RNCM unveils 10-year plan for music teaching, careers and campus renewal
The Royal Northern College of Music has launched a strategy combining professional development for instrumental and vocal teachers, paid opportunities for emerging musicians, expanded research and a major investment in its Manchester campus.
Powering the Music of Tomorrow 2026–2036, announced on 6 October, sets out four goals: strengthening the RNCM’s role in music education; contributing to change across the creative and cultural industries; deepening its regional impact; and securing the conservatoire’s long-term sustainability.
Four initiatives will underpin the plan: RNCM Teach, RNCM Futures+, the Institute for Research in Music, Place and Society, and RNCM Renew.
Developing the teaching workforce
RNCM Teach will bring together the college’s professional development provision for music services, hubs and other organisations employing instrumental and vocal teachers.
The initiative responds to concerns about recruitment and retention. According to the RNCM, its Music Hub partners report growing difficulties in finding and retaining tutors, with fewer younger teachers entering the profession.
A new partnership with the Chartered College of Teaching will involve Music Hubs and Services in designing a professional development programme for instrumental and vocal teachers leading to Chartered Status.
Supporting the transition into work
RNCM Futures+ will provide graduates and emerging artists with career development support, paid opportunities and connections to the college’s alumni network.
Support from Purposeful Ventures will fund a three-year programme helping musicians who have faced financial barriers to enter classical music careers. This will include support for Junior Fellowships and the college’s Creative Innovators Awards, alongside a new graduate version of the awards.
The wider Futures+ programme includes four annual awards for graduates developing creative businesses; ten paid, 12-month Junior Fellowships; a one-year RNCM String Quartet Studio training programme; and the paid, 12-month RNCM/ENO Incubator for artists developing new operatic work.
Graduates will also have access to a digital careers portal, Connect, with a jobs board, industry opportunities and professional development resources. Alumni mentoring and online and in-person networking events will complement the provision.
Expanding research
The Institute for Research in Music, Place and Society follows the RNCM’s acquisition of Research Degree Awarding Powers and the introduction of its own PhD programme.
Building on 15 years of specialist research, it will develop work in music education, community and intercultural music-making, heritage, and music and wellbeing. The college intends to expand research partnerships, inform policy and strengthen its impact across Manchester and the North West.
The RNCM currently has 43 PhD students and eight students taking its Advanced Artist Diploma, a doctoral-level programme supporting creative practice through individual research projects. A second institute, focused on artistic innovation, is planned within the next 18 months.
Investing in the campus
RNCM Renew is a 10-year capital programme to improve the college’s facilities, more than half a century after its campus opened.
Between 2026 and 2030, more than £10 million is planned for essential infrastructure, including improvements to accessibility, safety and environmental sustainability. A further £3 million will go towards the Theatre and Concert Hall, upgrading sound, lighting, performance and research capabilities.
A new Production Lab will give students access to industry-standard technology and creative facilities.
The longer-term centrepiece is RNCM Studios, due to open by 2036. The development will bring together digitally enabled studios, rehearsal rooms and flexible performance spaces for new and original music, supporting collaboration across genres, disciplines and technologies.