THE Friends of Ceredigion Young Musicians, which has been campaigning to protect the schools’ music service in the county against cutbacks, has welcomed what it describes as a flexible approach by Ceredigion Council in implementing changes.

Concern had been raised that a large cut would lead to major reductions in staff, and pupils not being able to access or afford lessons.

While changes to the music service have had an impact, overall reductions in staffing have been smaller than expected, and new ways of delivering lessons have been trialled in limited areas rather than being introduced wholesale.

It has also been confirmed that, following proactive promotion by both the council and the Friends, around 1,000 children are still in receipt of peripatetic music lessons.

Angharad Fychan, secretary of the Friends of Ceredigion Young Musicians, said: “Our primary concerns about the changes to the service were that cutbacks would make accessing lessons more difficult, due to increased charges for parents and the possibility of having to travel further for lessons, in addition to the potential loss of teaching staff.

“Ceredigion has listened to some of parents’ criticisms, as funding for staff travel and maintaining choirs and ensembles has been retained, and the trials of new ways of delivering the service have been undertaken in ways to limit disruption.

“Regrettably, some staff have left and some have seen their pay and conditions reduced. However, Ceredigion will retain a greater number of music teachers than was originally feared. The core of this widely-admired service, namely a team of peripatetic teachers delivering music within the school setting to every pupil who wishes it, remains intact.

“The crucial consideration now is, given that the Ceredigion music service has been through painful restructuring in 2019, that no further cuts are made next year. It’s also vital that the opportunities that the service provides to children are properly promoted, given that a greater share of its income now comes through fees for lessons.

“We had hoped that the council would have engaged with us at an earlier stage, but we have been pleased at the positive dialogue we have had since the start of term, and look forward to that continuing.”