Chris McCausland, who is blind due to retinitis pigmentosa, is competing in the BBC’s Strictly Come Dancing final this weekend, but he is not the only person with a visual impairment taking to the dance floor.
Each Saturday morning, blind or partially sighted people head to the King’s Sport & Wellness gym on the Strand campus, where Step Change Studio offers ballroom dancing classes for people with visual impairments.
The organisation, headed by its founder Rashmi Becker, was already an established dance studio, particularly for people with disabilities, but needed a space to rehearse and so since January 2024 has been using the studio at Bush House Gym each week.
During the classes, volunteers including King’s staff and students also act as Ballroom and Latin dance partners to help ensure participants have a positive, enjoyable experience.
One of the volunteers, King’s staff member Carolina Niemczyk Brito has noticed the positive impact of Strictly on the classes, which have also been reported on by BBC London and in the Telegraph.
As well as the classes, the partnership has involved workshops and training for King’s staff on working with people who are blind or partially sighted. And in May, King’s Sport & Wellness attended the Open Worlds in Blackpool where Step Change made history by becoming the first studio to ever compete a blind dance group in the championships.
During the Saturday classes, the volunteers help participants pick up dance steps and sequences, assist the dance teacher in demonstrations and provide encouragement and reassurance. They might also be asked to assist participants between the dance location and nearest public transport.
The classes are keen to recruit more volunteers from our King’s community and are looking for fun, engaging individuals who are up for a challenge and have dance experience. People also need to be able to make Saturday classes from 10:45am-12pm (not every week but regularly). Find out more about the opportunity and how to apply.
Staff and students at King’s can contribute to causes that matter to them through King’s Volunteering, the university’s one-stop shop for discovering opportunity and connecting with organisations like Step Change Studios, who are driving positive change. Find out more on King's Volunteering webpages or via Instagram.
The Saturday morning classes are just for people who are blind or partially sighted. King’s Sport and Wellness also run sessions open to any of its members including dance fit and salsa, and there are plans to also offer Argentinian Tango sessions in the New Year. See the King’s Sport & Wellness timetables.