Youth Music column: a funding crisis threatening grassroots music

As funding across the sector reaches a historic low, many grassroots organisations are under threat. These diverse music projects providing critical services to young people are at risk of closure. This has been exacerbated by economic shocks from significant events in recent years, such as Brexit and Covid, and now the cost-of-living crisis, which is taking its toll on the sustainability of projects nationwide.

These projects provide huge support and inspiration to young people across the UK and are instrumental to their musical and creative development.

Ezra Collective, the winners of the 2023 Mercury Music Prize, attributed their win to grassroots projects, saying: ‘Ezra Collective represents something really special because we met in a youth club. This is a special moment for every single organisation across the country ploughing their efforts and time into young people playing music.’

My colleague Carol Reid, programme director at Youth Music, shared her concerns about the funding crisis, explaining: ‘Grassroots music projects are working with young people day in, day out. They provide a warm, safe space for young people to hang out, giving them opportunities to express themselves, and get validation when its often missing from other parts of their lives. This is one of the most vital parts of our music ecosystem yet it doesn't get afforded the same attention as other areas.’

Funding cuts in the sector have led to increased competition between those projects remaining, while donations from the general public have progressively declined. Paired with the rising pressures of a cost-of-living crisis, this can leave grassroots organisations facing the decision of either diversifying their income or closing their doors, leaving parents without a safe space to send their kids to after school or at weekends.

Youth Music-funded partner DJ School UK recently had to give up their venue due to the financial challenges they'd be facing. Founder Jim Reiss told us: ‘Without our space we will no longer be able to raise any private income through one-to-one and group sessions. We will no longer be able to raise grant funding or have a space to run our long-running inclusive DJ clubs. We will no longer be able to plan, deliver and evaluate our own projects independently. We will no longer be available in the long term to those children and young people with chaotic lives.’

Within an educational setting, we know that funding cuts are causing a huge impact on music learning. The vital role of music in an educational setting is not to be underestimated – it builds skills, knowledge and behaviours that will be essential for the nation's future economic success and plays a huge role in supporting young people's wellbeing. We should collectively be capitalising on young people's love of music and their individual musical identities, to help make music an indispensable part of life in and out of school.

Youth Music's mission is to make sure every young person can make, learn and earn in music, and we want to thank our funders, partners and sponsors for their crucial ongoing support. We know exactly where more help is needed, and together, we can ensure the future of music is more creative, more diverse and more inclusive.

youthmusic.org.uk