_{Photograph by Chris Parkes.}

Many practitioners, writers and researchers have noted that a key problem in the development of the inclusive dance sector (i.e. disabled and non-disabled dancers) is the lack of high-level training available to young people with disabilities.

While there is a range of recreational dance classes aimed at disabled dancers, these tend to focus on enjoyment, social interaction and creativity, rather than provide opportunities for young disabled people to develop their talents in dance in a systematic and progressive way.

Professional disabled dancers often report idiosyncratic routes into the profession and subsequently training ‘on the job’; as such there is a clear gap in provision as disabled dancers have not accessed mainstream routes into the sector.

In order to address this gap, the inclusive professional dance company Stopgap is piloting a curriculum, IRIS, specifically focused on talent development in integrated settings. This is the first time a codified syllabus has been designed and created for use in inclusive settings.

Led by Dr Imogen Aujla, we are working with Stopgap to investigate how teachers, student dancers and their parents respond to the programme to evaluate its efficacy and to inform further modification and development of the curriculum.

Data collection methods included questionnaires, focus groups and dance performance assessments. According to our analyses, we found that IRIS dancers have moderate to high levels of technical skill, high levels of wellbeing, and reported multiple benefits of taking part in the programme including enhanced confidence, stamina, and social skills. You can download the research report, with details of these findings and more, here: Access, Inclusion and Excellence: Evaluating Stopgap Dance Company's IRIS Programme [PDF]

On 17th November 2018 we launched the findings and the programme at a successful event at the University of Bedfordshire.

• Find out more about IRIS

We have also been working on an additional project with Stopgap investigating the motivation, attributes and perspectives of teachers who develop dance talent among young dancers with disabilities. This was part of the i-Dance project, which aims to investigate and provide new inclusive training programmes. Elsa Urmston joined the dance science team at the University of Bedfordshire as researcher. The research report, Developing potential amongst disabled young people, is now available to download.

• Find out more about i-Dance