Penrice Strikes Gold with Music Enrichment Award

Penrice Academy has been awarded Gold as part of the Cornish Singing Schools Awards 2023 by ASONE Music Hub.

The Cornish Singing Schools Award is a programme that promotes singing across all educational institutions in Cornwall and measures commitment to developing and encouraging youth singing.

Penrice was one of only two secondary schools in Cornwall to achieve the top gold award, with Penryn College being the other secondary to claim the accolade.

Schools accrued points towards the award based on their engagement with activities such as Songfest and the Big Sing, and by inviting professionals into school to work with and encourage singing amongst young people.

There are three tiers of the award: Tin, Copper and Gold.

Pictures from The Big Sing at Hall for Cornwall – June 2023

Words by: Mr Brodey
Music Teacher at Penrice Academy

“We are extremely proud to have been awarded the Gold Award by ASONE based on our engagement last academic year. Singing is something that we can all do and it is something that we actively promote at Penrice.”

“Singing triggers the release of endorphins and oxytocin and is a great way of improving young people’s confidence and wellbeing. We integrate singing into our curriculum and extra-curricular offer and try to get out into the community as much as we can to give our students chances to sing and build their confidence by performing in public.”

The ASONE Gold Award not only represents Penrice’s drive to provide a plethora of music enrichment opportunities for students, but also the teachers’ commitment to continually improving through training attending courses. Penrice teachers have been recognised for their participating in online ASONE music teacher training sessions, helping to continually refine their skills.

Building confidence through performing opportunities. Penrice Students pictured Carol Singing at Par Market in December 2022.

Mrs Angela Renshaw, Vocal Strategy Lead at ASONE, said:

“Having worked with these students regularly over the past 12 months, there is clearly huge musical talent at Penrice Academy! The school has a fantastic track record of engagement and we commend the hard work of the staff and teachers.”

“I’d like to say a big congratulations to Penrice. They have been really supportive of ASONE for a number of years, and it is really great to see a local secondary school getting involved. These events not only support pupils’ development and performing skills, but Penrice students have also been acting as fantastic role models for participating students from primary schools – and have subsequently gained leadership skills.”