THE future is looking bright for a local music school after receiving £99,180 of funding from the National Lottery's Dormant Accounts Fund.
Andersonstown Traditional and Contemporary Music School was founded in 1991 and has established itself as one of the most popular in the city, with classes in West, North and South Belfast.
The school boast impressive numbers of between 250-300 pupils learning a range of instruments including drums, guitar, tin whistle, bodhrán, fiddle and others.
During the autumn and winter of 2022, having successfully battled and survived the limitations and restrictions of the Covid pandemic, the Trustees undertook a strategic review of the school, in particular looking at the long-term sustainability in areas of finance, staffing and succession planning.
To this end, they submitted an application and successfully gained support from the Dormant Accounts Fund NI.
They music school is now using a £99,180 grant to improve financial sustainability by growing income generation and building capacity in the organisation.
Over three years the project will provide resources to develop new income streams, implement marketing and communications strategies, build networks and partnerships, raise their profile, and provide staff training and development.
Since August, the school acquired a new premises upstairs in the Kennedy Centre (next to Omniplex Cinema) to go alongside All Saints College (West Belfast), Holy Family Primary School (North Belfast) and An Droichead (South Belfast) for tuition venues. They also have an office in Barrack Street in the lower Falls.
Thomas 'Maxi' McElroy, Manager of Andersonstown Traditional and Contemporary Music School, said: "This new space in the Kennedy Centre we got it through Blueprint programme from Arts and Business organisation.
"We got funding and wanted to invest in something worthwhile and found this space in the Kennedy Centre.
The new premises in the Kennedy Centre
"It has really helped our profile and we have been able to do a few performances in the mall."
Regarding the Dormant Accounts funding, the school is in the process of appointing a Development Manager to further expand their work. It will also help the school continue to build after tough times during the Covid pandemic.
"We want to work with refugees, asylum seekers, older people and others from disadvantaged backgrounds," added Thomas.
"It will also allow the school to become more sustainable. Pre-Covid we were doing very well numbers-wise. It was almost like starting again from scratch.
"We had between 300-400 pupils before Covid which dropped to as low as 70. Now, we are building up again and have between 250-300.
"We are thrilled to have been awarded this grant from Dormant Accounts Fund NI as it provides exciting opportunities to help us build for the future and enable us to provide more music and creative activities for all.
"The school will continue to deliver and develop an affordable and value for money outreach programme of weekly music classes, performance opportunities, workshops, examinations for those living within Belfast."
Kate Beggs, The National Lottery Community Fund’s Northern Ireland Director, said: “The Dormant Accounts Fund NI is continuing to help secure the future of voluntary, community and social enterprise organisations across Northern Ireland. It is building their capacity, resilience and sustainability, so that they can continue to deliver vital services to local communities.
“We are pleased to award this £99,180 grant to Andersonstown Traditional and Contemporary Music School to provide the resources they need to improve their financial sustainability and build the capacity of the organisation.”
Find and like 'Andersonstown Music School' on Facebook or check out their website www.andersonstownmusicschool.com for more information on the school and the list of classes starting in early 2024.
