Just before you grab that well-earned glass of mulled wine and think about clocking off for the festive period, make sure you check out our final set of potentially game-changing opportunities for songwriters in 2025.
Below you’ll find openings with The Ivors Academy and PRS Members’ Fund, as well as an exciting songwriting camp in collaboration with Stormzy’s #Merky FC venture.
Before we prepare to say farewell to 2025 and look ahead to the new year, read on to see what five opportunities for songwriters we’re shouting about in December.
Join The Ivors Academy for free as a Discovery member
Songwriters and composers can experience what the prestigious Ivors Academy has to offer with their Discovery membership, a free membership tier that has some optional pay-as-you-go benefits.
Signing up as a Discovery member means you’ll be joining an ever-growing community of like-minded music creators and keeping up to speed with the latest news, offers and perks from the renowned organisation. This includes full access to the Academy’s knowledge toolkit, which is filled with practical guides and tips to help you take control of your music career.
Discovery members also receive a 10% discount off the price of submitting their music for consideration to the Academy’s annual awards, The Ivors. Get started with The Ivors Academy today by signing up for free.
Sign up to the GRRLS CLUB x #Merky FC songwriting camp
GRRLS CLUB — an inclusive initiative aiming to empower women and non-binary music producers and engineers, while actively working to close the gender gap in music production — have just announced details of their next songwriting camp.
Organised in partnership with Stormzy’s #Merky FC and adidas, the camp will take place in Croydon on 24-25 January and 31 January-1 February, and is open to women and gender-diverse people aged between 16 and 25. The aim of the camp will be to create a mixtape, which GRRLS CLUB say will involve ‘writing, recording, shooting visuals, covers, distro — the whole lot!’
In order to be considered for a place on the camp, you need to fill out this application form by 15 December and include links to three songs you’ve been part of.
Apply for a place on a writing retreat honouring Daphne Oram
Introduced in celebration of the pioneering electronic music composer Daphne Oram’s centenary, this new joint initiative from PRS Members’ Fund and The Oram Awards is offering past and present winners of the Orams the chance to enjoy an idyllic artists’ retreat in Shetland.
With a specific focus on supporting music creators’ mental health and wellbeing, the Shetland Artists' Retreat is offering 10 Oram winners — who must also be eligible PRS members — a flat rate bursary of £500 per person to facilitate a stay at The Weaving Shed Gallery and a nearby Airbnb. Successful applicants will have the chance to stay for a maximum of two weeks between now and March 2026, where they'll be able to use the gallery space to create, rehearse and/or perform work.
If this sounds like the perfect creative getaway, you can find out more about the retreat and apply over on PRS Members’ Fund’s website.
Study music abroad with the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Isserlis Scholarship
A change of environment can be everything when it comes to furthering your creativity. Acknowledging this, the Royal Philharmonic Society is offering classical instrumentalists and vocalists (of any nationality between the ages of 15 and 25) a life-changing opportunity to study abroad through their Isserlis Scholarship.
Whether you’re looking to take lessons from an overseas specialist or fulfil a course at an international music school or university, the scholarship can provide vital funding to help make these ambitions a reality. Previous examples of the scholarship include percussionist Rebecca Burch, who travelled to Ghana to collaborate with local musicians and learn indigenous repertoire, and trumpeter Imogen Whitehead, who flew to Oslo for an intensive spell of lessons and masterclasses with some of Norway’s top players.
A total of £25,000 will be split between several musicians on this year’s scheme, with a selection panel making the final decisions over who receives what funding. Typical grants, it should be noted, range from £500 to £7500. If you’d like to find out more and apply, you have until 18 February to do just that.
Be part of Camden Songwriting Circle’s latest Feedback and Networking Session
Billed as ‘a community space in north London for musicians and music lovers to come together for feedback, insights and memorable music experiences’, Camden Songwriting Circle are rounding off 2025 with their final ‘Feedback and Networking Session’ later this month.
Taking place at the Rose & Crown pub in Kentish Town from 7pm on 9 December, this free event is open to writers of all genres and levels and is a great chance to connect with a like-minded community in a safe and supportive space. Creators have the option of performing or playing any works-in-progress on the night and receiving real-time constructive feedback, while you’ll also have the opportunity to network with fellow attendees throughout the evening.
Sign-up is in person on the day, and feedback slots will be allocated on a first come, first served basis. You can either bring your instrument to perform live or a recording of one of your songs, while a keyboard and guitar will also be on hand to use if required.
