The creative sector is a key generator of economic growth for the UK and is respected across the world. Education & skills are key to both its ongoing success and to continue to improve it in the future.

As an important part of this sector the music industry will play a major role in driving this growth, but to achieve its full potential the industry will need to recruit and retain the best trained, talented, and diverse work force.

UK Music has put in place a series of programmes, projects and initiatives to help ensure this happens.

The work started with a Government and CBI-backed Skills Academy for Music – the first of its kind in the country. One of the live industry’s most experienced and respected promoters at the time (he has since retired), Live Nation’s CEO Paul Latham was the Academy’s patron.

The Academy developed the Music Academic Partnership (MAP) which continues to go from strength to strength and sees industry working with academics and educators to ensure students in Britain’s colleges and universities have the best chance of finding a job in any part of the music industry. MAP runs careers sessions, masterclasses, networking events and undertakes guest lectures as well as running the Outstanding MAP Graduate Awards (OMGs) and linking lecturers and academics with the top echelons of the music industry. UK Music works with MAP members on outreach as well linking with schools and potential students through events such as BBC Introducing LIVE (running the Careers Fair), the Skills Show in the NEC and through publications such as the UK Music Careers Pack, the Music Education Directory and CareerMap ‘Spotlight on Music’ editions.

Apprenticeships are becoming ever more central to the employment landscape in music. Not only do they offer a way to earn while you learn – thus improving diversity in the music industry – but they also create fantastic bonds between employer and apprentice that lead to excellent ongoing professional relationships and often result in employment following the apprenticeship. UK Music has worked hard to advise and lead the music industry on these as well as working in partnership with other creative sector bodies to try to ensure they are as relevant as possible for the creative industries. UK Music has worked closely with the Creative Industries Council and Creative & Cultural Skills on this and is in the process of developing three completely new apprenticeships in the music industry.

We have worked on developing better career resources including our own Careers Pack and job profiles. We have also worked in partnership with other creative industries to develop the  Discover! Creative Careers website and activity week as well as training for Enterprise Coordinators across schools in England.

The Academy also created with funding from DCMS a national network of high quality education partners to nurture grass roots talent. UK Music’s network of Rehearsal Spaces can be found throughout the country. Now over 10 years since inception the project will undergo a review in 2021 as we look to the future.

UK Music leads the industry’s work on diversity with the Diversity Task Force and Diversity Report vital pieces of the work being undertaken to better understand the issues and improve the situation.