Working with young people

Peter Morris, Music Director of Wolverhampton Symphony Orchestra and former Chair of Wolverhampton City Music Education Hub, tells us about the symphony orchestra working together with the city's youth orchestra, via the music hub.

Background

Wolverhampton Symphony Orchestra (WSO) is a thriving group now celebrating its 50th anniversary. We have around 70 regular players and have always had a strong relationship with the city’s music service through the number of instrumental teachers who have played with the orchestra.

In this recording of our webinar, we introduced the new Making Music Safe service in partnership with Brass Bands England (BBE), which will provide members with the information and tools required to comply with legislation around child performance.

The tailor-made child licensing service, making it easier for you to include young people in your performances

What is MMSafe?

Making Music's MMSafe service offers members access to a national BOPA (Body of Persons Approval) covering England and Wales, administered by Brass Bands England but for all types of music groups, as a low admin option. This comprehensive programme provides you with all the necessary resources, tools and training you need to navigate the challenges of safeguarding for your leisure-time music group.

This resource is about using Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks in England and Wales as part of safeguarding when working with people and groups at risk, such as children or vulnerable adults. 

For broader information on the topic of safeguarding children, see our guidance covering the main principles and your responsibilities.

What is social prescribing and how can your music group benefit from it?

Social prescribing is part of the relatively new NHS personalised care programme and a way for GPs and local agencies to refer people to a link worker, who takes a holistic approach to people’s health and wellbeing. They then connect people to community groups and statutory services for practical and emotional support.

In this recording of our webinar (original event 23 September 2022), guest speakers discussed the national plans for music education in the UK nations.

We welcomed:

In this recording of our webinar (original event 20 May 2022), guest speakers discussed what social prescribing is and how it could be a huge opportunity for music groups. 

Social prescribing is a key feature of the NHS’ long-term plan, which aims to strengthen the link between the local community and social activities such as music, sport, and arts. In this webinar, we discussed who does the prescribing, what kind of people are referred and what it would mean for your group to become ‘social prescribing friendly’.

We welcomed: