Music Education: Right from the Start welcomes the Minns Labor Government’s release of Time for Music: 10-Year Plan for Music Education in NSW Public Primary Schools, setting out its long-term commitment to strengthen access to quality music education and provide better and fairer access for children across the state.
Led by Alberts | The Tony Foundation, Music Education: Right from the Start is a national collaborative initiative working towards a future where every Australian primary school student receives a quality, sequential and ongoing music education.
The Plan represents a significant policy achievement and an important step towards making music a consistent part of every child’s primary education from Kindergarten through to Year 6, regardless of their school, location or background.
Among the commitments Music Education: Right from the Start particularly welcomes are:
- A minimum of 20 hours per year of high-quality classroom music instruction for every student
- a dedicated music education framework to support high-quality music education
- the opportunity for every child to learn a musical instrument
- additional professional learning, tools and resources to support teachers to deliver music education more confidently and competently
- exploration of credentials for musicians and music tutors to work alongside classroom teachers, together with expanded music teacher mentoring programs
- expanded access to co-curricular activities, including school bands and choirs
- regular monitoring and public reporting on progress against the Plan’s goals, including through a repeat of the 2025 Music Education: Right from the Start ACER Primary Teachers Survey NSW
- an industry advisory group to provide ongoing advice and guidance on implementation.
Together, these commitments closely align with priorities Music Education: Right from the Start has advocated for through our research and collaborative engagement with Deputy Premier and Minister for Education and Early Learning Prue Car, Minister for the Arts, Music and the Night-time Economy John Graham, the NSW Department of Education, the NSW Teachers Federation and the broader music education sector throughout the development of the Plan.
(From left): Emily Albert, Music in Me’s Bernie Heard, NSW Department of Education Deputy Secretary Martin Graham, Australian Music Association’s Alex Masso and Tara Croft from the Australian Chamber Orchestra at a music education briefing hosted by Deputy Premier Pru Car and Arts Minister John Graham in April 2026.
A system-wide approach to change
Time for Music, which will be staged over the next 10 years to build the capability of schools and teachers and embed change over the long term, responds to a key recommendation of the 2024 Joint Select Committee Inquiry into Arts and Music Education and Training. Music Education: Right from the Start congratulates the NSW Department of Education and everyone who contributed to this important work.
Among those consulted during the Plan’s development was Dr Anita Collins, neuromusical researcher and senior advisor to Music Education: Right from the Start.
“It is extremely pleasing to see the NSW Government taking such an ambitious approach to music education, recognising the contribution music learning can make to students’ broader learning and development,” Dr Collins said.
“A long-term, multifaceted approach to access and equity gives NSW the opportunity to harness music learning to support literacy, numeracy, wellbeing and engagement for students across the public education system.”
Head of Music Education: Right from the Start, Emily Albert, and former project lead, Eric Sidoti, spoke at a public hearing of the Joint Select Committee on Arts and Music Education and Training in NSW, in July 2024.
Why this matters for NSW children
Time for Music is a welcome antidote in a broader education landscape facing a range of challenges and change: the unintended deprioritisation of the creative arts amid an increased focus on literacy and numeracy; ongoing concerns about student outcomes reflected in NAPLAN results; reduced music education within teaching degrees and its impact on teachers’ confidence and capability to deliver the music curriculum; and rapid advances in AI that are sharpening the focus on the skills children will need to thrive and future workforces will require.
Beyond its intrinsic value, a growing body of evidence shows that quality music education is one of the most powerful tools we have to strengthen learning, wellbeing and child development in Australian schools. It supports cognitive development, literacy and numeracy, while contributing to student engagement, belonging and the skills children need to learn and thrive.
Despite these benefits, access to quality music education across NSW has been inconsistent and inequitable. While music is part of the Australian Curriculum and the NSW K–6 Creative Arts Syllabus, too many children are still missing out, with barriers including gaps in teacher confidence and capability, competing curriculum priorities and school resources.
Our 2025 ACER Primary Teachers’ Survey NSW, conducted by the Australian Council for Educational Research, provided the first comprehensive baseline of how music education is being delivered in NSW government primary schools. It found that 73% of teachers surveyed said they were more comfortable using a pre-recorded music lesson than leading a music lesson themselves.
NSW Minister for the Arts, Music and the Night-time Economy, The Hon. John Graham MLC (centre), launched our ACER Primary Teachers’ Survey on Music Education in NSW at Sydney’s Homebush West Public School in May 2025.
Addressing this capability gap will be critical to the Plan’s success.
Alice Gerlach, CEO of The Song Room, which works with schools to help address gaps in music education delivery and capability, said: “The Song Room welcomes the NSW Government’s commitment to elevating music as part of every child’s school experience. With a strong focus on equitable access, this Plan has the potential to ensure that children and young people right across NSW can benefit from a quality, sequential music education that supports learning, wellbeing and belonging throughout their lives.”
The Plan also aims to give every child the opportunity to learn an instrument during primary school.
Alex Masso, Executive Officer of the Australian Music Association, the industry body representing Australia’s music products sector, said: “It’s exciting to see the NSW government aspiring to give every child the opportunity to learn a musical instrument. This would be a big step forward for public school students in NSW and creates opportunities to enrich music education in the classroom, support teachers with more resources, work with the existing workforce of instrumental tutors, and strengthen the connection between classroom music and co-curricular programs.”
Members of the Music Education: Right from the Start project team and expert advisory groups with the initiative’s Patron, the Governor-General, at Admiralty House in May 2026, celebrating six years of the initiative.
Turning commitment into action
Time for Music has the potential to transform what music education looks like for primary school children across NSW, giving every child consistent access to quality music learning regardless of where they live or their circumstances. Over time, this could help a generation of children experience the learning, wellbeing and developmental benefits of music, while strengthening the foundations of NSW’s future music culture and creative industries.
Emily Albert, head of Music Education: Right from the Start, believes dedicated funding will be critical to realising the Plan’s full potential:
“This Plan has the potential to be a generation-defining moment for music education in NSW. Dedicated funding will be essential to translating that ambition into meaningful and sustained change in schools, and we hope this will be given serious consideration in the next NSW Budget,” she said.
“We also welcome the establishment of an industry advisory group to support implementation. We look forward to continuing to work closely with the NSW Department of Education and the broader music education community to bring the Plan’s vision to life for children across NSW.”
