PIANOS IN SCHOOLS

Early day motion 2560, tabled 20 December 2011 by Valerie Vaz (Labour). Signed by 15 members.

That this House recognises the value of music education for children's creativity and intellectual development; notes the publication on 25 November 2011,The Importance of Music - A National Plan for Music Education; acknowledges the recent research from the Institute of Education, Evaluation of the EMI Music Sound Foundation Project rollout: Training Key Stage 1 Primary School Teachers (2010-2011) by Professor Susan Hallam, Dr Andrea Creech and Dr Maria Varvarigou; furthernotes with concern that this research found great inequalities in the provision of resources for music education in primary schools; is alarmed at the study's finding that one in nine schools did not have a piano; and calls on the Government to support schools in nurturing musical enthusiasm and talent among schoolchildren by ensuring that every primary school has a piano.

Signatures by party: Labour 9, Conservative 2, DUP 2, Liberal Democrat 1, Social Democratic and Labour Party 1.