Children's Transform Trust choir raise the roof of the Albert Hall at their debut performance

Supported by staff, and facilitated through a collaboration between three separate Music Hubs (Derby and Derbyshire Music, Nottingham Music Service and Nottinghamshire Music Hub led by Inspire), this wonderful event was made possible largely to the generous funding from Aquinas Education.

The Transform Trust Choir has been inspired and propelled by two members of the Transform Trust team, Tanya White (Associate Headteacher, Science, Music and D&T Lead) and Lindsay Clark (Headteacher Designate and Enrichment Lead). Tanya explains how it all came together:

“I’ve always loved music, and passionately believe in the adage that music is food for the soul. We know that music connects hearts and minds, boosts morale and for our children and staff it is also an inclusive, creative and thoroughly enjoyable aspect of school life.

“We are blessed to have so many staff and children within our primary schools who feel the same way and enjoy singing together within their local communities. Outside of school, I’m a member of a choir and really enjoy the sense of togetherness and belonging as well as the wonderful sound we make together.

"It made me want to give our children the same opportunity, to join together in song and meet new friends from other schools. I spoke to my colleague Lindsay and together we enlisted the incredible support from three Music Hubs that cover our areas and here we are today.

"For our first performance at scale, we gathered 20 children from 23 schools each child was chosen purely on their absolute love of singing.”

The Music Hubs, coordinated by Claire Nichols (Nottingham Music Hub Teaching and Learning Manager), supported the schools with in-person workshops and they helped with selecting appropriate song choices.

The lyrics, music scores and backing tracks were then uploaded onto the trust schools’ communications platform, Showbie. This easy accessibility meant that the schools were able to practice independently and affordably.

Lindsay continued; “Today has been a collaborative success and a truly joyous and memorable occasion for everyone. It’s wonderful to work with schools that really understand the importance of enrichment and see the effort they will go to in providing opportunities for their children.

"Today is about music but so much more. Some of our children outside of the city rode on a coach for the very first time and met a whole host of children with a mutual love of singing.

"Occasions like this help build social and emotional skills and spark our children’s imaginations. Importantly, with the generous support from the respective Music Hubs and Aquinas Education, we were able to provide this opportunity for the children and their families completely free of charge.”

Tanya agreed, “There were so many magical moments we shared today - seeing the children’s faces as they entered the building for the first time and then again when they saw the exceedingly cool musicians from the Robin Hood Youth Orchestre and hearing the sound we all made together, it was beautiful.

"The songs we sing and the whole idea of the Choir really chime with our trust values of ‘Respect, Kindness, Equity and Creativity’.

One of the hosts of the day, Claire Nichols said; “This is the first time for Transform Trust Choir but it’s also the first time that the three Music Hubs have come together and it’s been great to work with Emily and Daniela from our Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire hubs.

“It’s wonderful to bring so many young children together from three areas to make music together. The messages in the songs really resonated with the children and the adults. That was really powerful. It was also great to welcome parents and carers and share information about some of the other ways we work in their communities outside of the school.”

As Emily Morris, Derby and Derbyshire Music Hub, continued: “We share a love of music but also a love of igniting and nurturing a love of music in children.”

Daniela Smith, Nottinghamshire Hub, Inspire, added, “It’s been a lovely day – they sounded amazing. It’s been great to work collaboratively on such a large project where we can bring so many children into one space.

Rebecca Meredith CEO of Transform Trust joined parents and the members of the leadership team and was delighted to share her thoughts:

“I think I must have the best job in the world. I come here and listen to our amazing children sing their hearts out and to see their faces - and the faces of their parents/carers – is a sheer joy.

“I just want to say a massive thank you to Tanya, Lindsay and everyone here that has contributed to today’s success. There's an incredible amount of hard work that goes on behind the scenes and many hours spent in their spare time to make this happen, and I think they are all just brilliant. I really look forward to seeing how the choir evolves next year.” For those looking for music opportunities please go to:

• For Derby City and Derbyshire https://www.derbyshiremusichub.org.uk/• For Nottingham City https://www.nottinghammusichub.org.uk/ • For Nottinghamshire https://www.inspireculture.org.uk/services-schools/nottinghamshire-music-hub/

For those wanting to find out more about Transform Trust’s family of schools, please go to https://www.transformtrust.co.uk/.