Private Teachers; Public Trust

Child protection is the topical theme of an ISM seminar to be held on Monday 3 November 2003 at Regent Hall, 275 Oxford Street, a few metres west of Oxford Circus in central London. The seminar has been devised with the help of specialist consultants from the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children (NSPCC), who will participate in the day: it will be chaired by Colin Mackay, Warden of the ISM Private Teachers Section for 2003-04.

Setting the theme within a broader social and legal context, the ISM's seminar will consider how recent developments affect private music teachers and their work. Talks, workshops and discussions will offer practical advice and guidance on how all instrumental and vocal teachers and professional musicians working with children can help to safeguard themselves and their pupils in a fast-changing world. The seminar will start with registration and coffee from 10am and finish by about 3.30pm, with the following format:

• Colin Mackay, Warden, ISM Private Teachers Section 2003-04, welcomes participants and introduces the seminar; 
• Tom Narducci, NSPCC Senior Consultant, describes the context and framework of recent child protection legislation and developments, including the Disclosure service operated by the Criminal Records Bureau and the public responsibilities placed on organisations and individuals whose work brings them into contact with children and young people. He will outline some practical steps that teachers can take to protect both themselves and their pupils; 
• Alison Pickard, ISM Head of Committee & Professional Services, explains the new vetting processes and procedures for the ISM Private Teachers Section; 
• Helen Edwards, NSPCC Senior Consultant, looks at developing good practice in a changing professional climate, exploring some new approaches to child protection awareness in a one-to-one teaching context; 
• Workshops/Discussion Groups where participants will be able to discuss in smaller groups some possible teaching scenarios and to consider ways in which they might safeguard and develop their own practice.

For further details of Private Teachers; Public Trust, contact ISM Head Office, tel: 020 7629 4413, fax: 020 7408 1538, email: membership@ism.org, or download a booking form here. 

Ends 08 /2003

Note to Editors: The ISM is the UK's professional association for all musicians. It promotes the art of music and upholds the honour and status of the musical profession by protecting the interests of musicians, raising professional standards, and providing legal advice and other benefits to its 5,000 members, who include teachers, performers, composers, conductors, organists, writers and others involved in professional musical work. The Private Teachers Section is the ISM's 2,000-strong specialist group for self-employed musicians who run independent teaching practices from their own premises: it holds conferences and seminars from time to time on topics of current interest.

Contact: Alison Pickard / Fiona MacLeod, tel: 020 7629 4413.