Join us on social media in the run up to Down's Syndrome Awareness Week and "Show us your moves"!

People with learning disabilities, including Down's syndrome, face many inequalities in all aspects of their lives. DanceSyndrome uses dance to address these inequalities and to empower people with and without disabilities to believe that anything is possible if you follow your dreams and live the life that you choose.

People with learning disabilities have dreams and ambitions just like everyone else and as a society we should empower people by focusing on talents and abilities rather than disabilities. So, we are sharing videos that will demonstrate that everyone can dance and there is beauty in all dance movements.

Based in North West England, DanceSyndrome is a small local charity providing inclusive dance workshops & leadership training for people with and without disabilities. Our dancers also perform live at special events across the UK with the aim of inspiring people and demonstrating that people with disabilities can live a life of their choosing and follow their dreams.

DanceSyndrome was founded in 2009 by Jen Blackwell, with help from her parents. Jen has Down's syndrome and after attending a mainstream school she felt that her disability shouldn't stop her from having the career of her choice. She wanted to be a community dance leader but found it very difficult to find training that was appropriate for someone with a learning disability. After 10 years of searching unsuccessfully, she took matters into her own hands and started DanceSyndrome to allow her, and other people in the same situation, to follow their dreams of having a career in dance. That was 10 years ago and DanceSyndrome still stands apart from other dance sessions with all activities being co-led by people with disabilities, who are all trained through our unique Dance By Example leadership training course.

The pioneering, innovative approach of DanceSyndrome is that if you include people of all abilities and empower them to take part in a way that means something to them, then they will start to believe in themselves and achieve things that they never thought possible. We use dance to unlock potential but the skills that people learn can be transferred to other aspects of life beyond the arts. We are empowering people with learning disabilities to become visible, active members of society who are changing accepted beliefs about what people with learning disabilities are ABLE to do.

People are empowered for life after taking part in our sessions and there isn't any other provision like it in the North West, or further afield. We want to be able to continue this provision and even expand it, but to do that we need your help. In the current economic climate we are faced with increased pressure on our resources. Competition for funding is fierce and the major funding that we have had in recent years is coming to an end. We are now relying on the generous support of individuals and businesses to carry out our vital work. If you appreciate the work that we do and want to see more of it, please support us in any way that you can.

We appreciate your support and are grateful for all donations!