Music at NEPS

At North Ealing Primary we inspire and nurture all our children to become aspirational, lifelong learners through an inclusive, ambitious and engaging curriculum.

Our NEW School’s Music Mission Statement:

• As a Rights Respecting School, we fully uphold the rights of every child to an education (Article 28), the right of every child to develop their personalities, talents and abilities (Article 30) and the right to take part in cultural/creative activities (Article 31).
• North Ealing encourages all of its pupils to take advantage of the many provided opportunities to explore the music of all styles, to develop specific musical skills, to engage in a wide variety of musical experiences and to participate in events that provide an outlet for their individual creativity.
• Incorporating our school’s Learning Values and British Values (notably Mutual Respect and Tolerance), the musical life of North Ealing embraces music of all styles, traditions and cultures – as must be expected within an inclusive and culturally diverse community.
• We develop and encourage exploration, curiosity and enthusiasm for making music by complementing topics in other curriculum areas, by engaging pupils in practical activities/ public performances and by providing the vocabulary/basic skills that will enable pupils to grow in confidence and provide a valuable outlet for their creativity.
• Music is not a competition! Music can embrace/involve everybody and our mission is to show our pupils that we are ALL musicians.

UNICEF Rights of the Child:

Article 29 (goals of education)
Education must develop every child’s personality, talents and abilities to the full. It must encourage the child’s respect for human rights, as well as respect for their parents, their own and other cultures, and the environment.

Article 30 (children from minority or indigenous groups)
Every child has the right to learn and use the language, customs and religion of their family, whether or not these are shared by the majority of the people in the country where they live.

Article 31 (leisure, play and culture)
Every child has the right to relax, play and take part in a wide range of cultural and artistic activities.

Music at NES Overview (2022-23):

We are delighted by the full return to music-making during the past year and have re-established music as a key strength of NEPS.

Thanks to the commitment and enthusiasm of parents/pupils and staff, we start the new academic year in a very strong position.

1. Singing remains a key feature of the school through its choirs, singing assemblies and use of the ‘Sing Up’ resource bank that gives easy access to songs that complement/extend work in other subjects by class teachers.
2. Our in-house orchestra continues to build and provide opportunities for our many instrumentalists to develop their skills.
3. We continue to build links with Notting Hill and Ealing High School through their volunteer scheme assisting with orchestras and choirs.
4. Our wonderful instrumental teachers are also eager to present assemblies featuring their instruments – we have enjoyed many assemblies in the past where pupils have performed for the whole school!
5. Singing Assemblies are again in place as part of our ‘every child is a musician mission and to encourage community spirit. Singing together is also a great boost to mental well-being!
6. The New Model Music Curriculum was published in March 2021 and this has enabled us to develop a revised Music Curriculum. This year we are developing this further through the use of the ‘Sing Up’ Music Curriculum.
7. As part of this, the ukulele is taught in years 3 and 4 and developed in years 5 and 6.
8. Our new curriculum also ‘looks forward to when our Year 6 pupils move on to Year 7 and addresses any new aspects not already covered.

Our EVENTS in a typical year would include:

• Harvest assembly with choirs/orchestras etc
• The School Christmas Fayre (main choir and/or KS1 choir)
• Christmas Concerts
• ‘Light Up the Lane’ for choirs as a community event.
• A Spring/Summer Concert to showcase groups and individuals
• Our School’s Summer Fete (choirs)
• Special assemblies to showcase instrumentalists in violin, cello, woodwind, piano and guitar led by their tutors
• Special events based on music/dance eg ‘Indian Dance’ workshops, Drumming workshops, visits to concerts in local secondary schools
• ‘Singing assemblies’ for KS1 and KS2
• In-house Music lessons taught/guided by a music teacher weekly

Further opportunities:

• Pupils are encouraged to open and close assemblies with performances on the piano to boost their confidence in a ‘non-exam’ situation
• Pupils are actively encouraged to form their own groups in music, dance and drama for showcasing whenever possible
• Pupils may elect to perform a piece to their class during music lessons as a ‘mini sounding-board’ to develop their confidence.

The Music Staff:

• Mr N. Mehew teaches music (and philosophy) to Years 1-6 and provides resources for Nursery/Reception.
• Ms L. Page assists the running of the orchestra/chamber choir and is a string specialist.
• Ms D. Limliman runs the chamber choir and is a singing specialist.
• We are fortunate that we have many other members of staff with a love of music who make valued contributions to choirs giving their time freely.

Instrumental Lessons / Teachers / Costs / Availiability

Members of: