The London Sinfonietta was the first orchestra in the UK to establish its own education programme in 1984. Twenty years on, more than thirty thousand teachers, schoolchildren, students, prisoners and others have taken part in creative music projects, and over twenty five thousand have accessed the education resources (on Boulez, Takemitsu, Andriessen, and Birtwistle) on its website.

The London Sinfonietta's education programme is about making connections between today's new music and an eager, enthusiastic audience. Dedicated to taking contemporary music out of the concert hall, the programme continues to pioneer new ways of engaging people. By encouraging composition among a wider range of people, an astonishing variety of new music has been produced, often with direct support from nationally and internationally renowned artists and composers.

London Sinfonietta’s work is distinctive in being led by composers, including the Creative Director of Education, Fraser Trainer, and in the skills and experience the players bring in interpreting and helping to realise people's creative ideas. It has run education projects in the USA, Japan, Greece, Argentina, Poland, Germany and Holland.