''Barry Can't Swim'' but Glee can'

Reflections and Learning from 2025

At the time of starting to write this blog it is a few months since the close of our 2024/25 Glee season and our incredible National Final in Edinburgh's magnificent Usher hall. I'm not a natural blogger or reflector for that matter but it feels important, or I've been persuaded of its importance, given that we celebrated our tenth anniversary as a Charity in May 2025. It also feels right to do it now before this year's Challenge overtakes us. So here we go with the first in a series of blogs of reflections and learning from last year. Oh, and, by the way, I've kept the last year's theme of Scottish Artists and bands running in the titles.

When we started the idea of a National Challenge we were swimming against the tide; music in schools was under pressure and still is; funders didn't favour what we were doing and still don't; some traditionalists were not fond of our approach and still aren't; and the financial landscape was grim - no change there either. Add to the mix, the Covid years and it has been quite a fight. We're still here, we've survived. But it's more than survival and hopefully I'm not tempting fate but it does feel like we are going from strength to strength.

How? How have we got this far? Where do we start?

The answer is Belief. It doesn't get anymore fundamental than we believe that we but more precisely Glee can and does

make a difference. We have also surrounded ourselves with people who share the wider belief that music can make a difference and who believe our Glee Challenge is able to harness the power of music and song for all. That shared belief in what Glee can achieve, as well as a belief in each other to deliver the Challenge, is without doubt the driving force behind and a determination to achieve what has been achieved so far.

Last year was no different. Our continued belief in what we do, the continued belief of others, internal and external, in what we do was the key to delivering 29 coordinated events across the country culminating in a exceptional National Final. Our strong beliefs and enthusiasm helped inform our partnerships with new venues, new people, different crews and a continuing need to develop and learn new skills something I'll return to in a later blog

This belief coupled with key values of equity and inclusion have allowed us to evolve a vision and mission for our Challenge which has guided us through the last ten years or so and which will inform our swimming as we go forward.

Barry may well not have been able to swim but we've managed so far and plan to continue swimming.

P.S. For those not familiar with the electronic pop/dance scene 'Barry can't swim' is an awarding winning highly successful DJ/Music producer