Dance

Dance is a thriving subject at Fairfield High School, with students from all year groups attending extra-curricular clubs and enjoying creative and interesting lessons during curriculum time. GCSE Dance is a relatively new subject at Fairfield that has run for the past five years. Students opting for the GCSE Dance course have increased gradually over the year, with numbers rising from twelve students to, at present, nearly thirty students. The results have also improved dramatically over the years, from 55% A*-C grades, to last year's results of 72%, gaining a Grade C or above.

There is an extensive programme of events offered during extra-curricular time and many different dance styles are offered. These range from jazz-modern to contemporary dance. Over eighty students, from all five year groups, regularly attend Dance Clubs. We have even set up a boys' street dance group which has been well attended and greatly appreciated. Over the years, the students have performed in a variety of local venues such as the Halton Show, the Queen's Hall, Widnes Sixth Form College, the Brindley Arts Centre and also a whole host of primary schools. Some of our more advanced students even performed at the Liverpool Empire in front of Wayne Sleep, which was a great honour.

Many touring dance networks have performed at Fairfield and have also provided both educational and creative workshops for our students. Such companies have included: West Cheshire Dance College; Ludus Dance Company; a Jazz and African workshop and, perhaps most prestigious of all, the English National Ballet, who introduced many of our Year 9 girls and boys to the dance form. Some of our ex-GCSE students have gone on to study Dance to A level, or higher, with pupils moving on to Widnes Sixth Form College, Halton College, West Cheshire Dance College and the Northern Ballet Academy. Most importantly of all, two of our ex-students are currently studying at the Hammond Dance Academy. With Fairfield High School gaining Performing Arts College status, I am sure that Dance within the school will continue to grow and thrive. Equally, I am convinced that the solid foundation our talented pupils have built whilst they are at school will prove to enable them to achieve further success and a glittering career.

Gill Paton Head of Dance