‘Britain’s kids have got talent’: new report calls for schools to boost opportunities for children in the north to get creative

The talents of millions of children are being wasted according to a new report which is urging creativity to be embedded into an inclusive school curriculum.

The report, co-authored by researchers from the University of Sheffield, is the final in the Child of the North partnership and Centre for Young Lives series which focuses on how the government can put the life chances of young people at the heart of policy making and delivery. 

Published today (14 March 2025), the “An evidence-based approach to creating a culture of inclusive opportunity through arts and creativity” report has been contributed to by the N8 research partnership, including from experts at the University of Sheffield, and calls for a new era of creativity and the arts in schools as part of the government’s Opportunity Mission, to help boost the creative economy and provide new opportunities to children whose talents risk being wasted.

It says the success of the UK’s cultural and creative industries is now seriously imperilled by this neglect and warns that the educational pipeline that supplied the infrastructure for professional music careers is severely restricted.

The report calls for a cultural shift to create an inclusive education system with creativity at its heart as a way of boosting attainment, tackling the school attendance crisis, and providing the creative industries with the workforce they require. It argues schools should not merely be places of ‘reading, writing and maths’, but places where young people can express themselves, explore diverse identities, and develop the critical thinking skills needed to thrive.

Dr Ryan Bramley, from the University of Sheffield’s School of Education and contributor to the report, said: “We want children across the whole nation, including those in the North, to have equal access to life opportunities. Our three evidence-based policy recommendations - to Cultivate Creativity and Critical Thinking through Inclusive Education; Increase Arts Investment to Create and Inclusive Education System; and Enrich Education by Connecting Schools to Cultural Institutions - rightly centre on one of our most left-behind regions, but they are also applicable to children and young people's lives and experiences across the entire nation.

“This report highlights the significant and growing inequities that children and young people in the North of England face compared to their peers and is the culmination of a year-long campaign with leading contributions from University of Sheffield academic experts.”

While over two million people are employed in the creative industries in the UK, and the cultural sector accounts for £31 billion in gross value added to the UK economy, the report shines a light on a real decline in creative subjects and extracurricular activities offered by schools.

It highlighted that 93 per cent of children are excluded from arts and cultural education due to a lack of funding in state schools, and a rise in schools no longer entering pupils for music, drama and dance GCSEs. It noted that children from the most affluent backgrounds are three times more likely to sing in a choir, or play in a band or orchestra than children living in more deprived areas.

The report also argues that the evidence shows schools which value inclusivity and belonging have a better understanding of their students, particularly those from minority backgrounds and those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), leading to increased sense of school belonging and helping to tackle the current school attendance crisis. 

New analysis shows the importance of an inclusive education system, revealing that children are over three times more likely to become Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) at 16-18 years when they disengage from the education system and are persistently absent from the classroom.

The report warns that entry into creative industry careers is grossly skewed by family background and educational experience, with factors such as ethnicity and gender adding further barriers. It highlights how working-class representation in the creative industries is at the lowest level for a decade. Just eight per cent of workers in TV and radio are from a working-class background, and social mobility in these industries is getting worse.

It makes recommendations to the government in three key policy areas: cultivating creativity and critical thinking through inclusive education; increasing arts investment to create an inclusive education system; and enriching education by connecting schools to cultural institutions. 

Its proposals include: 

• Calling on the government to meet its manifesto pledge to support the study of creative and vocational subjects in school.
• Setting up an £150m ‘Arts Premium Fund’ to develop the existing primary school workforce and train the next generation of teachers to provide arts learning.
• Expanding arts and music education, including free music or singing lessons for three years for every child who wishes to learn.
• Incorporating arts-based approaches and nurturing creative thinking in subjects such as history and science to increase pupil engagement and boost educational outcomes, while also widening the pipeline of talent and innovation needed for the creative economy to flourish.
• Doubling the early years premium and directing these funds towards developing the foundational skills needed within primary school and society.
• Introducing a ‘Cultural Enrichment Fund’ to encourage partnerships with local cultural institutions, enabling schools to host artist-led workshops, theatre productions, or music classes and thereby enrich the experiences of all their students. 
• Developing educational partnerships with cultural institutions such as museums, theatres, and music academies to offer alternative routes to engaging students who may not thrive in conventional academic environments, and prioritising partnerships with schools in socioeconomically disadvantaged or rural regions. 

Baroness Anne Longfield, Executive Chair of the Centre for Young Lives, said: “Britain’s children have got talent - but we are often too slow to nurture it and we are frequently failing to harness the innate skills in our communities through our education system. This is hindering the ability of our country to flourish and thrive. 

“Many of our most successful musicians and bands have benefited from a rich, cultural, and creative education in the private school sector. We need to invest in boosting the opportunities of children in our state schools, from all backgrounds, as part of a bold ambition to develop truly inclusive education, support creativity throughout childhood and to tackle problems like the attendance crisis and attainment gap. 

“A career in the arts, music, and cultural industries must not become the preserve of only the most advantaged. Creativity and the expressive arts should be part and parcel of every child’s education from primary school, not just a small minority. 

“This report provides evidence and proposals for how we can create more opportunities for all children to nurture and develop creative skills which are so important to growing our economy, and which would ensure we have a more diverse and thriving creative arts and music sector.” 

Professor Mark Mon Williams, Child of The North report series editor, said: “The evidence is clear- embedding creative experiences in education has the power to boost social mobility, reduce inequalities, and equip children with the skills they need to thrive in a rapidly changing world and grow our economy.

“This report provides a blueprint for ensuring that every child, regardless of background, has access to the transformative power of a creative educational experience. It could not be launched at a better time as Bradford takes centre stage as the UK City of Culture 2025 and commits to supporting the government’s Opportunity Mission.

“It is time to recognise that creativity is not an optional extra—it is a fundamental pillar of an inclusive, opportunity-rich society."