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Dance and disabled people

This page lists a number of organisations whose work focuses on arts and disability and/or disability arts at a local, regional, national or international level and who might include dance in their programme of work.

These organisations may be able to offer advice and support and offer newsletters and email updates that you can subscribe to. Most of the websites listed are good resources and a number have details of current projects and training opportunities, and links to other relevant websites.

This list is divided into four different types of contact:

Disability Arts Organisations

Arcadea

is the Development Agency for Art, Culture and Disability Equality and aims to promote the artistic and cultural equality of disabled people in the North East England region.
www.arcadea.org

Arts and Disability Forum
exists to facilitate the empowerment of people with disabilities throughout Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.
www.adf.ie

Arts and Disability Ireland
is striving to promote the engagement of people with disabilities in the arts at the highest level in the Irish Republic.
www.adiarts.ie

Carousel
inspires people with learning disabilities to achieve their artistic ambitions. Based in South East England.
www.carousel.org.uk

Disability Arts Cymru

works with individuals and organisations to celebrate the diversity of Disabled & Deaf People's arts and culture, and develop equality across all art forms.
www.disabilityartscymru.co.uk

Disability Arts in Shropshire (DASh)
A disability arts user led organisation, running arts projects across Shropshire and beyond.
www.dasharts.org

Disability Arts Online (DAO)
is dedicated to work by deaf and disabled artists which reflects on disability as a social and political construct.
www.disabilityarts.com

Heart'n Soul
is an arts organisation led by artists with learning disabilities and is based in London.
www.heartnsoul.co.uk

Livability Holton Lee
is a venue that aims to empower people, particularly carers and disabled people, through creativity, environmental awareness, personal growth and spirituality.
www.holtonlee.co.uk

Shape Arts
is a disability arts organisation, aiming to improve access to the arts for deaf and disabled people whilst supporting deaf and disabled artists to challenge perceptions and promote Deaf and Disability Culture.
www.shapearts.org.uk

Turtle Key Arts
main objective is participation in the arts for all with an emphasis on disabled, disadvantaged or socially excluded people.
www.turtlekeyarts.org.uk

Unlimited
was at the heart of the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad, celebrating the work of disabled artists on an unprecedented scale. In 2013 Shape and Artsadmin were awarded funding by Arts Council England and Creative Scotland to deliver a new three year programme with Jo Verrent as Senior Producer and key partners including British , Southbank Centre, DAO and DaDaFest. Between 2014 and 2016 Unlimited will once again support disabled artists creating extraordinary work.
www.weareunlimited.org.uk
Disability-related Dance Companies

Amici Dance Theatre Company
is a dance theatre company integrating able bodied and disabled artists and performers, based in London.
www.amicidance.org

Anjali Dance Company
is a professional contemporary dance company based in Oxfordshire. All Anjali's dancers have a learning disability.
www.anjali.co.uk

Art Shape
Art Shape's vision is that all people can choose to engage with the arts as equals, working to combat exclusion from the arts with particular focus on working with adults facing disabling barriers.
www.artshape.co.uk

Candoco Dance Company

is an integrated professional dance company with extensive performance and education programmes, based in London.
www.candoco.co.uk 

Corali Dance Company

is a professional performance group made up of adults with learning disabilities, based in London.
www.corali.org.uk

DanceSyndrome
provides community dance workshops throughout the North West. Their work inspires and empowers both dancers and audiences to believe that opportunities are endless for people who refuse to be defined by disability.
www.dancesyndrome.co.uk

EVERYBODY dance
aims to inspire, explore and create dance with disabled and non-disabled people of all ages in conventional and unexpected spaces.
www.everybodydance.org.uk

Far Flung Dance Theatre
is a professional integrated dance theatre company based in Plymouth. The company is a collective of disabled and non disabled dancers, actors, musicians and performers.
www.farflungdancetheatre.co.uk

FRONTLINEdance
seeks to break down the barriers for people to engage in dance participation and performance, playing a positive role in integration and community cohesion.
www.frontlinedance.co.uk

Green Candle Dance Company

A dance company based in London. Key strands include Deaf & Dancing, with deaf young people, and Older & Dancing, which reaches many disabled older people.
www.greencandledance.com 

Indepen-dance
Glasgow based company specialising in dance performance projects, predominately for adults with learning disabilities and their carers.
www.indepen-dance.org.uk

Lantern Dance Theatre
an integrated dance company from Ely, Cambridgeshire, who work to integrate dancers with and without disabilities through dance theatre classes and projects.
www.lanterndancetheatre.org.uk

Magpie Dance Theatre
is an inclusive dance company for people with and without learning disabilities and is based in Bromley, Kent.
www.magpiedance.org.uk

Shallal Dance Theatre

is an inclusive community dance theatre company, based in Penwith, Cornwall, and provides performance and skills training opportunities for people of all ages and abilities.
www.shallal.org.uk

Stopgap Dance Company
is a professional integrated dance company based in Farnham, Surrey.
www.stopgapdance.com

Touchdown Dance
is a dance company with a specialism in visual disability, based in Manchester.
www.touchdowndance.co.uk
 
Para Dance UK

The national governing body for Para Dance Sport and inclusive dance professionals in the UK.
www.paradance.org.uk

National Disability Organisations

United Kingdom's Disabled People Council
The United Kingdom Disabled People's is the UK's democratic representative national organisation, which is a member of the Worldwide Disabled People's Movement, through its membership of Disabled Peoples' International.
www.ukdpc.net

Equality Commission for Northern Ireland

an independent public body that aims to advance equality, promote equality of opportunity and challenge discrimination.
www.equalityni.org

Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities
works to promote the rights, quality of life and opportunities of learning disabled people and their families.
www.learningdisabilities.org.uk

Disability.gov.uk
UK public services website.
www.direct.gov.uk

International

Ability Unlimited Foundation (AUF)
A voluntary, non-profit making social service organisation to bring change in society by giving equality, dignity, equal opportunities and full participation to disabled people through dance, based in Delhi, India.
www.abilityunlimited.com

Axis Dance Company

is a professional integrated dance company, based in the US.
www.axisdance.org

Accessible Arts
Accessible Arts is the peak arts and disability organisation in New South Wales.
www.aarts.net.au

Arts Access Australia
Arts Access Australia (AAA) is the peak national body for arts and disability.
www.artsaccessaustralia.org

Dancing Wheels

US-based integrated dance company, comprising of dancers with and without disabilities.
www.dancingwheels.org

Full Radius Dance
Integrated dance company based in Altanta, USA.
www.fullradiusdance.org

International Guild of Disabled Artists & Performers (IGODAP)
is an international collective of artists and performers who identify with impairment and/or disability.
www.igodap.org

Joint Forces Dance

is a US-based company with a totally inclusive dance methodology that invites people with any kind of disability along with fully able bodied individuals to participate in its choreography and performances and its educational programs.
www.jointforcesdance.com

La Compagnie De L'oiseau-mouche
French disability dance company.
www.oiseau-mouche.org

Pamoja Dance Group
A mixed and inclusive group in a program intended to provide real integration of dancers with and without disability into the arts community and most important, into society at large. Pamoja are based in Nairobi, Kenya.
pamojadance.org

Touch Compass Dance Trust

New Zealand based inclusive dance company.
www.touchcompass.org.nz