1st May 2015
Youth Dance England is excited to be working with Plymouth-based Street Factory on Cre8ting Change, a new project in Plymouth to turn around young men’s lives through dance.
Together the organisations will deliver a project for young men who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) to offer them the chance to gain confidence, fitness, discipline and skills through taking part in a dance and martial arts programme.
Eight young men will be offered the opportunity to work with Toby Gorniak, nationally respected Hip Hop artist and qualified youth worker, and ? a martial arts specialist on an intensive six month programme of dance and martial arts training followed by individual mentoring. It is the aim that the young men will have entered training or employment by the end of the project.
The project will be evaluated so that the lesson learnt and the impact of the project on the young men’s lives can be shared with other dance organisations, youth services, youth offending teams and schools across the country.
Youth Dance England’s (YDE) national youth dance festival, U.Dance 2015, will take place for the first time in Plymouth 23-25 July. Working in partnership with Plymouth Dance YDE will be giving opportunities for the young men to get involved in the national festival: an amazing opportunity for them to be part of this high profile festival that brings together some of the best youth dance from across the UK.
Tony Gorniak, Founder of Street Factory, said about the project:
We at Street Factory hold a core belief in the capabilities of young people and the possibilities for their growth and development in a positive environment. Working with Youth Dance England will enable us to show the impact that dance has on the lives of the young men we work with and share our practice with others across the country.
Linda Jasper, Director of Youth Dance England, said about the project
We passionately believe in the power of dance to transform the lives of young people and we are privileged to work with Street Factory on this important project that we expect to help many other young people across the country.
