Frequently Asked Questions

If you need any more help, please email programmes@mfy.org.uk and one of the team will get back to you as soon as possible. 

  • The Music for Youth Regional Festivals are a series of local live music festivals designed to inspire musicians at every level of experience, in a supportive environment. They can be either public “Regional Festivals” or private “Local Events”, however both are opportunities for young musicians aged 21 or under, in a group of two or more, to perform and get feedback from our professional Music Mentors. There are progression opportunities within the season between the Regional Festival Series, National Festival, Primary Proms, Frequencies, and the Music for Youth Proms through a carefully considered selection process. 

  • The Music for Youth Regional Festivals happen in the spring, usually between February and April.  

  • Applications for the Music for Youth Regional Festivals are opening soon. You can apply to join an event near you, or submit a recording via Mentor Connects. These are the first events as part of our annual season, and we are planning to welcome 30,000 young musicians to take part in performances across the UK. 

    Please note that we can only accept applications from groups of 2 or more for young people aged 21 or under. 

  • If no slots are available at your preferred festival, consider signing up for another nearby festival, joining the waitlist for your desired event, or applying for the Mentor Connects Programme.

  • Participating in a Regional Festival or online via our Mentor Connects programme costs £35 (plus VAT) per group/entry. Frequencies festivals cost £20 (plus VAT) per entry.

    MFY will send you an invoice after completing your application. Please note there be a delay between completion of your application and receiving your invoice. 

  • For groups who may find this cost prohibitive, we have a subsidy scheme available to ensure we reduce as many barriers to participation as possible. Please visit our subsidy page here for more information on how to apply. We will review applications on a Thursday each week to ensure that groups don’t have to wait to know the level of support we can provide.  

  • Unfortunately, refunds are not available for any bookings made for the Regional Festival Series, once your booking has been confirmed by a member of the Music for Youth team. However, if you're unable to attend, we can transfer your entry to our Mentor Connects programme (our digital platform) at no additional cost.

  • Each group is allocated 10 minutes to perform. Any pieces can be performed and you don’t have to use all of the time if you don’t want to, but you must not go over the 10 minutes.  

  • All applications received by the deadline will be processed and confirmation emails will be sent before the holiday period. 

    • Up to 75% of festival places will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. 

    • Within that 75%, MFY will only be able to guarantee up to three entries per group leader in order to ensure the balance across the festival.  

    • MFY then reserves the right to allocate the remaining 25% of places at our discretion – this is so we can achieve our Regional Festival aims and safeguard equality of opportunity e.g. engaging with new partners and ensuring that hard to reach groups have the opportunity to participate. 

  • Mentor Connects is your digital submission to take part in the Music for Youth Regional Festivals if you can’t attend an event, or if there are none near you. Your submission will still get mentored like the rest of our events, and you will still be considered for a performance slot at the National Festival.

  • This is available to apply to along with all other festivals. Please submit your recording via our website form here. 

    Your entry can be in either audio or video format, and will need to be uploaded to a site like Youtube, Spotify, Soundcloud or Vimeo. If you choose to make the file password protected, please remember to include the details we will need in order to be able to access it. 

    The Mentor Connects programme has unlimited spaces available, so there's no cap on the number of applicants. When applying, you will need to include the link to your audio or video. The application deadline is 14th March, as indicated on the calendar when booking.

    Please note that we can only accept applications from groups of 2 or more for young people aged 21 or under. 

  • For Mentor Connects, recordings will be sent to a Music Mentor and feedback on your performance will be forwarded to you at the beginning of April. Please note that you will receive feedback on 10 minutes of any submission.

  • Please ensure that your submission to Mentor Connects is no longer than 10 minutes.

  • Local events are private, invitation-only events, therefore booking is limited. We recommend attending a regional festival, setting up your own local event, or applying via Mentor Connects instead.  

  • When booking, simply select the festival and date you'd like to attend, and choose an available slot. If you’d like to be placed on a waitlist for another festival, return to the start of the form, select the waitlist option, and complete the sign-up. If a spot opens up at your chosen waitlist festival, we’ll reach out to you if you haven't been allocated a space elsewhere.

  • We’re sorry there isn’t a festival close to you. We are currently working with partners across the country to widen our reach. Alternatively, you can apply to run a local festival or submit an entry to Mentor Connects to guarantee your groups involvement in the MFY season. More information about these alternative options will be found on the Regional Festival webpage.

  • Yes, you will receive verbal feedback on the day and written feedback will be sent to you at the beginning of April 2026.

Regional Festivals

National Fesitval

  • Music for Youth’s National Festival is held in Birmingham between 10-11 July 2026.  

  • Yes! Music for Youth collaborate with a variety of partners to host an array of workshops at the National Festival. Booking information for workshops will be announced closer to the event.  

