Supporting Holiday Hunger by Combining Music Making with Healthy Food

This summer we are teaming up with local schools and North Yorkshire’s Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Programme to provide free music sessions in the school holidays with breakfast, lunch and snacks provided along with at least an hour of active play/exercise.

It’s all part of our mission to increase the amount of music children are experiencing in our region.

“We’ve been running our music holiday clubs for the last two years, since the charity’s launch,” said Cathy Grant, CEO of RSMF. “And it made sense this year to combine forces with local schools and the HAF programme to ensure children not only get high quality music but are also well fed.”

We are part-funding the music clubs with additional funding coming from the North Yorkshire FEAST programme which is offering lots of summer activities for children in the region, with free places for eligible children.  FEAST is there to help families throughout the school holidays, by providing food and things to do without adding to the growing pressure on income.

“Our FEAST activity this year will take place at Barwic Parade Community Primary School in Selby and, if it goes well, we’d like to secure funding to run similar days in other areas of our region,” continued Cathy.

Children will experience a day of fun musical activities with lots of games, movement and singing, then a percussion workshop using an instrument called the Bamboo Tamboo from the Caribbean.

“It’s great for our community to have activities like this on in the school holidays to keep children occupied and give them access to new experiences. It’s good to know we can also help parents out by providing healthy meals for the day and take the strain off the holiday finances,” said Jean Grant, business manager at Barwic Parade Community Primary School.

Since the launch of the Foundation, 5,000 children have received weekly music lessons within their schools, subsidised by the Foundation.

“What drives us forward is the ambition that every child should have music in their lives. It shouldn’t be for the privileged few.  I’ve been lucky over the last two years to witness the transformational experience of music for young people. 

“Working alongside our partners, we’re seeking to remove the geographical and financial barriers to a high-quality music education so that every child can experience the great many educational, health and well-being benefits it can bring.

“I can get absolutely lost in the swathes of research that seek to prove the benefits of music education, particularly from an early age. Researchers are even working on proving the ‘psychoneuroimmunological’ benefits – essentially evidencing how music is not only good for our minds, but also the long-term health of our bodies. And what’s not to like about schools being full of music and singing?”

“We’ve got ambitious plans,” continued Cathy. “We aim, over the next three years, to allow over 10,000 young people to receive a high-quality music lesson each week and to have the opportunity to join a choir, to come along to a music holiday club, or take up an instrument.”

To book onto the music club click here: Richard Shephard Music Foundation - Music Holiday Club - North Yorkshire Together

To view other activities, click here: Upcoming FEAST Activities – North Yorkshire Together