Scottish children's charity 'heartbroken' as funding plug is pulled on music education project

A music education charity working with some of Scotland’s most disadvantaged children has launched a crowdfunding campaign after being stripped of council funding for one of its main projects.

Sistema Scotland said it felt “heartbroken” and “deeply let down” after councillors in Dundee voted to pull the plug on the Big Noise orchestra programme in the Douglas area. It has pleaded for public donations to try to secure the future of the project, which has worked with more than 500 children since launching in 2017, after the withdrawal of a £300,000 annual grant.

Sistema Scotland, which offers free music tuition to youngsters from deprived areas, has accused the council of breaking promises to maintain financial support for the project. The cut has been imposed a year after the council praised the impact Big Noise Douglas was having.

The charity, which created its first project in the Raploch area of Stirling in 2008, has launched a crowdfunding appeal “to anyone who can support us". It had submitted a “reduced request” of £300,000 a year for the next three years – less than half of what had been expected – to take into account financial pressures on the council.

A statement from the charity said: “We are heartbroken at the decision by the council to withdraw all funding from the Big Noise Douglas programme. We feel deeply let down that the council has broken its promise to the Douglas community to support Big Noise long-term.”

Sistema Scotland chief executive Nicola Killean said: “This is a devastating decision for the community of Douglas. For the council to so brazenly break its promise to children, young people and their families is heart-breaking.

“Our work is more important than ever, which is why it is so upsetting that councillors have abandoned the Douglas community. We will now have to assess the full impact of this shocking decision, and we are appealing to anyone who can support us to donate to the future of Big Noise Douglas.”

Joan McAlpine, a former SNP and previous chair of Holyrood’s culture committee, said: “Sistema Scotland is one of the best examples of preventative intervention using the arts in the lives of young people. Let’s hope this decision can be reversed.”

Singer Alice Marra said: “I'm so angry and upset that they have treated the Douglas community this way.” The council has imposed the cut despite a plea from violinist Nicola Benedetti, a long-time champion of the charity’s work.

She said: “Big Noise is a transformational social intervention programme, which should be cherished and nurtured. I have been personally involved for over 14 years and I know the quality, integrity and impact of the work. It is admired around the world.

“Collective music-making is an activity that goes far beyond teaching – it brings people together and uses music to nurture relationships as tools for change.”

John Alexander, leader of the SNP-controlled council, last year said the charity’s work had made “an important impact on the Douglas community”. However, he said financial pressures meant the council had to focus on programmes which provided “the biggest benefit to the biggest cohort” of people.

Willie Sawers, deputy convener of policy and resources, insisted the council had “sought to strike a delicate balance while supporting the most vulnerable members of our communities.”