ANNUAL REVIEW 2004 - ABRSM

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was developed and installed, along with a registration
system for Music Services and others who will use and
administer these assessments.
Other IT developments in the year included a database of
statistical information required to meet our statutory
obligations to provide government with exam results, and
an interface for the keying-in of practical exam component
marks, which will have important implications in our quality
assurance work.
In 2004 a comprehensive human resources audit was
undertaken and its outcomes will be taken forward in the
current year.
Music Education
Throughout 2004, I and my senior colleagues maintained
our close connections with a range of outside
organisations concerned with music education in the UK,
most notably the Department for Education and Skills, the
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, the Music Education
Council, the National Association of Music Educators, Youth
Music, the Music Publishers Association, the Federation of
Music Services and Music for Youth. We continue to
provide substantial sponsorship support for the last two
organisations on this list, which are both vital to the future
well-being of music education in this country.
The strong expressions of support from the government for
music education, which I mentioned in last year’s review,
were further endorsed in 2004 through the launch of the
Music Manifesto in July by David Miliband MP and Estelle
Morris MP. ABRSM was itself happy to sign up to this
manifesto, whose very broad objectives are entirely in line
with our charitable mission.
Towards the end of the year the government’s goodwill
was demonstrated in more tangible form through the
announcement of an additional £30 million in 2007/08 to
be ‘aimed primarily at giving every primary school pupil the
opportunity to learn a musical instrument’. Although
insufficient to meet this objective, this extra funding is most
welcome news and gives an opportunity for Music Services
REVIEW OF THE YEAR
and others to demonstrate the added value that they can
generate in terms of musical opportunities for young
people. We can then hopefully look forward to an
assurance from government that additional annual funding
of at least this magnitude will be made available in
subsequent years.
It is also encouraging that one of the specific objectives of
the Music Manifesto is ‘to develop a world-class workforce
in music education’. At ABRSM we remain concerned that
there is still no recognised pathway for instrumental
teachers towards a status that is comparable with or
related to Qualified Teacher Status. There is an urgent need
for government agencies and employers to agree on a
competency-based specification for the instrumental
teacher, so that ABRSM and other awarding bodies can set
about devising qualifications which will provide this
enhanced status.
Conclusion
As is evident from this report, 2004 was a year in which
ABRSM expanded strongly. I would like to pay particular
tribute to the senior management team and all the staff at
Portland Place for their dedicated efforts throughout 2004
in both expanding our core operations and developing the
new products and services which will benefit teachers and
learners of music and will contribute to our future success.
With 124 full time members of staff currently working at
Portland Place, we try very hard to break down
departmental barriers, recognising that all aspects of our
work ultimately interrelate. I believe that this spirit of
collaboration has been fundamental to the substantial
progress made by ABRSM in recent years.
This spirit, moreover, extends well beyond Portland Place to
the large and growing teams of examiners, course leaders,
mentors, HLRs, international representatives and
consultants, on whom ABRSM depends for the delivery of
all its products and services. In all, this wider team consists
of nearly 1,500 people, and I would like to express my
warmest thanks to each and every one of them for their
contributions to the achievement of ABRSM’s charitable
objectives over the past year.
ABRSM ANNUAL REVIEW 2004
ABRSM ANNUAL REVIEW 2004 • ABRSM ANNUAL REVIEW 2004