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On Tuesday 28 November 2023, four young people from Southampton took to the main stage in the ballroom at the Ageas Bowl to share music and a presentation at the national Music Mark Conference for music educators.

Lorenza opened the conference with a performance of an original song she wrote and produced, and was followed by rapper Tommy T.

To explore the theme of “Who’s music education is it anyway?” Lorenza was joined by Carla and Sukhi in a panel discussion with Matt Brombley (Development and Inclusion Manager for Southampton and IOW Music Hub) and Sarah Mcwyatt (NYMAZ). The presentation also included a special video appearance from Ben (a young music journalist from NYMAZ) who answered questions from Carla.

The panel got to explore a range of themes, including:

• the importance of giving young people more choice

• making music education more relevant, reflective and representative

• empowering young people with a wide range of skills and experiences

The session was part of our Youth Voice Network project, kindly funded by Youth Music.

Later on in the day, Nia Collins (Southampton and IOW Music Hub) and rap artist Rob Bradley also go to share the impact of the Rap and Literacy project, kindly funded by Paul Hamlyn Foundation. Alongside a panel of other innovative rap and hip hop initiatives such as Spit Game, Future Music Makers and Kenny Baraka a discussion about the importance of relevency and authenticity in the music curriculum and as a progression pathway for young people is so important.

Calling all Young People in Southampton: What does Southampton mean to you? (Southampton’s Image)

Southampton Youth Partnership is inviting young people aged 25 and under to provide us with images and words that say something about;

• What it is like being a young person in Southampton?

• What represents Southampton to you?

  This is an invitation for you to submit an image (drawn, painted, collaged, photographed or digitally created) or piece of poetry (written, spoken, rapped or sung). We particularly welcome responses from young people across the city who might have different perspectives that they would like to share or think that their views are often under-represented.

  Prizes – for the top 3 submissions that made us really think about what Southampton means to you (as judged by a panel of young people from the city) we will award a £25 ‘One 4 All’ gift voucher. Every submission will receive a participation thank you certificate.

• Closing date – March 21st 2023

• Submission – Email your work to syp@artswork.org.uk or post to Youth Options, Crescent House, The Crescent, Eastleigh SO50 9SX – use the title SYP Competition
  Please include your name, age and contact information with your submission.

• This information sheet is available in other accessible formats including large print and audio.

• Please email syp@artswork.or.uk for more details.

What is Southampton Youth Partnership?

Southampton Youth Partnership is network for organisations that work with children and young people in the city of Southampton. Together we aim to ensure that we all work together to create a connected city with good opportunities that reach and impact on the lives of children and young people so that they are happy, thriving and empowered.

The role of Southampton Youth Partnership is to

• Ensure youth voice is at the heart of our work together

• Share, learn and proactively using what we know together to make children and young

• people’s lives better

• Advocate for sustainable of provision – securing investment and support for partners

• Create a connected city which works for young people with ‘No wrong door’ between

• partners

Over the next two years, children and young people on the South West coast will have new opportunities to shape and lead the future of music-making due to an exciting project from the South West Coastal Music Hub Alliance, and all made possible thanks to funding from Youth Music.

The five music hubs in the alliance — Southampton; Isle of Wight; Portsmouth; Dorset; and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole — are working together to reach out to children and young people who are missing out on learning and making music because of their background or life circumstances. 

With the support of “Youth Voice Engagement Workers”, the initiative will help these young people to shape and lead exciting “Action Research” projects: testing out new ideas and approaches which will enable more children and young people to access music in the future. The project will also be co-managed by a young person for the first time.

This initiative is supported by Youth Music, using public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England.

“This is an amazing and exciting project, and we are so grateful to Youth Music for making it possible. We know that young people in our region have incredible ideas and ambitions for making music, and we want to make sure they can access the support they want and need to help make their aspirations and reality.”

— Matt Brombley, Project Manager 

The South West Coastal Music Hub Alliance is recruiting for Youth Engagement Workers as well as a young co-project manager, find out more below:

Young musicians taking part in a music project with Portsmouth Music Hub

Children and young people who are currently missing out on making music will have the opportunity to take part in, and even lead, new music-making activities thanks to an exciting new project from the  South West Coastal Music Hub Alliance, made possible thanks to new funding from Youth Music.

The five music hubs in the alliance — Southampton; Isle of Wight; Dorset; Portsmouth; and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole — are working together to reach out to children and young people who are missing out on learning and making music because of their background or life circumstances. 

Thanks to the support of five new “Youth Voice Engagement Workers”, the initiative will help these young people to shape and lead exciting “Action Research” projects: testing out new ideas and approaches which will help more children and young people access music in the future.

This initiative is supported by Youth Music, using public funding from the National Lottery through Arts Council England.

Matt Brombley, Development Manager at Southampton and IOW Music Hubs, says:
“This is an excellent opportunity, and we are so grateful to Youth Music for making it possible. It might be because of where they live, their background, or the challenging life circumstances they find themselves in, but we know that too many children and young people miss out on the incredible power of music to make their lives better. This initiative will help to change that. We want to hear the voices of the children and young people who miss out on music, and, more importantly, we want them to help us shape and change the music making opportunities available to them, and others like them, in the future.”

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Job Opportunities

The music hubs that form the South West Coast Music Hub Alliance are looking to recruit Youth Voice Engagement Workers to help make our music hubs more inclusive, by engaging, listening to, and responding to the voices of under-represented young people: helping them shape, and lead, the music-making opportunities available to them.