Dance That Connects People
At Anjali, we believe dance should be a space where everyone can be creative, take part and have their voice heard.
Our Dance & Participation programme brings professional learning-disabled dance artists into communities, creating opportunities for people to experience, explore and enjoy dance in different ways.
Our dancers are not just performers — they are teachers, facilitators, role models and creative practitioners. Many of our activities are co-led by Anjali dancers alongside experienced dance artists, bringing professional expertise and lived experience into the room.
We work with a wide range of communities and can create activity for different ages, abilities and levels of experience.
What We Offer
Workshops
Creative dance workshops that encourage movement, imagination and self-expression. These can be adapted for different groups, ages and access requirements.
Performances & participatory events
Our dancers can perform and lead activity as part of festivals, community events, libraries, cultural programmes and other public settings.
Dance parties
Fun, informal and accessible dance sessions designed to bring people together through movement, music and participation.
Community projects
Longer-term projects that give participants the opportunity to develop skills, build confidence and contribute to a creative process over time.
Bespoke activity
We can work with partners to develop activity around a particular community, place, theme or event.
Working With Our Dancers
A distinctive part of Anjali’s approach is our team-teaching model.
Our learning-disabled dancers work alongside dance practitioners to co-deliver workshops, sharing their professional experience and creative perspectives. This creates a different kind of learning environment — one where participants can see learning-disabled artists not only as performers, but as teachers and creative leaders.
This approach has developed through Anjali’s work over many years and is now an important part of how we share our practice.
Anjali’s workshop at Access Sport Event
Photo by: Romy Whai
Photo by: Andrew Moore
Holly Riseborough, Dance in Libraries
Photo by: Andrew Moore
Anjali Pro Class
Photo by: Jennifer Rohrbacher
Anjali dancer, Daisy Garrett, delivering a community class.
Who Is It For?
We work with:
- Community groups
- Young people and families
- People with and without learning disabilities
- Disability organisations
- Libraries and cultural venues
- Festivals and public events
- Health and social care settings
- Schools and colleges
- Local authorities and community partners
Our activity can be delivered as a one-off workshop, a series of sessions, a residency or as part of a larger community programme.
Let’s work together
If you are looking for an inclusive dance experience, a participatory project or an opportunity to bring professional learning-disabled artists into your community, we’d love to talk. Contact us at info@anjali.co.uk
Regular Classes
Anjali offers regular inclusive dance classes in Banbury and Oxford, providing ongoing opportunities for people with learning disabilities to dance, build confidence and develop their skills in a supportive environment.
The classes are led by experienced dance practitioners and are designed to be welcoming, creative and accessible. Participants can explore movement, develop performance skills and enjoy dancing alongside other people, with opportunities to progress at their own pace.
Our regular classes also provide a pathway into Anjali’s wider work, helping dancers build confidence and experience while creating connections with other artists and participants.
Young Anjali: Dance Develop Perform
Anjali delivers holiday projects across the country for young people aged 16 + with learning disabilities and associated conditions.
So far, these have been delivered in Leicester, Worcester, Burton on Trent and Banbury.
Participants develop their dance and creativity skills, build their confidence and fitness, make new friends and perform in an end of project sharing.
Participant Feedback:
“I now feel confident in myself because of you”
“It was magical, I learnt new things and made lovely new friends”
100% would love to do more Anjali activity
With thanks to funding Sport England and supporting partner That! Dance for DDP 2023 and 2024.