May News!

Transforming experiences of healthcare and hospital for children and young people with complex needs

May News!

QEPEP 2026 and Festival Plan

Welcome to our May newsletter!

Our annual QEPEP modules with 5th-year medical students come to an end this month. It’s been another great year where we really see the benefits of students participating in our activities, broadening their knowledge and understanding of paediatrics, learning disabilities, and music-making for children, young people, and families affected by hospitalisation.

We’ve also been busy with ongoing plans for our Better Together Festival at RMCH in August, including creating activity packs and booking a diverse range of artists to perform as part of the day.

This Month’s Focus

PEP Sessions at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital
Building Towards the Better Together Festival 2026 at RMCH
Guest Musician Spotlight: Belle, Guzheng Artist

Below: Wonderful instrument drawings created by one of our Youth Hub participants

PEP Sessions at Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital

Songbirds Music UK has been welcoming medical students onto PEP (Quality and Evidence Personal Excellence Pathway) placements since the first pilot programmes in 2014. Led by founders Dr Ros Hawley and Mark Fisher alongside the wider Songbirds practitioner team, the PEP placements give medical students opportunities to step into the musical life of Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital — from bedside music-making to lively atrium sessions filled with improvisation, interaction, and shared creativity.

At Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital, students join the Songbirds team to experience how live music can support children, young people, and families during hospitalisation. Through ward visits, atrium sessions, reflective discussions, and creative participation, students explore how music can encourage communication, play, confidence, emotional wellbeing, and connection within healthcare environments.

Recently, our Associate Musicians Jodie and Grace delivered another lively PEP session with Year 5 medical students Theo, Ellie, and Kalifa. The session began with Senwa, a favourite from a previous workshop, before moving into improvisation games, percussion activities, and musical turn-taking led by the tongue drum.

Students also brought their own musical personalities into the space — Theo introduced the warm sound of the banjo, while Kalifa shared a traditional flute that beautifully matched the atmosphere of the session. Together, the group explored questions around participation, interaction, audience, and what meaningful creative engagement can feel like in a hospital setting.

One highlight was a musical walk through the atrium corridor towards Costa, where songs including Hey Dumbar, 12 Bar Blues, and In the Jungle invited children, parents, and passers-by to stop, listen, and join in with instruments along the way.

Grace reflected:

“This is the third year I have delivered a PEP session and each time I have taken away something different. Working with this year's medical students was very enjoyable as they got stuck in and asked lots of questions.”

The impact of the sessions was also recognised by the University of Manchester MB ChB Programme, who praised the positive learning experience created for medical students.

Participant Theo shared:

“I really enjoyed playing with all the children and their parents together in the group! To see everyone together and happy and joining in made me smile.”

Below: Photo from one of the PEP sessions at the RMCH Atrium

Building Towards the Better Together Festival 2026 at RMCH

The Better Together Festival 2026 is led by Songbirds Music UK as part of their Youth Music-funded project Hospital of Music (2025–28), in partnership with MFT/RMCH Therapeutic and Specialised Play and Youth Services.

On 28th April, we held our second festival planning meeting with the MFT/RMCH Therapeutic and Specialised Play and Youth Services team at the Play Centre in Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital — and excitement is definitely building.

Preparations are well underway for this year’s festival on 14th August, with creative ideas, music-making, and playful activities beginning to come together for children, families, and staff across the hospital community. Throughout the day, a team of Songbirds musicians will be visiting wards taking music making opportunities to children and families. Young people from the Youth Service will be performing during the day too, alongside guest musicians sharing the rich and colourful sounds of traditional instruments from around the world. These performances will bring moments of calm, curiosity, joy, and connection throughout the day.

We are especially excited to welcome back Global Grooves and their vibrant parade activities for the first time since before COVID. Their energy, movement, and carnival spirit will bring colour and celebration throughout the hospital spaces.

Alongside the live events, Songbirds project support Gloria is working with Health Play Specialists Eleni Pieri, Sarah Ogden, Joanne Wright, and Play Leader Kathryn Blackham to create a special festival activity pack for children and families, including origami birds, recycled instruments, musical matching games, and a creative iPad music guide introducing accessible music-making apps and tools.

The iPad guide has been designed to support playful and imaginative music-making within the hospital, where access to instruments and longer engagement can sometimes be limited. Through iPad instruments, motion-sensor apps, and simple recording tools, children can explore sound, create music, and develop their own ideas in accessible and intuitive ways.

We’re looking forward to continuing preparations over the coming months, and to welcoming children, families, and staff into a day where every corner of the hospital becomes a space for creativity, play, and sound.

Below: Play Centre staff and our Project Support team member Gloria at Play Centre at RMCH

Guest Musician Spotlight:

Belle, Guzheng Artist

As one of our guest musicians for the Better Together Festival, we’re delighted to welcome Belle, a guzheng player from Hong Kong, now based in Manchester. The guzheng is a traditional Chinese plucked string instrument with over 2,500 years of history, known for its rich, expressive, and soothing sound.

Belle has been playing and performing guzheng since secondary school, with a repertoire spanning traditional music, pop, rock, and experimental works. Alongside performing, she also composes her own music, and her first original composition won Best Original Song at a Manchester songwriting competition last year.

She especially enjoys collaborating with artists from different disciplines and musical backgrounds:

“One of my recent collaborations combined guzheng and rap, and it has been one of my favourite projects so far.”

Belle first connected with Songbirds through a community music project during her Master of Music studies at the University of Manchester. Community work has remained an important part of her artistic journey:

“Over the years, I’ve performed for different causes, such as homeless communities, hospitals, and children. I hope to continue doing so.”

Speaking about the upcoming festival, Belle shared:

“I cherish the moment when my music can bring happiness to people and comfort their hearts. The sound of guzheng is especially soothing and expressive; I believe it has the power to heal.”

Below: Belle, guest musician for the Better Together Festival 2026

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