Musical leadership: Reflections on a music therapy pilot project for students at a special school

Abstract

This article details a service evaluation of a leadership project facilitated by a music therapist in a special school in London. Using principles of community music therapy and resource-oriented music therapy, a collaborative project was set up where older students in the school delivered music sessions to a younger class group. The music therapist, staff and parents were interviewed based on selected video clips and stills of the sessions. Their reflections were recorded, transcribed and analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Analysis highlighted two core themes: 1) Improvements in confidence, focus, independence, leadership and life skills for the older students, and 2) Indications that the younger children may not have benefitted as much as the older students. Suggestions for similar future projects are also summarised. The findings highlight how a flexible and dynamic approach to music therapy can benefit a school community, as well as the challenges that present in supporting children of different ages and with different needs. Collaboration, participation and valuing of strengths and resources was at the core of this project.