We are delighted to announce that The King’s School Canterbury has won the ‘Community Engagement or Charity Fundraising’ category in the 2025 Talk Education Awards for Innovation in Education.

The award recognises schools that have found innovative ways to open their doors to the wider community or pioneered new approaches to charitable work. Our Sounding Out programme, launched in 2019, has been celebrated for doing just that.

Sounding Out provides free orchestral instrument lessons to children from local primary schools in Canterbury. Each child is loaned their own instrument, given all the necessary resources, and taught in small groups alongside general musicianship classes. Sessions are held on Saturday mornings at King’s, creating a vibrant and supportive environment for young learners.

The programme was established in response to the decline in access to music education nationwide, particularly among disadvantaged children. By removing financial barriers and providing opportunities to perform at events such as King’s Week, Sounding Out is helping to inspire the next generation of musicians and create a lifelong love of music.

This is not the first time Sounding Out has received attention on a national stage. In 2024, the initiative was shortlisted for Best Music Learning Initiative at the Classic FM Music Teacher Awards, and earlier this year pupils showcased their progress in a special performance during King’s Week.

The success of Sounding Out is the result of dedicated staff, generous supporters, and the enthusiasm of the children themselves. The programme continues to grow, expanding to more schools and introducing new instruments to its offering.

Winning this award is a significant milestone for King’s, underlining our commitment to community partnership and the belief that music should be accessible to every child, regardless of background. We are incredibly proud of what Sounding Out has achieved so far and look forward to developing the programme further in the years to come.