamic and inclusive environments.
In 2024 we explored the findings of a cross-organisational benchmarking survey, carried out in late 2023, of everyone working with Young Sounds UK. We wanted to gain a better understanding of where each person is on their EDI journey. We held a series of focus groups to discuss these findings further, a thematic analysis of which will help us determine actions to take forward as an organisation. This process will enable us to continue to further our EDI ambitions and strengthen relationships with our stakeholders across the sector.
Hester Cockcroft
Chief Executive