Music and Dance Scheme

Baroness Keeley Excerpts

Tuesday 24th June 2025 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Baroness Keeley]

To ask His Majesty’s Government whether they will continue to invest in the Music and Dance Scheme, including in the National Dance Centres for Advanced Training programme, to support dance careers for young people from deprived backgrounds.

[The Minister of State, Department for Education (Baroness Smith of Malvern) (Lab)]

My Lords, improved access to the arts is important for all young people, which is why the Government are committed to continuing to fund the music and dance scheme, including the centres for advanced training, in the academic year 2025-26. The bursary support will continue for the more than 2,000 students benefiting from it, and at the same rate. It will remain means tested, so that it is targeted towards supporting students from lower-income families.

[Baroness Keeley (Lab)]

I thank my noble friend the Minister for her reply. I, too, welcome that DfE has confirmed the continued funding for bursaries, at least for 2025-26. However, there is no commitment beyond 2026 and DfE did cut the outreach funding for the schemes earlier this year. Can my noble friend tell me what steps the Government will take to ensure that young people from rural or economically disadvantaged areas continue to have equal access to dance training, given that short-term funding cycles create instability in delivery, and that outreach funding has already been cut?

[Baroness Smith of Malvern (Lab)]

The Government will launch a new centre for arts and music education to take forward the ambitions, which my noble friend rightly asks of us, for improved and more equitable arts education in state-funded schools, including a focus on dance. The music and dance scheme is a long-standing programme and the department will consider future funding in due course. Tough decisions have had to be made to get our finances back under control, including, as my noble friend identifies, on additional funding that was made available to dance outreach. Nevertheless, all eligible MDS students for dance have continued to receive bursaries.