Modern dance class ideas: warm ups, travelling steps and floor work

Practical modern dance class ideas: a simple 45-minute class shape, warm ups, across the floor games, safe floor work, creative tasks and graded next steps.

Tap class ideas for beginners: rhythm games and first steps

Fresh tap class ideas for beginners: a simple class shape, first steps, rhythm games that build listening, and how to move towards graded work.

Dance teacher news: UK Dance Awards 2026 celebrate our schools

The UK Dance Awards 2026 celebrate dance schools and teachers. Plus more from the Arts Council research and a new Freelancers’ Handbook.

Ballet for under 5s: a simple 30-minute class plan

A friendly, ready-to-use 30-minute class plan for ballet for under 5s, with timings, imagery, safeguarding basics and ideas to keep little dancers engaged.

Drop-off and collection at your dance school: a darker evenings guide

The clocks go back on 25 October. Here’s a simple, friendly dance school drop-off and collection routine for darker evenings, with what the DfE guidance says.

UK Dance Awards 2026: celebrating this year's winners

The UK Dance Awards 2026 celebrated dance schools, teachers and young dancers from across the UK. Here are this year’s winners, and what the awards mean for dance teachers.

What Arts Council research means for your dance school

What Arts Council England’s research into the private dance school sector means for your school: space, costs, progression, inclusion and safeguarding.

Employed or self-employed? Hiring your first dance teacher

Growing your dance school and ready to bring in another teacher? A friendly guide to employment status, written statements, holiday pay, pensions, insurance, right to work checks and safer recruitment.

Dance school assistants: pay and safer recruitment

Thinking of taking on a young assistant at your dance school? A friendly guide to volunteers, child employment rules, minimum wage, DBS checks and safer recruitment for helpers aged 13 to 17.

Dance school data protection: photos, videos and consent

Sharing photos and videos of your dancers? How to ask for consent, post safely and look after medical forms, based on ICO and NSPCC guidance.

DBS changes for dance teachers: new rules and lower fees

Good news for dance: from 1 September 2026, more of the helpers who support our young dancers can have the highest level of DBS check, and DBS fees are lower from 5 October 2026. What it means for your studio.

Growth spurts in young dancers: what dance teachers can do

Practical ideas for looking after young dancers’ bodies: growth spurts, growing pains, rest, warm-ups and very flexible joints, based on NHS and One Dance UK guidance.

Free BDSA safeguarding training for dance teachers

BDSA’s new safeguarding course, powered by Teach.Dance, is live and free for every Teach.Dance member. Here’s who it’s for, what it covers and how to start.

Self Assessment for dance teachers: 2025 to 2026 dates

Teaching freelance? The Self Assessment dates for your 2025 to 2026 return, including 5 October 2026 and 31 January 2027, plus the trading allowance, records, expenses and Making Tax Digital.

Dance teacher news: Arts Council maps private dance schools

Arts Council England’s private dance schools research maps over 5,200 schools. Plus BDSA joins CIMSPA and a case for children’s dance in Liverpool.

Holiday dance camps: Ofsted, HAF and childcare explained

Planning a half term or summer dance camp? A plain guide for dance teachers in England to Ofsted registration exemptions, the voluntary Childcare Register, Tax-Free Childcare and the HAF programme.

Dance teacher first aid: kits, first aiders and records

A practical first aid guide for dance teachers: needs assessments, first aid kits, first aiders, head bumps, accident records and RIDDOR, based on HSE and NHS guidance.

Dance teacher news: Strictly Come Dancing 2026 is back

Strictly Come Dancing 2026 is back. Plus new research on children and creativity, National Portfolio guidance and new Vocational GCSEs explained.

Music licence for dance classes: a dance teacher’s guide

Do you need a music licence for your dance classes? How TheMusicLicence works for hall classes, studios, exam classes, shows and online lessons.

Dance teacher news: a new National Centre for Arts Education

Big news for dance in schools: the new National Centre for Arts Education, £22.5m enrichment funding, RAD graduates and The Fonteyn 2026 stars.

Dance exam nerves: helping students feel ready

Practical ways for dance teachers to help students feel calm and confident before graded exams, from mock exams and routines to breathing exercises and kind feedback, drawing on NHS advice.

Dance teacher news: remembering Sir Richard Alston

Lower DBS fees for dance schools from 5 October 2026, remembering Sir Richard Alston, support for trainee dance teachers and funding news from Wales.

Dance teacher news: BDSA launches the Dance Safe Register

The BDSA Dance Safe Register launches as new DBS rules arrive, plus a new degree for dance teachers and a royal honour for Christopher Wheeldon.

Dance teacher news: DBS myths about 1 September cleared up

DBS changes for dance teachers explained: the myths about 1 September, the energy price cap rise, touring in Europe and a youth dance show on tour.

Trial classes at your dance school: welcoming new families

New dancers starting in September? How to plan a warm trial class, a short welcome form and a calm first week that helps new families feel at home.

Dance teacher news: GCSE Dance results for 2026

GCSE Dance results for 2026, what the latest arts figures mean for dance schools, warmer studios in Scotland and a DBS tip ahead of 1 September.

Dance teacher news: A level Dance results for 2026

Dance teacher news for 14 August 2026: A level Dance results, dancing safely in the heatwave, the full Strictly line up and new routes into teaching.

Results day 2026: helping your dancers with next steps

A level and GCSE results land on 13 and 20 August. How to support your teenage dancers, from vocational training funding to keeping dance in busy new routines.

Dance teacher news: new DBS rules from 1 September

Dance teacher news for 7 August 2026: new DBS rules from 1 September, the cost of dance training, Music and Dance Scheme funding and RAD Awards.

Dance school timetable: planning your September classes

August is timetable time. How to use last year’s registers, local term dates and family routines to plan a September timetable that suits your families.

Moving to a new dance class venue: what to check first

Hiring a new hall for September? What to check on the floor, fire exits, electrics, toilets and insurance, plus how to do your own risk assessment.

Hot weather in the dance studio: keeping dancers safe

Hot day, busy class? Practical ways to keep your studio cool, adapt your lesson plan, relax uniform and spot heat exhaustion early, with UKHSA and NHS advice.

Running a dance summer intensive that’s safe and fun

Planning a summer intensive? Keep it safe and fun with clear registers, an emergency plan, good supervision, water breaks and a calm team briefing.

London Youth Games Dance Is Opening Up to Primary Schools — Here's Why That Matters

If you’ve ever watched a group of seven-year-olds absolutely lose themselves in a movement routine — all that unfiltered energy, the total commitment to every…

Twenty-Five Years of Nurturing Dancers: Flair School of Dance

Each month, the British DanceSport Association shines a spotlight on a school that embodies what great dance education looks like. This month, that honour goes…

Opening the Door: BDSA and Sport Excel UK's New Partnership for Inclusive Dance

If you’ve ever had a student in your class who you knew had so much to give but wasn’t quite sure where to find their…

BDSA Shortlisted for Safer Sport Award: Why This Matters to UK Dance Teachers

If you’ve ever worried about safeguarding in your dance space, or felt alone trying to work out what “best practice” actually looks like in a…