Dance and Music: Education

(asked on 1st November 2021) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment his Department has made of the cost-effectiveness of the Music and Dance Scheme; and if he will make a statement.


Answered by
Robin Walker Portrait
Robin Walker
This question was answered on 8th November 2021

The department has a long-term commitment to ensuring that high-quality dance and music education is not the preserve of the elite, but the entitlement of every single child.

The Music and Dance Scheme (MDS) allows exceptionally talented children to attend specialist music and dance education providers. The scheme provides bursaries and grants totalling around £30 million per annum to children and young people with exceptional potential, regardless of their personal circumstances, to benefit from world-class specialist music or dance training.

The department regularly assesses the effectiveness and cost effectiveness of all programmes, including the MDS. The department is working with MDS providers to improve the information collected from them each year, so future assessments can be improved.

Following the Spending Review, the department will continue to invest around £115 million per annum in cultural education over the next three years, though our music, arts and heritage programmes, and this includes the Music and Dance Scheme.

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