  • Yes, all stages at the National Festival, including the fringe stage, will receive mentoring and feedback as standard. Please get in touch if you performed with us and haven’t had your feedback yet.  

  • The Music for Youth National Festival is an educational programme with a special reputation. It will provide you and your group with world-class mentoring from industry professionals, as well as a professional performance experience on a national platform.


    Music for Youth is a registered charity, and everything we raise goes towards supporting young people from all backgrounds across the UK to take part in our educational programme.


    The National Festival participation fees are as follows:
    £35 (+ VAT) – groups between 2-4 participants
    £60 (+ VAT) – groups between 5-9 participants
    £85 (+ VAT) – groups between 10-50 participants
    £100 (+ VAT) – groups with 51 or more participants


    Each group will be invoiced directly once you have confirmed your attendance.


    For groups who may find this cost prohibitive, we have a subsidy scheme available to ensure we reduce as many barriers to participation as possible. Please visit our subsidy page here for more information on how to apply.

  • In partnership with B:Music and the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (CBSO), the Music for Youth Primary Live concert provides a fun, dynamic, educational concert in a world class venue. It’s a great opportunity for children aged 4 to 11 to experience live music in a major concert hall. Young musicians will perform a wide range of repertoire to a high standard, presenting a diverse range of musical styles and groups. Every Primary Live concert aims to:

    • Inspire and motivate the next generation of young musicians

    • Enable children to hear a wide range of different musical styles from all over the world

    • Engage the audience through participation and provide follow-up activities for the classroom

  • Tickets for Primary Live cost £3 per ticket.

    We recommend that you book your space early, tickets are allocated on a first come, first served basis.

  • On the day, you and your pupils will be guided through the concert by an inspirational animateur and presenter to enhance your Primary Live experience. We will also provide you with a 90-minute CPD session and associated online learning resources, connected to the national curriculum, prior to the concert.

  • Performance slots at the Proms are invitation only, and are mostly filled by groups who have joined us at the Regional and/or National Festival. The Creative Project is open to other groups to apply, however this is on a first-come, first-served basis, and does include a small registration fee. 

  • Participating in the Proms costs £150 per group. This can be paid when you sign up, or you can select ‘pay later’ if you require an invoice.  

  • We aim to contact everyone who has been invited to perform at the Proms by the start of the new school year in September.  

  • The Creative Project is a massed ensemble that is featured on both nights.

    The Creative Project is a massed ensemble that is featured on both nights. The 2025 ‘Creative Project’ at the MFY Proms will see over 1000 young people per night collaborate to perform music composed by composer Aileen Sweeney, with words by Iona Lee.

    The 2026 Creative Project will be a collaboration between Music for Youth, BBC Ten Pieces, ABRSM, and the Royal Albert Hall.

  • Applications for the Creative Project are completed via the MFY website. Applications for 2026 will open in the summer.

  • Yes. Spaces for the Creative Project are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis, so if you have been able to apply, your booking is automatically accepted. 

  • Final information for groups regarding arrival times and locations is sent via email in October. Please contact programmes@mfy.org.uk if you have not received this information. 

  • Final information for groups regarding arrival times and locations is sent via email in October. Please contact programmes@mfy.org.uk if you have not received this information. 

  • Please bring the following documentation with you to perform:

    • Child perfomance licencing 

    • Head teacher permission letter 

    • Chaperone list 

  • MFY will post snippets of the concert across our social media accounts. Souvenir footage is available to purchase, please email marketing@mfy.org.uk for more information.

  • Due to the amount of young people at the venue we do not have space for dressing rooms for Creative Project participants. We will ensure there is space for instrument case storage where required.  

  • As per the final information for groups sent via email, we recommend leaving the site after your soundcheck, to allow further soundchecks to be conducted. We recommend going to either the Science Museum, Natural History Museum or Hyde Park. Please be aware that booking in advance is required for the Science and Natural History Museums.  

  • Please let us know your ETA by calling the MFY Production number on 020 8159 1649 (please note that this is an online phone so you will be directed through to a member of the MFY Production team on site).

  • The passes will be counted in advance into packs for each group. If your group numbers change, we must know, or your group will not receive the correct number of badges. On the day, the reception desk will close at 14:30 and no backstage passes will be issued after this point. 

  • A daily production meeting will be held covering venue evacuation procedures and important aspects of the day. A representative from each group must attend this meeting - where possible, this should be the conductor or group leader. It will be your responsibility to disseminate the information to all your staff on the trip. 

  • It will be possible to watch the half of the concert your group is not performing in. Your Group Itinerary Sheet has details of whether you have been allocated seats in the auditorium or standing places in the Arena, Stalls or Gallery. 

Proms