dance.
SAFEGUARDING & ABUSE PREVENTION
There is a need to tackle harmful interpersonal challenges that are experienced by dancers. On this page you can find a summary of our research on safeguarding practices and the prevention of abuse in dance.
​
Dance can provide many positive experiences, contribute to healthy development and useful life skills, as well as promote physical and mental health. But abusive practices and maltreatment can happen and jeopardise these outcomes as well as negatively impact on performance and well-being.
Working in partnership with One Dance UK and the National Institute of Dance Medicine and Science, we conducted the first national survey of safeguarding and abuse prevention policies and practice of UK dance organisations. We have also interviewed organisational leaders and dancers about their experiences of psychologically safe vs. unsafe dance environments.
​
This work has led us to authoring a viewpoint published in the BMJ Open Sport & Exercise Medicine to highlight how dance environments can foster abusive practices and outline how research and policy engagement could help promote safer dance for all.
You can read this viewpoint here.