Children with physical impairments in Bradford, Devon and Lincolnshire are to be given the opportunity to participate fully in whole class music-making.
Following successful bids for funding from Arts Council England’s National Lottery Project, the three areas will be able to roll out the OHMI Music-Makers Whole Class Programme, which seeks to give physically impaired children the same opportunities as their peers to participate in class music-making. This is achieved through assessing and providing adapted instruments or equipment to match those being used in the classroom; and guiding and supporting music hubs and teachers in how to include students with physical impairments in the music class.
The programme also offers a wide range of instruments for hire via the Instrument Hire Scheme.
The three original participant music services in the programme – Birmingham, Nottingham and Northamptonshire – are in the process of completing their third and final year of testing; Central Bedfordshire, Southampton and Liverpool are in their second year.
OHMI Trust General Manager Rachel Wolffsohn, said: ‘We’re delighted that Arts Council England has recognised the value of extending the service for another year in our six existing areas and to launch our delivery through Bradford Music & Arts Service, Devon Music Education Hub and Lincolnshire Music Service. We now have a good spread of geographies, sizes and ways of operating whole-class music programmes, which means we can test applicability across the board and build the most robust model for future years.’
Bradford Music & Arts Service, Devon Music Education Hub and Lincolnshire Music Service all applied to be part of the OHMI Music-Makers programme after attending the ‘Introduction to Music-Making for Physically Disabled Children’ CPD course.
Bradford Music & Arts Service’s Head of Service Carl White said: ‘OHMI’s support in helping us to identify and assess the needs of our students well ahead of lessons will make such a difference to those who live with a disability and who might otherwise not be afforded the opportunity to play alongside their peers. We’re very much looking forward to seeing the benefits of this roll-out in the next academic year.’
More information on OHMI Music-Makers including a short video featuring some of its participants is available here.
