AQW 6789/22-27 Written question to the Minister of Education
To ask the Minister of Education how much has been invested in music education in (i) formal; and (ii) non-formal education settings, in each of the last five years.
Asked by Sian Mulholland MLA on 16 February 2024
- Answered
- Written
- Tabled
- 16 February 2024
- Answer due by
- 4 March 2024
- Answered
- 26 February 202410 days after tabling
- Department
- Department of Education
- Priority question
- No
Answer
In the last five years the Education Authority (EA) has allocated the following amounts from its total block grant budget towards its Music Service. Some additional resource was allocated in 2020-21 and 2021-22 to mitigate the impact of the pandemic on Music Service delivery.
| Year | Block Grant (Core) £k | Covid Funding - To facilitate online tuition £k | Covid Funding - Loss of Music Service Income £k | Total £k |
| 2023-24 | 5,232* | - | - | 5,232 |
| 2022-23 | 4,360 | - | - | 4,360 |
| 2021-22 | 4,985 | 22 | - | 5,007 |
| 2020-21 | 5,703 | 31 | 732 | 6,466 |
| 2019-20 | 5,081 | - | - | 5,081 |
*Latest forecast spend as per the EA’s January 2024 Monthly Expenditure Monitoring Report.
Furthermore, schools receive delegated budgets through the Common Funding Scheme to enable Boards of Governors and Principals to use resources in accordance with individual school’s needs and priorities, including effective delivery of the curriculum. It is for schools to determine how much of this funding is attributed to music in terms of curriculum delivery.