Access & Participation
Guildhall School encourages applications from students whose backgrounds are underrepresented in higher education, and at the School. The Access and Participation team offer a wide range of free activity that enables passionate creatives of all ages to access performing arts training, of varying intensity. Our ultimate goal is to ensure that every potential Guildhall School student has the knowledge, confidence and resources to apply, and that if they are successful in obtaining a place, they thrive as a student and progress to a rewarding career.
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About Access & Participation
Access & Participation intro
Access and Participation activity is designed to:
- encourage undergraduate applications, dismantling and dispelling barriers to applying, for those who are currently underrepresented in the School’s student population;
- increase familiarity with the School and confidence with audition and interview processes;
- instil a feeling of belonging in all participants, creating long-lasting and supportive communities;
- provide skill development opportunities, raising participants’ confidence in their creative abilities, and supporting them to realise their aspirations;
- offer an insight to the Guildhall School teaching style, ensuring applicants are well equipped to make decisions about their future studies – irrespective of whether this eventually includes formal study at the School;
- ensure children and young people have funded access to high-quality performing arts training, particularly in music where this can come at considerable expense to families;
- support current students to succeed at the School, whether through financial support, practical guidance on learning or careers, or as a safe and friendly space for advice.
To achieve these objectives, we run a number of free schemes and projects for eligible young people, applicants and students.
You can find out more about the Access and Participation Plan which informs this work in our Executive Summary.
Access and Participation Plan Executive Summary.pdf
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Access activities
Opportunities for children, young people and those interested in studying at Guildhall in the future include:
Support for new and current students
In addition to significant support for children, young people and applicants, the Access and Participation team also provide support to current undergraduate students who are underrepresented in higher education.
The Access Bursary offers eligible UK undergraduate students, with a household income of below £33k, financial support to ensure that they can study with confidence.
The School will operate two Access Bursary structures simultaneously in 2025/26, due to regulatory commitments across two Access and Participation Plans (2020/21-2024/25 & 2025/26-2028/29).
- Access Bursary Type 1 is available to low-income students who started their studies in September 2024 or earlier.
- Access Bursary Type 2 is available to low-income students who start their studies in September 2025 or later.
Current students and offer-holders should read the Access and Participation Student Financial Support Policy below to find out more.
Access and Participation Student Financial Support policy - 202526.pdf
Further information on Guildhall School scholarships, bursaries and financial awards can be found here.
The Access Equipment Fund is awarded to new entrants who participated in the Supported Application Scheme in the year of their successful application to the School. It is valued at £400, and students are encouraged to use this for the equipment that they need for their course and to purchase items that they require for their student accommodation, to help them settle into life at Guildhall more easily, and without financial worries.
This is offered in addition to any other Guildhall School funding.
Guildhall School has substantial support in place for students who are Care Leavers, care experienced or estranged from their family. You can find out more on our Student Affairs webpages.
Get Ready for Guildhall offers incoming students, who meet one or more access criteria, the opportunity to visit Guildhall School in the summer before they start their course, to:
- Meet other new students
- Meet current students
- Meet the staff in the student support services, such as Student Affairs, Library, Registry and departmental support offices
- Take a tour of the facilities
- Get to know the local area
- Prepare for student life.
Offer-holders will be invited to sign-up to this event in the spring/summer of the year they are applying. Get Ready for Guildhall 2024 is scheduled to take place on Tuesday 8th July 2025.
Contact us
You can email the Access and Participation Team at access@gsmd.ac.uk. Our office hours are 9am-5pm, Monday-Friday.
Impact and Evaluation
Guildhall School of Music & Drama’s continued success in Access and Participation relies on effective evaluation and reporting to the Office for Students.
Read our regulatory reports, containing information submitted annually to the Office for Students, and project level reports, which outline statistics, successes and next steps. Please note that this is a developing area of work for the Access and Participation team - further reports will be published in due course.
Access and Participation - Impact Report 2019-20.pdf
