Social Impact

The arts education we offer is a practice that has a powerful personal impact on people, beyond what you would get with non meditative dance and art practices.

Our work brings connection, joy, inner calm, to participants and inspires increased self-care and increased creativity. Our work addresses sedentary lifestyles, isolation, absence of community and people’s relationships to their bodies particularly those who are in pain or infirm. People come to our events and classes in all the mental and emotional states possible. By moving their bodies in a guided meditation practice they are able to notice and then transform those feelings, thoughts and experiences.

By moving and being with others without talking, participants also relate to each other in powerful ways that bring lasting connections. The result is not only immediate relief but learning a practice they can use long term.

Many thousands of participants have come to our events and benefited from our work. Sometimes something changes after one class, sometimes it takes a few years. Some need to attend regularly to keep their physical or mental health in balance. Our offerings meet a diversity of needs. 

Our Reach Out Work

 From the earliest formation of the CIC we have run events for the homeless; elders; the chronically ill and those with mental health issues. 

Our Community Interest Company came into being to reach out to those members of the community who reside on the edges, the marginalised, who are often disengaged from regular society due to lack of financial resource; mental health issues; physical impairment or disability; or sometimes all three. 

 The results of our work are not only immediate relief to participants' anxieties, pain, loneliness to give but three examples, but also they learn a practice they can use long term.

Examples of our social impact

The Rhythms Club is primarily for the over 60’s but all ages are welcome to join us. It’s a vibrant intergenerational space that fosters learning and creativity.

Since the inception of the Rhythms Club, we have run over 200 events (both in person and online) and welcomed around 300 elders and their friends, family and carers, our oldest dancer being 96. We have worked with Age UK Lambeth, South London Cares and the Age of Creativity Festival.

 Our first session was in June 2018, part of ‘Rhythm Village’, a community festival that explored how dancing and embodied movement can bring us together to create a more inclusive and vibrant community. After the festival we set up The Rhythms Club weekly at St Peter’s Church, Vauxhall - attracting a regular core of committed older dancers, differently-abled dancers and their carers.  

The club then moved to Stockwell, in one of the poorest wards in the country, and with the support of Mursell Residents Association and Lambeth Council, we offered free classes to the estate’s older residents and carers. With the further support of the Mayor of London stronger communities fund, we developed Silver Rhythms to outreach to the most vulnerable older residents and carers on the estate.  

When lockdown happened in March 2020 we successfully transitioned The Rhythms Club to online zoom classes. We operated a helpline for dancers to learn new technology, and computer skills. We found we could widen the network of dancers as geographical location was no longer a barrier. The social isolation and lack of physical activity that many elders experienced was addressed by the class, and socialising after the dance helped build healthy community both on and off the dance floor.

Towards the end of 2022 and into 2023, with support from the Sue Sutherland Bursary and Age UK Lambeth we ran a series of ‘taster’ sessions at the Vida Walsh Centre Brixton, for MySocial Lambeth, which proved to be of great value to the members. After a successful funding application from Lambeth Councils Changing Lives fund we have run bi-weekly sessions throughout 2023 and into the winter of 2024. These sessions are providing a space to meet neighbours, develop social bonds and benefit from better physical and mental health and well-being. 

We are currently seeking more funding to significantly expand the project into a bigger venue in 2024 to reach out to more and more of Brixtons older community. 

Deeper Acceptance – a space for those who move with chronic illness or pain

Deeper Acceptance began in 2018 with a session at our Rhythms Village festival and has been taking place on an annual basis since then. It creates space for those who move with chronic pain, illness, and/or who are disabled. 

With the emergence of Covid-19 the challenges those with pain or illness face often increased many times over from what were being experienced pre-Covid. Many with illness or underlying conditions had to shield either informally or formally increasing isolation, while those who experience pain found their daily lives get harder.  In these times the Deeper Acceptance work became even more vital. 

During sessions participants get to slow down and commit to our self-care; connect with like bodied people and have their voices heard and understood.  It is an opportunity to drop the ‘mask’ that many wear in everyday situations to make others feel comfortable in their presence.

In an online 8 week deeper acceptance course aimed at those with chronic pain/illness/the disabled during Covid:

Over 80% of participants said the course had increased their sense of happiness

All the participants said the course had inspired increased self-care and self-esteem

67% said the journey had lessened their sense of pain and discomfort in their day to day life

89% said it had increased their sense of connection with others and lessened their isolation. (This is a cohort where 75% of participants had been shielding due to Covid.)

(NB also to note that two thirds of the group had also reported having significant mental health issues in addition to their physical ailments.)