Rocksteady Music School, described by the business as the UK’s largest and fastest-growing music school, has been named a finalist for the ITV Growth Accelerator Award at the 2026 Lloyds British Business Excellence Awards.
The company teaches more than 135,000 children every week in over 4,500 primary schools across England and Wales, helping them experience the joy of making music together in a band during the school day.
That growth was independently recognised in 2026, when the Financial Times named Rocksteady one of Europe’s fastest-growing businesses, up more than 800 places with 526 per cent growth over three years. The company reports it now holds 25 per cent of its market against 4 per cent for its nearest competitor.
Qualifications that reach further than GCSE
Rocksteady also won an EdTechX award for the technology behind its exam-free, Ofqual-regulated qualification, delivered in partnership with Trinity College London. This academic year alone, the company says, more than 48,000 children have been awarded its Music Performance in Bands qualification, more than passed music GCSE and A-Level combined. Since launching in 2022, it reports that 151,953 qualifications have been awarded and 6,760,711 skills completed.
An inclusive, child-centred method
The school’s mission is to break down barriers to learning music and to boost children’s self-belief in and out of the classroom. Over 19 years it has developed a curriculum covering up to 300 skills across instruments, songs, musicianship and band skills, designed to suit all children including those with special educational needs. Its team of more than 650 musicians, the company says, makes learning fun and improves children’s enjoyment of school, attendance, attainment and engagement.
For profit, for good
As a self-described “for profit for good” business, Rocksteady says it is committed to social impact, providing £4.6 million of free music education this year through bursaries, match funding and Foundation workshops with charities and support groups. It reports being the UK’s leading employer of full-time, permanent salaried musicians, all with full employment rights, and says it has offset 100 per cent of its carbon emissions since April 2024.
Recognition has extended to its people, with the company highly commended in the Wellbeing or Support of the Year category at the Education Today Awards and its chief executive, Scott Monks, named a UK finalist at the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Awards. In 2026 the school launched in Australia, which it says proves its methodology works internationally.
As a finalist in the ITV Growth Accelerator Award, Rocksteady joins a shortlist of high-growth UK businesses recognised for scale and ambition. Winners of the Lloyds British Business Excellence Awards will be announced on 10 November 2026 at Grosvenor House in London.
