ABRSM
The ABRSM (Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music) is an examination board and registered charity based in the United Kingdom. ABRSM is one of five examination boards accredited by Ofqual to award graded exams and diploma qualifications in music within the UK's National Qualifications Framework (along with the London College of Music, RSL Awards (Rockschool Ltd), Trinity College London, and the Music Teachers' Board). 'The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music' was established in 1889 and rebranded as ABRSM in 2009. The clarifying strapline "the exam board of the Royal Schools of Music" was introduced in 2012.
| Company type | Charity |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music education |
| Founded | 1 October 1889 |
| Founder | Sir George Grove Sir Alexander Mackenzie Sir Arthur Sullivan Sir Charles Stanford Sir Walter Parratt Sir Hubert Parry Sir John Stainer |
| Headquarters | 4 London Wall Place , London EC2Y 5AU United Kingdom |
Area served | 93 countries worldwide |
Key people | Chris Cobb (Chief Executive) Colette Bowe (Chairman) Mervyn Cousins (Chief Examiner) |
| Products | Music exams Sheet music publications Digital music applications Music education courses and events |
| Revenue | 23,397,000 pound sterling (2021) |
Net income | £45.5 million (2023) |
Number of employees | 182 (2023) |
| Website | abrsm |
More than 600,000 candidates take ABRSM exams each year in over 93 countries. ABRSM also provides a publishing house for music which produces syllabus booklets, sheet music and exam papers and runs professional development courses and seminars for teachers.
ABRSM is one of the UK's 200 largest charitable organisations ranked by annual expenditure.