The cost of conservatoire training is substantial, and many talented students who wish to access our specialist facilities and high-quality tuition are unable to take up their place due to their financial circumstances. We are currently unable to help all of them. There is a real need across the arts sector to widen access, address inequalities and significantly increase the diversity of those entering the industry. RWCMD wants to ensure that all students have equal opportunity to succeed.

To enable the widest possible access to our training, we have pledged to provide an annual bursary of up to £1,200 for all new UK undergraduate students with a household income of less than £30,000 per annum from the 2021/22 academic year. Fulfilling this commitment will require investment of circa £500k over the coming 4-year period and further investment of £200-250k per annum thereafter. We are therefore launching a public campaign to support the new RWCMD Bursary Fund.