Redbridge Music School is under threat. Redbridge Borough Council is attempting to rush through a motion to “relocate” it from its home of 40 years without providing alternative like-for-like accommodation. This would mean the closure of the school or at the least its disintegration and dispersal as we have seen in other boroughs.

We demand that Redbridge Borough Council makes a commitment to the future of Redbridge Music School at its current site or at a suitable alternative location providing the same or better facilities. We demand that the council consults with all stakeholders - parents, staff, local residents, and the children themselves – before putting in place a plan to support the school's future.

About Redbridge Music School

Redbridge Music School provides specialist instrumental and vocal tuition to thousands of children of all ages in North East London, including subsidised tuition and free tuition for children in care. A huge range of clubs, choirs, ensembles and orchestras give unique performance opportunities to all of our young people, building confidence, a sense of identity, and providing the opportunity to develop physical, intellectual, emotional and social skills, as well as the possibility of a career in music for those who wish to continue on that path.

Many performances take place locally over the year and annually at the Royal Albert Hall.

Redbridge Music School is supported by Arts Council England.

What is happening

London Borough of Redbridge Council is proposing “relocation” of the Redbridge Music School from its current premises of 40 years at the John Savage Centre in Barkingside. This is part of a plan to expand special education provision at the New Rush Hall School which is next door to the centre.

We unequivocally support the provision of Special Needs education locally, but we believe that provision for one group of children should not be made at the expense of provision for another group. Many of the children learning and making music at Redbridge Music Service are neurodivergent and for them it may be their primary means of self-expression and vital to their sense of self and development. 

Redbridge attempted to sneak the closure through in a single sentence included in the plan to expand New Rush Hall, explicitly stating that the “relocation” was to be dealt with as a “separate work stream” - in other words, close the school prior to the change of use in September 2027 with no alternative provision.

Parents, staff and students have not been consulted at any point or kept informed of developments.

The proposal was to have been considered at the key Overview & Scrutiny committee on 13 July and then rubber stamped by the Redbridge Council’s cabinet on 16 July. Due to local pressure, the plan has been unpublished on the council website, but no information as to the council’s intentions has ever been made public. We, as Friends of Redbridge Music School – the registered charity which supports the school – are extremely concerned that it will now be railroaded through.

We already have a local petition in Redbridge that has attracted 348 signatures in a couple of days, but due to the council's continuing recalcitrance we now need to make the campaign to Save Redbridge Music School a national one.

Please sign our petition!