Who We Are
York Music Education CIC is the principal not-for-profit music service for the City of York. We provide high-quality, inclusive music education from Early Years through to Youth Orchestra, delivered by a team of 30 experienced tutors and supported by our community of families, schools, and partners.
Since spinning out of the City of York Council in 2017, we’ve continued to be the largest employer of music tutors in York and currently support over 500 children each week through our schools work, instrumental tuition, ensembles, and outreach.
Our Story
Our roots lie in the North Yorkshire County Council Performing Arts Service. Until 1996, York schools were served as part of this county-wide service. When the City of York became a unitary authority on 1 April 1996, the local music and performing arts provision was spun out to form a dedicated York Music Service.
In the years that followed we operated as York Arts Education, reflecting our wider delivery of Drama, Dance and Music. This broader remit was supported by public funding, but as funding for dance and drama was withdrawn nationally, our focus sharpened on music.
In 2012, we led more than 20 schools and over 25 cultural partners to establish York Music Hub under the first National Plan for Music Education. Our leadership ensured York became part of the national network of Music Hubs, embedding collaboration and access at the heart of provision.
In 2016/17, we completed our formal spin-out from City of York Council and became York Arts Education CIC. Soon afterwards we adopted the name York Music Education CIC to reflect our sole focus on music.
Today, we continue this 30-year journey as York’s principal music service. Our York Music Centre, based at Millthorpe School for the past 15 years, provides ensembles and progression opportunities for over 400 students every week.
Our wider achievements include:
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Establishing the Huntington Sheet Music Library (now integrated into Explore York Libraries)
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Winning the York Cultural Award for our “Big Sing” project (2017)
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Expanding and managing the City of York Council’s instrument stock
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Partnering with the NCEM to launch the Minster Minstrels (Early Music)
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Delivering city-wide events and music festivals at Central Hall, York Barbican, and the Grand Opera House
Partnerships
We collaborate with a wide range of cultural organisations including:
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Yorchestra – York’s holiday orchestra programme
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NCEM – Partner on Minster Minstrels and I Can Play!, a music session for deaf children
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Late Music Education – A schools outreach project, enabling students to compose and perform new works with living composers (first in 2012, latest in 2025)
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Charanga – Digital learning partner for schools
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ABRSM – Graded exams and access via the ABRSM Discount Scheme
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Friends of York Music Centre – Supporting bursaries, events and the music library exchange
We also work closely with York’s schools to develop unique projects, such as our 2024 Snowman performance, involving York Youth Orchestra and three local primaries.
