Two dozen young dancers are to join more than 100 who have already gained a dancing scholarship with help from Morley Glass and its MD Ian Short.
The company has funded the scholarships since 2018 at Castleford-based Freedom 2 Dance, a community-focused dance school dedicated to increasing accessibility to dancing, including by offering scholarships for children to benefit from professional dance tuition regardless of background or personal circumstances.
Freedom 2 Dance was first introduced to Ian after he took the plunge into dancing himself by signing up to a Strictly Come Dancing style challenge to raise money for charity.
Morley Glass has already supported more than 100 children this way and has now confirmed its backing for a further 24 students this year. This will enable Freedom 2 Dance to reach out to children who may otherwise be unable to access additional dance training, according to director Michelle Dickinson.
“We’ve seen the far-reaching benefits that the scholarships bring to children so it’s fantastic to be able to continue them in 2023,” she said.
“The children benefit in particular by developing new friendships and confidence, which boosts their social skills and can transform their wellbeing. In addition, our teachers have clearly seen the development of interpersonal skills such as teamwork, communication and improved self-esteem, which will go on to serve them throughout their personal and working lives.”
Ian added: “Over the past four years we’ve seen the value of Freedom 2 Dance’s work in breaking down the barriers that often prevent children taking up dancing and the value of this cannot be understated given how beneficial dance can be to our physical and mental health overall.”
Picture: Ian with dance teacher Olivia Choi, back left, and some of the budding dancers
