Sing For Wellbeing

What is Sing For Wellbeing?

Sing For Wellbeing is a continuing professional development (CPD) opportunity for primary teachers in Scotland to develop skills and confidence to deliver inclusive singing in their classrooms.

The programme is designed with and for primary teachers who feel a lack of confidence or skill in leading music and singing activities with their pupils. Ultimately, it aims to increase the wellbeing of children through more regular singing, positively impacting their learning, emotional self-regulation, and wider lives. We want all primary school children in Scotland to be supported in feeling happy, healthy and joyful through singing.

Our initial focus is on upper primary teachers and we are holding this year’s CPD workshops in Edinburgh. If you want to sign up to be part of the 2026-27 cohort, please fill in the form below or contact Cathy Phillips Brady on cathy@lovemusic.org.uk with any questions. We are happy to call you if you provide us with a phone number.

Not in Edinburgh? You can still take part! We already have 6 local authorities taking part this year and we can help you access the Edinburgh sessions. Tell us how we can help on your sign up form.

Benefits

• 10 x more music training than offered in typical Initial Teacher Training programmes;
• Teacher-led community network to aid ongoing practice, support and ideas;
• Growth in wellbeing and confidence of teachers and their pupils;
• FREE to participate, supported by Creative Scotland and The William Syson Foundation.

Why does it matter?

This programme responds to:

• the inequity of access to music making in primary schools;
• the pressing challenge of post-pandemic recovery for our children and teachers;
• the evidenced increase in anxiety and poor mental health in children;
• the systematic decline of the music specialist from the primary school workforce, and the consequent burden of music delivery that falls on generalist teachers.

We are currently in the pilot year of the programme, and are working with participants to research and develop the best ways to transfer knowledge and skills and to build confidence amongst the cohort. Our approach has been to respond to the needs of the teachers in the group as we move through the sessions, and to change our methods and content depending on what is working best for those taking part. This is helping us to refine and evaluate the programme in development for next year.

Year 2: 2026-27 Cohort

Who can take part?

• The CPD programme is aimed at qualified upper primary teachers P4-P7, but if you are teaching another primary year group or are a supply teacher, you are also welcome to sign up.
• At the moment, we plan to deliver in Edinburgh.
• This programme is particularly beneficial to non-music specialists and those who feel less confident about using music and singing in their classrooms.
• No prior experience in music or singing is necessary.

Teachers will:

• Take part in regular workshops throughout the academic year.
• Receive training from music inclusion and education specialists.
• Develop skills and confidence to use singing inclusively in their teaching practice.
• Develop a deeper understanding of the impact of inclusive group singing on their own and their pupils’ health and wellbeing.
• Become part of a ‘Community of Practice’ where teachers will meet others taking part, support their peers, share learning, resources, and ideas.

Dates & venue

This year we have 10 x 2 hour sessions on Friday afternoons. It is likely that our second year programme will be concentrated into fewer but longer sessions, and we’ll update this page once we are ready to launch for 2026-27.

We are able to support access to the workshops, whether this is for help with travel or other access needs. Please note your requirements on your sign-up form and we will be in touch with you to discuss.

FAQs

• How many teachers can sign up from your school?
  – As many as you like. We have space for around 40 teachers.
• How many sessions do my teachers need to attend?
  – All CPD sessions are mandatory to gain the full benefit of the programme; we will provide written recordings for any emergency absences.
• What happens after this CPD year?
  – This is a multi-year programme – we will provide support sessions at key points in the year following the CPD and teachers will share resources and support each other as their practice develops. We will be on hand to help. We also plan to repeat the training for a new cohort of teachers each year.

Sign up to take part

Project background

The voice is our most accessible musical instrument. We believe that everyone can sing and that singing together can help build healthier, happier, creatively engaged learning communities for both pupils and teachers alike.

We know from feedback with teachers that without musical training, planning and delivering inclusive music activities with their classes can feel like an impossible task. Singing in front of others can feel like a very personal expression that exposes vulnerability, and without training, teachers can lack the confidence in their skills to embed this practice into their teaching.

This programme is focused on skilling up generalist primary teachers and is designed for teachers without prior musical experience or training. It uses singing as the most democratic, inclusive and embodied way to bring music into children’s lives and in the process, to increase both their wellbeing and the wellbeing of the teachers who lead the singing.

Sing For Wellbeing teachers will connect through a peer-network, where they will continue to grow in confidence and competence in singing leadership, and can share and develop resources for use in the classroom. This network will be supported by the Love Music team and subsequent training, discussion and mentorship will be provided for those who would like to continue their development.

The teacher training is part of a partnership project between Love Music and Queen Margaret University, who have been working together since 2021 to develop an ambitious research project connected to this CPD programme which aims to evidence the effects of group singing on children’s wellbeing. Queen Margaret University are seeking funding to run the research side of the programme. We’ll update any teachers who sign up with their plans and there will opportunities to opt in or out at every stage.