

Encore Enterprises
Newsletter to Schools and Colleges
January 2025
Happy New Year to all schools - we hope you had a great Christmas and feel recharged and are ready to tackle a new year. There is a lot happening this term with a variety of CPD courses to support teachers and opportunities for schools. As we are now partnered with Severn Arts in Worcestershire, we are working closely with them on certain aspects of music education across both counties. You will therefore see various projects run by/with them, so please do make the most of the increased opportunities available to you.
School Partnership
If you haven’t yet signed up as a school partner, please do – it’s free and super quick, and is a great link for you to have with your local music hub. It will also really help us with our school engagement data that we have to send to Arts Council England at the end of the year. Thank you so much for your support and collaboration with Encore.
https://www.encore-enterprises.com/partnershipagreementform
If you are not sure if you school is currently signed up as a partner school, you can check our partner school list here.
Lead Schools
Is music a huge part of your school? Do you have a great curriculum, run exciting music clubs and want to champion music across Herefordshire? If so, please do consider applying to be a Lead School for Herefordshire and come and work alongside Encore. It’s a great accolade for your school and you would be involved in developing and shaping music education across the county. More details can be found here:
https://www.encore-enterprises.com/herefordshire-lead-schools


CPD
Composing
Sue Walker will be running a free workshop with Alison Virgo from Severn Arts on Composing in KS1 and 2, on Thursday 6th February 1pm - 4pm. This will be held in person at Malvern Gate, Worcester. This is the first face-to-face workshop that has been run in a couple of years, and it will be a fun session where you will come away with lots of practical ideas and solutions. Please find more details and a booking form here:
https://www.encore-enterprises.com/cpdforprimaryschools
EYFS
Encore’s EYFS lead, Wendy Wilson Goddard, had a great term last term, guiding EYFS teachers with songs and musical activities for their children. This course is on-going throughout the year for those teachers who took part, but she has a new course starting this term, which is relevant for all EYFS staff, whether they have taken part in a previous course or not. This is a one-off morning session, exploring the concept of story boxes and how these can link with musical activities.
Tuesday 25th February: Sing, Move, Play – Story Box (9:15am-12:15pm)
Sing, Move, Play has been a great success so far and we really want to keep building on these important years for musical development, impacting on so many areas of a child’s life. Please find more information and booking form here:
https://www.encore-enterprises.com/sing-move-play
Sparkyard
For those schools who are using Sparkyard as their curriculum resource, they run their own, on-line events. The next ones are:
A Sparkyard Tour - 20th January at 4:30pm
Sparkyard In The Classroom - 30th January at 4pm
Music Curriculum - A Whistlestop Tour - 12th February at 4pm
More information can be found on their website:
https://www.sparkyard.com/workshops
Charanga
If you are using Charanga as your curriculum resource, you will have received an email inviting you to a training session on their computing programme ‘YuStudio’. This will be held at Leominster Primary School on Wednesday 22nd January 2025. All details will be in the recent email from Charanga.


Survey to Schools
We are inviting all schools to complete this survey, so that we can continue to evaluate and refine Encore’s work and services. We have been asked to send this survey out on behalf of the new hub, which is now formed from a partnership between Encore and Severn Arts in Worcestershire. Severn Arts are the ‘Hub Lead Organisation’ and in turn commission Encore to deliver the Herefordshire part of the music hub work. Consequently, this survey is devised by Severn Arts but has been adjusted to suit Encore’s requirements. Please complete the survey by Friday 31st January 2025 – we are grateful for all responses.
Singing News
This term we see the fabulous singers from the Voces8 Education team join Encore for some Young Leader training in 4 of our secondary schools. The Young Leaders will work alongside the Voces8 team learning skills and developing confidence. These students will then visit some of our primary schools to lead singing sessions and share their skills and knowledge.

Our county Youth Choir will be taking part in a joint concert with the Courtyard called Sing Choir Sing. This is a concert celebrating some of the finest community choirs in Herefordshire. They will also be joined by students from the RNC, giving the unique opportunity to sing on the main stage at the Courtyard Theatre. There is still time to join our county Youth Choir, so if you have enthusiastic singers aged 9-18 in your school, please share these details with parents and carers:
“Herefordshire Youth Choir – rehearsals Saturday mornings every other week from 9.30-11am. For more information, please contact lisa@encore-enterprises.com”

Workshops will be getting underway for Encore’s huge celebration of singing, which is due to take place at Hereford Cathedral in June and will involve some of Herefordshire's schools. These workshops will be run by the fabulous Laura Wright, Mark DeLisser and the Voces8 singers. More details to follow!
Big Sing – KS2 and then KS3 and 4
Severn Arts run a Big Sing every year, held at a variety of venues around Worcestershire, but this year it’s being held at Malvern Theatres, therefore closer for some Herefordshire schools. We have already had a few Herefordshire schools sign up; it’s open to KS2 for one event, then KS3 and 4 for a separate event. You will receive training and song packs and then will all come together for the big day! Please find all details and booking forms here:
BBC Ten Pieces – celebrating women composers
Some of you are already familiar with this amazing resource, but for those of you who don’t know it, please do take a look at all the fantastic pieces and activities that are free to access. They are great to build into your schemes of work, or to listen to in assembly. Each piece of music has an introductory video, lesson plans, instrumental arrangements and inclusive resources, with activities for KS1, 2 and 3.
New resources added: Celebrating its tenth anniversary, BBC Ten Pieces have launched a dazzling collection of resources of ten incredible pieces of music – all written by women. Discover this new collection here:

Encore's Youth Music Ensembles
We would be really grateful if you could talk to your pupils about Encore’s youth music ensembles. We have such a variety of musical opportunities outside of the school day, and it would be great to have the support of schools and instrumental teachers to encourage your pupils to come along and enjoy music making with others.
If you have pupils in your school who play an instrument from about Grade 1 standard onwards, or who love singing and would like to join our Youth Choir, please click here for more details or contact: lisa@encore-enterprises.com


Gilbert and Sullivan Schools concert
Last year, the G & S society invited Herefordshire schools to watch their annual performance and it was a roaring success with a fully booked theatre! They are offering the same opportunity again this year. The schools’ matinee performance of The Witch’s Curse: Ruddigore will take place at 2 pm on Thursday 20th March, 2025 at a cost of £6 per pupil (they have recommendations as to funding for coaches if you are interested). If you book tickets to see the show, some of the cast will come to your school for a free workshop of an hour. Pupils will be introduced to the show, the story and the characters and will learn one of the songs as well as some dances moves. All bookings go through the Society. For more information or to book please email:
Dates For Your Diary
Tuesday 25th February 2025 – 4:30pm – 5:30pm
Primary Network Meeting (Online)
Monday 31st March 2025 - 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Encore Youth Music Bands Spring Concert
St Nicholas Church, Barton Rd
Tuesday 1st April 2025 – 7:00pm – 9:00pm
Encore Youth Music Strings & HYO Spring Concert
St Nicholas Church, Barton Rd
Thursday 3rd April 2025 – 7:00pm – 8:30pm
Livewire Saturdays Gig