Hampstead ballet school takes on dance challenge to raise money for NHS

22 November 2023

Pupils as young as two years old from a Hampstead ballet school are putting on their dancing shoes to raise funds for their local NHS charity.

Up to 90 dancers from The House of Ballet are taking part in a sponsored dance event in support of Royal Free Charity’s A&E Shift Challenge, a fundraising appeal to support emergency department staff and their patients.

Lucy Heard, the school’s founder, said: “We are very proud of our pupils for taking on this challenge and showing their support for our local NHS heroes. They will dance non-stop for an hour in a show of solidarity for the Royal Free Hospital’s amazing A&E staff who can walk up to 11 miles in a single shift.

“Our pupils range in age from two to 15 years and during the event, they can dance whatever style or format they choose. Whether it’s pirouettes, moonwalks or robotic style, every move counts.

The goal is to go the distance, just like our A&E staff do every day and night.”

The charity hopes to fund a series of enhancements in the emergency departments at all three RFL hospitals – Barnet, Chase Farm and the Royal Free hospitals – by enlisting the help of local communities.

The dance challenge takes place on Sunday (26 Nov). Anyone who would like to support the dance school’s fundraising efforts can make a donation at: https://royalfreecharity.enthuse.com/pf/the-house-of-ballet-6809e

About the A&E Shift Challenge

The charity is encouraging individuals, businesses and communities to rally together in support of the appeal by signing up the A&E Shift Challenge. This could be a distance challenge, such as competing a 10k run every day throughout November, a pub quiz or a sponsored gaming streamathon. Find out more about the A&E Shift Challenge.