Music development plan summary
A summary of the school's music development plan, in the DfE template, updated before the start of each academic year. All schools and academies are expected to publish it.
Check this on my websiteWho it applies to
- Published on
- The school's own website
- School type
- Academies and maintained schools
- School stage
- All stages, from early years to sixth form
- Does not apply to
- No school types are excluded
When is it due?
- How often
- Every academic year
- Resets on
- 1 September, the start of the academic year
Annual summary.
What's needed
Publish the music development plan summary using the DfE template, on the curriculum or music page, dated for the current academic year (guidance says schools should).
What it must contain
No parts listedThe official sources name no separate parts for this requirement. We check that it is published and easy to find.
What the official sources say
Set out in 3 official sources:
What maintained schools must or should publish online
Alongside the content of their music curriculum, all schools are expected to publish information about their music development plan. A template is available to support with this.
Expected§ Curriculum > What all schools should publish
What academies, free schools and colleges must or should publish online
Alongside the content of their music curriculum, all academies are expected to publish information about their music development plan. A template is available to support with this.
Expected§ Curriculum > What all academies should publish
School music development plan: summary template
We are asking schools to publish a summary of their music development plan on their website before the start of the 2024 to 2025 academic year. Schools should then update the summary before the start of each new academic year.
Expected§ Page body (paragraph 2)
Questions schools ask
Does every school have to publish the music development plan summary?
Academies and maintained schools are expected to publish it.
When does the music development plan summary need to be published?
How often: Every academic year. Resets on: 1 September, the start of the academic year. Annual summary.
Where does the requirement for the music development plan summary come from?
It is set out in What maintained schools must or should publish online, What academies, free schools and colleges must or should publish online and School music development plan: summary template.
Changes to the official sources
Dated change notes published by the Department for Education on the sources above.
15 May 2024 · School music development plan: summary template
First published.
15 May 2024 · What academies, free schools and colleges must or should publish online
Reformatted the guidance to improve usability. Added a new section on 'Pay gap reporting', updated the 'Test, exam and assessment results' and included information about publishing a music development plan in the 'Curriculum' section.
15 May 2024 · What maintained schools must or should publish online
Reformatted the guidance to improve usability. Added a new section on 'Pay gap reporting', updated the 'Test, exam and assessment results' and included information about publishing a music development plan in the 'Curriculum' section.
We last checked these sources on 21 September 2026.
Is this on your school's website?
We check your site the way an inspector or a parent would find it: page by page, against the official wording of each requirement. If it's there, you get the page and the words we found. If it isn't, you get every place we looked.
Check this one requirement free, or scan your whole site against every requirement.
Official sources last checked 21 September 2026 · register version 1.0.4