Today Arts Council England (ACE) announced the results of their most recent funding round for National Portfolio Organisations (NPO’s). Drake Music is a NPO and has received an uplift twice in previous rounds.
ACE have awarded Drake Music standstill funding for the period between 2018-22, to continue to work to break down disabling barriers to music.
Carien Meijer, Chief Executive of Drake Music commented:
“We are pleased to remain part Arts Council England portfolio over the coming years and to be recognised by the Arts Council as “Outstanding” in relation to two of their Strategic Goals: 1 & 5.
We believe that music is a human right and we welcome the opportunity to continue to programme innovative, ambitious work and support the many extraordinarily talented Disabled musicians we work with, as well as to reach out further and provide support and visibility for emerging Disabled musicians too. We will continue, over the next four years, to strive for artistic excellence, access and progression pathways in music-making and advocate for unparalleled inclusivity.
Drake Music will continue to:
– increase access to music-making with and for Disabled people of all ages and abilities
– support Disabled musicians to attain artistic excellence
– be innovative in our use of technology to break down barriers to music
– create a world where Disabled and non-disabled musicians work together as equals
ACE’s National Portfolio Organisation workforce research released last year shows that Disabled people are severely under-represented in the arts workforce, at all levels, so we welcome their decision to publish an Equality Analysis of the National Portfolio. This will help us understand the true picture of diversity within the National Portfolio and will help all the NPO organisations to work towards greater equality for all.”
A budget of £409 million will be available for the entire National Portfolio each year between 2018-22. This will include £341 million of grant-in-aid and £68 million of National Lottery funding.
The Arts Council use this funding to achieve their five strategic goals:
– Goal 1: excellence
– Goal 2: for everyone
– Goal 3: resilience and sustainability
– Goal 4: diversity and skills
– Goal 5: children and young people
This year increased funding has been awarded outside of London and to a more diverse range of organisations.
Our Work
- WATCH: Disabled musicians live at the ICA in London
- LISTEN: Tracks by Disabled musicians of all ages, from drum & bass to soundtracks
- READ: From Theory to Feely – composer James Rose discusses the use of iPads in music education
