Every project that John Lyon’s Charity funds results in a strong partnership in one form or other, whether it’s the coming together of an organisation and a school or strengthening relationships within the Charity itself.
This stems from John Lyon’s Charity being part John Lyon’s Foundation, with Harrow School and The John Lyon School. It was this strong partnership that resulted in John Lyon’s Charity suggesting the London Chamber Orchestra (LCO) bring its successful Music Junction project to The John Lyon School and help broker relationships with Harrow Music Service and local state schools.
Music Junction Harrow brings together young people from very different social and economic backgrounds to promote confidence, nurture self-esteem and encourage participants to develop empathy and respect for themselves and others within the wider community through music making. Students from The John Lyon School have worked alongside children from local primary schools, special schools and specialist provisions, working together to create a high-quality community collaboration.
Through creative workshops and group instrumental sessions, involving musicians from the London Chamber Orchestra, participants are given the opportunity to hear, interact and perform with these world class musicians. One of the key features of the Music Junction model is that it uses peer-to-peer learning, encouraging students to become mentors to less experienced ones. This helps to ensure that the project delivers truly meaningful outcomes for all participants, irrespective of their level of musical understanding at the start of the project. In the first year of the project, 11 students from The John Lyon School participated as mentors and 28 children from two local primary schools.
The Charity has supported the development of Music Junction Harrow with £115,400 over three years. The financial support and advice from John Lyon’s Charity has brought together a leading independent school with the state school sector, supported by Harrow Music Service and the London Chamber Orchestra. This has led to the development of an innovative educational partnership that has quite literally made music.