We are recruiting a freelance Assistant Dance Artist (ADA) to support a new weekly Dance to Health programme starting Wednesday 30th April, 10.00 – 12.00 for 26 weeks in Swansea. 

Deadline for expressions of interest: 9am on Monday 31st March 2025

Dance to Health (https://dancetohealth.org/)is the successful national falls-prevention programme which uses creative dance to reduce falls in older people. 

As the assistant dance artist you will support the lead dance artist by registering participants, demonstrating modifications so that people can access standing, supported and seated versions of the class material, facilitate social time, and help maintain a safe and enjoyable atmosphere for people to work on their strength, balance and creativity. Ideally, assistant dance artists are dance graduates or have the equivalent level of vocational experience, with an emphasis in community dance practice and/or work with older populations. 

You will have public liability insurance, DBS, first aid and safeguarding training.  We welcome dancers from all styles, ethnicities, cultures, and genders. We expect this programme to attract a high level of participation from the Chinese community, and therefore we particularly welcome applicants with Cantonese as a first or second language.

The assistant dance artist’s total fee for the programme is £975.00 plus travel expenses of 40p per mile, up to £20 per session.  

We welcome, by email, expressions of interest (EOI)of not more than two sides of A4, detailing your experience and suitability for the role, and an accompanying CV.  We also ask for a short 2-3 minute video of you moving through a dance based exercise suitable for an older participant group.   

Deadline for expressions of interest: 9am on Monday 31st March 2025

Online interview: 2nd April 2025

Programme start: 30th April 2025

Please email your EOI, CV and video link to both:

If you require materials in different formats or wish to submit your EOI in a different way, please let us know. 

Assistant Dance Artist Role

Dance to Health is the nationwide, pioneering, falls-prevention dance programme for older people. Dance to Health is created and managed by Aesop Arts and Society Ltd. We combine evidence-based falls-prevention principles with the creativity, expression and energy of dance. Our sessions are led by professional dance artists who have been fully trained in falls-prevention exercise methods. 

This role doesn’t require a falls prevention certification, any community dance practitioner can work as an assistant dance artist, and it is a great way to build up experience working with people in late adulthood and in the developing arts and health sector.

When and where

An Assistant dance artist (ADA) will attend the sessions led by the PSI certified dance artist at the same time and place each week. These sessions are in community venues in areas where we have been commissioned to deliver the service, or online in a zoom session.

Main tasks:

  • Planning and delivery: The PSI certified dance artist is responsible for planning the sessions and will direct you on how to support each session. You may at times support the lead artist by planning elements of the sessions together or be given responsibility for certain groups of participants or specific activities within the session.
  • Demonstrating activities: For example, you may be asked to demonstrate seated options to the main activity alongside less mobile participants or to reproduce the lead dance artists instructions in a large room with many participants so all can see.
  • Participant Safety: As an extra pair of eyes and ears for the Dance Artist, you will use your knowledge of movement to identify participants needing assistance. You can offer regressions or modified activities, give feedback on technique and ensure people are participating safely and within their capabilities whilst still being challenged.
  • Developing creativity: prompting and encouraging creative exploration in the participants who may be very new to creative dance. Enhancing the safe and welcoming space with the dance artist and volunteers which aids self-exploration.
  • Social and administrative support: support the dance artist to register participants and take on this role once confident, support participants to complete membership forms online or on paper.  Support the dance artist collate and input test data from TUG, fear of falls, No Falls tests, support participants in understanding Homework set and completing the mental wellbeing survey.

Skills/Experience Required

  • A dance graduate or someone with the equivalent level of vocational experience, with an emphasis on community dance practice.
  • You need to be understanding, patient and empathetic, to be able to support group participants who need extra help and encouragement during sessions.
  • Flexibility, creativity and initiative. A willingness to ‘pitch in’ with help. An enthusiastic approach and good interpersonal skills are an asset.
  • You will be working with the lead dance artists and volunteers so an ability to work well as a team member is vital.
  • An interest in further training. After gaining necessary experience and skills, it could be possible to train further to become a lead Dance Artist by undertaking the PSI training.

General Information

  • Assistant dance artists receive full induction, including a grounding in PSI/FaME and Otago, the scientifically evaluated programmes underpinning Dance to Health. This is delivered via Teams and includes safeguarding, health and safety, the theory behind using dance within falls prevention and practical aspects of how we deliver our service.
  • You will receive ongoing support in your role from the Dance Artist leading the programme and from Aesop’s Programme Managers.
     
Closing date: 31/03/2025
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