Increased access and support for pupils with disabilities and/or with Special Educational Needs

Plenty of scaffolding and support, with differentiated materials during lessons. Teachers are able to help 1:1 with pupils, and LSA support is sometimes available. Some students have time out cards or can use a breakout room to help, especially in louder lessons where pupils are at higher risk of sensory overload. Seating plans created with access in mind.

Time Allocation for Music

Year 7 – 3 hours per fortnight

Year 8 – 2 hours per fortnight

Year 9 – 11 – 5 hours per fortnight

The Curriculum

Students explore all areas highlighted in the National Curriculum. In KS3 pupils regularly compose in a variety of ways, learn ways to describe music and practice them in application and learn to read rhythmic, treble, Tab and some bass notation.

They can explore the following instruments:

• Whole class ensemble singing
• Keyboard (including rehearsal strategies)
• Digital Audio Workstation
• Ukulele

These are all introduced in year 7 and continue being revisited in year 8.

Partnership

We partner with Greater Essex Music Hub and Essex Music Service to support musical opportunities for our pupils.

Available Qualifications

We currently offer OCR GCSE music for our KS4 students

The Music Service regularly enters students for graded music exams from prep to grade 8.   

Part B: Co-curricular music

This is about opportunities for pupils to sing and play music, outside of lesson time, including choirs, ensembles and bands, and how pupils can make progress in music beyond the core curriculum.

We partner with Essex Music Hub to offer 1:1 or small group instrumental lessons in drums, guitar, bass, piano, voice and woodwind. These lessons are largely funded by parents of the student, however there are exceptions:

Pupils are able to access Financial assistance from Essex Music Service for music lessons, instrument hire and county-led ensembles.
We are looking into how we can use the PPG budget to fund or subsidise able and eager pupils in music lessons
Pupils studying music for GCSE in years 9-11 have a 15 minute lesson paid for by the school

A tutor from Essex Music Hub also runs a guitar ensemble.

We advertise external opportunities for expanding music making outside of the building.

Ensembles

Essex Music Hub runs Tendring Music School, which students are able to attend on a Saturday at Manningtree High School.

Pupils are welcome to practice in the music block on break times and lunchtimes

Part C: Musical experiences

This is about all the other musical events and opportunities that we organise, such as singing in assembly, concerts and shows, and trips to professional concerts.

We currently have the following dates in the calendar for the 2024-25 academic year:

24^th October p3 – Year 7 Singing Competition

26^th November 5.30-6.30 – Y10 recital evening

5^th December 5.45-7.30 – Music and Dance Winter Showcase (years 7-11)

12^th December p2 – Year 8 Singing Competition

28^th January 5.30-6.30 – y11 recital evening

19th, 20th, 21^st March 7-8.15 – school show (auditioned students years 7-10)

28^th March p4 onwards – Music Performance at Charter Hall (select groups y7-11)

3^rd July 5.45-7.30 – Music and Dance Summer Showcase (years 7-11)

We will have additional opportunities for performance throughout the year, including busking, awards afternoon, assemblies and compositional days.

There will be a trip opportunity to a West End show. Other departments in the school also offer opportunities to go to watch musicals. On previous trips we have been to watch Frozen and Sister Act at the West End. Other musical theatre trips runs by the school have included Everybody’s Talking About Jamie and Mrs Doubtfire.

Many of the events will be attended by other students in the school who will gain experience of watching live performance.

Trips will be charged to the students but we will try to do this is in the most economic way possible. PPG pupils can be part subsidised by the school.

We will try to have IE Music is again to lead a songwriting workshop. They came in last year, subsidised by Essex Music Hub, and the experience was invaluable to our pupils.

In the future

This is about what the school is planning for subsequent years.

The current items are in our Subject Development Plan:

• Continue using key terminology from year 7 – pupils verbally and in writing describe music using target language
• Carry on embedding and continuously practising composition throughout the curriculum
• Practice exam style listening questions from year 8 onwards
• Carry on building department culture so that music is a subject/environment the students enjoy and value
• Increased singing in KS3 curriculum
• Look at possibility of combining concerts/performances with drama/dance showcases, art showcases etc
• Narrow the gap of attainment at GCSE
• Increase offer of live performance to all students in KS3 (performances in assemblies)

The timescale for all items is by next July 2025

Eventually we would also like to see a rise in the number of students playing string and brass instruments as we currently have no tuition in either family. With this, we would also like to grow a classical group within the school. We are currently pointing students towards external opportunities.

Further information (optional)

• Essex Music Service have produced a Parent’s Guide to Music Provision which gives parents valuable information about supporting their child’s music education.
• Essex Music Service Schools Brochure 2024-25
• Greater Essex Music Hub Local Plan for Music Education – Information for schools will be coming in September 2024