RSM is the UK’s oldest music charity, founded in 1738 to provide vital financial assistance, advice and guidance to music professionals throughout their careers and into retirement, if they unable to work because of accident, illness, stress or anxiety. That’s what we’ve been doing ever since!

Depending on your circumstances, RSM may be able to provide financial assistance towards healthcare, counselling and therapy, specialist treatment, short-term living expenses where eligible, longer-term care needs, home adaptations, mobility aids and other essential health-related costs.

Applications for financial assistance are individually assessed and means tested.

We also provide a contribution towards funeral expenses following the death of an eligible musician, partner or dependant. Funeral grants are not means tested and have a separate application process.

RSM supports people at different stages of their lives and careers in music where financial need has arisen because of accident, physical or mental ill health, disability, or an eligible caring circumstance.

To apply for financial assistance, you must normally:

• be aged 18 or over;

• be a British national or have lived in the UK for at least three years;

• meet one of our music career or study eligibility routes;

• be unable to reasonably meet the cost from your own resources;

• have total household savings and investments below £20,000; and

• not have available equity in a second or additional property owned by you or your partner.

The music eligibility requirements depend on your circumstances:

Working professionally in music
You will normally need to have worked professionally in music for at least three years, with more than half of your income coming from music or music-related work.

Early career
If you are within the first three years of your professional music career, you may be eligible for health-related support where music provides, or provided until a recent illness or injury, the majority of your income. Short-term living expenses are not available through this route.

Students
Students studying music or a music-related subject may be eligible for help with health-related costs. RSM does not provide grants towards tuition fees or general student living costs.

Retired music professionals
You may be eligible if you had a sustained professional career in music before retirement, with the majority of your working income coming from music or music-related work.

Former music professionals
You may be eligible if you previously earned the majority of your income through music for at least three years but had to stop or significantly reduce your professional music work because of accident, ill health or disability. We are most likely to be able to help where this change happened within the last three years, although applications outside this period may still be considered depending on the circumstances.

Partners, children and dependants
In some circumstances, support may be available where the health needs of a partner, child or dependant are having a significant financial impact on an eligible music professional or household.

RSM cannot normally provide financial assistance where the need arises solely from unemployment, a lack of work or general financial hardship without a relevant health-related circumstance.

For full details of each eligibility route, please read our Guidelines for Applications for Financial Assistance. If you are unsure which route applies to you, please contact the Grants Team at grants@rsmgb.org or 020 7629 6137.

If you would like to apply for financial assistance, please contact our Grants Team at grants@rsmgb.orgor call 020 7629 6137.

We will discuss your circumstances with you, confirm whether you appear to meet our eligibility criteria and, where appropriate, send you a link to the application form.

If you are unsure whether RSM may be able to help, please get in touch. We are happy to talk through your circumstances before you apply.

Yes. To qualify for means-tested financial assistance, total household savings and investments must normally be below £20,000.

This includes savings and investments held by a spouse or partner living with you.

You will also normally be ineligible if you or your partner own a second or additional property with available equity.

We will ask about savings, investments and property ownership as part of the financial assessment.

RSM cannot provide financial assistance for every type of financial need. In particular, we cannot normally support:

• unemployment, reduced work or general financial hardship where this is not linked to accident, physical or mental ill health, disability or an eligible caring circumstance;

• costs that you have sufficient household income or accessible financial resources to meet yourself;

• living costs for students;

• short-term living expenses under the early-career application route;

• educational fees or training, such as tuition or lessons;

• medication costs;

• private medical insurance or pension contributions;

• private ADHD or ASD diagnostic assessments;

• loss of property or musical instruments where the cost should be covered by insurance;

• private healthcare where the same treatment is available through the NHS within the waiting-time threshold that applies to your application route; or

• therapies or treatments that are not recommended by NICE.

Means-tested financial assistance is also not available where household savings are £20,000 or more, or where you or your spouse or partner have available equity in a second or additional property.

This is not an exhaustive list and all applications are considered individually. Please see our Guidelines for Applications for Financial Assistance for full details, or contact the Grants Team if you are unsure whether we can consider the support you need.

No. You do not need to be a Member of RSM to apply for financial assistance.

Applications from people who are not Members need to be supported in writing by an RSM Member or by an RSM-approved organisation. The purpose of the supporting statement is simply to confirm your connection to music and, where relevant, your current or previous professional career or study circumstances.

Your supporter does not need to see your full application and will not be given access to your personal, medical or financial information without your consent.

You can read the full eligibility criteria in our Guidelines for Assessing Applications

In some circumstances. Short-term living expenses may be considered where ill health, injury or disability is preventing an eligible professional musician from working.

You will normally need to provide current medical evidence, such as a Fit Note, confirming that your health is affecting your ability to work.

Living expenses are not available to students or through the early-career application route.

Please contact us.