The Youth Music Trailblazer fund offers grants of £2,000 to £30,000 to organisations in England to run projects for children and young people (25 or under) to make, learn and earn in music. The project should trial work or test a new way of working, sustain a grassroots programme or disrupt the status quo (or all three!).

Your work must meet one of our themes: 

  • Early years
  • Disabled, d/Deaf and neurodivergent young people
  • Youth justice system
  • Young people facing barriers
  • Young adults
  • Organisations and the workforce.

A Trailblazer project could be:

  • A new CIC testing out different ways of supporting nurseries to embed music-making into their day-to-day activities. 
  • A Music Education Hub that wants to disrupt the status quo of their local music scene by setting up a Youth Board that has budget & power to make decisions about how the hub is run.
  • An established youth centre trialling a programme of music activities for the first time.

Trailblazer Round 8
Deadline: 22 November 2024
Notification: 21 March 2025
For projects starting between: April and June 2025

Trailblazer Round 9
Deadline: 11 April 2025
Notification: 8 August 2025
For projects starting between: September and November 2025

All deadlines are 5pm.

In October 2024 we have updated our eligibility guidance, so that Trailblazer grants can now be used to sustain a grassroots programme, as well as test and trial new ways of working. You can now also request personal access costs to support staff and volunteers facing additional barriers. All changes are highlighted in the updated guidance below

APPLY HERE
APPLICANT GUIDANCE (PDF)
APPLICATION QUESTIONS
a group of children play violins in a classroom
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Trailblazer Fund and Catalyser Fund Questions and Answers

These are questions we have received about our Trailblazer and Catalyser funds.

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Trailblazer Fund Project examples

Here are some examples of projects supported by Youth Music that are trailblazing, by trialling work for the first time, testing a new way of working or by disrupting the status quo.

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