Peterborough Youth Ensemble thankful for community support ahead of relaunch

City of Peterborough Youth Ensemble (CPYE) was set up in 2012, and is run by parents, with the aim of giving children across Peterborough and the surrounding villages the chance to practice and perform alongside fellow young musicians.

The group is open to children from primary school up to sixth form, with a junior and senior division.

The only requirement to join the junior division is a Grade 1 level or equivalent in your chosen instrument.

CPYE have been allowed to commence practices again because supervised activities provided for children have an exemption from the government’s new ‘rule of six,’ making social gatherings of more than six people, without an exemption, illegal.

However, this required finding a new home after new Covid protocols at Ken Stimpson, in Werrington, forced the school to restrict access to its grounds to people from outside the staff and student body.

Cross Keys Homes have stepped in though and have offered the group access to their office, on Shrewsbury Avenue in Woodston, to practice.

Chairman of CPYE Ian Dobbs said: “We’re glad to be back, six months is a really long time.

“Being able to get up and running again is great. Playing in an orchestra offers a great opportunity for the children to play together outside of a school environment and creates a good mixing pot.

“Orchestral instruments are not designed to be played on their own and we like to be able to fill that gap. Playing alongside other musicians teaches them things they can’t learn in a one-on-one lesson.

“We are very grateful to Cross Keys, without their offer we would be dead in the water.”

Pre-lockdown, the group would meet every Thursday during term time, with the aim of putting on at least one performance during that time.

They have performed at locations across Peterborough such as local fetes, nursing homes and Nene Park, as well as alongside City of Peterborough Concert Band, which the group described as an invaluable learning experience.

CPYE have also received funding from Youth Inspired which has helped bring membership costs down, the sole source of funding they receive.

Ian added: “We have worked very hard to make the relaunch safe. All the seats have been laid out in a socially distanced way, we have purchased mouth guards for all the instruments, limited who has access to the practice room and have prepared the music in advance so that it can be sealed and quarantined in a plastic wallet for 72 hours.

“Keeping people has been a bit of a headache, it would have been so easy for a group like us to go under but we are pleased to be relaunching and getting back to practising.

“Music enriches young people and when you see them play, you really get the sense that it is worth it.”

Due to restrictions at the moment, the juniors and seniors have merged and the maximum number of band members has been limited to 15. However, there are still some spaces available for the practices, which take place between 5:30-7:00pm and COYE are keen to hear from anyone interested, particularly people who play some of the less common instruments such as the oboe or cello.

Anyone interested in joining can find all the information necessary at cpye.org.uk.