Elmhurst’s pioneering Health & Wellbeing Team led by Annelli Peavot, Assistant Principal, responsible for Health, Wellbeing and Safeguarding, has been shortlisted in the Dance Healthcare Team Award category, and Nico Kolokythas, the school’s Performance Enhancement Coach, also part of the Health and Wellbeing Team, and a University of Wolverhampton PhD candidate, has been shortlisted in the Research in Dance Impact Award category.

Many names are put forward for the awards each year, so to be shortlisted from a wide range of dance sector glitterati is wonderful recognition for the school, its staff and the work they continue to do to ensure students are best prepared for the mental and physical challenges that a professional dance career can throw at them.

One Dance UK is the sector’s support organisation leading the way to a stronger, more vibrant and diverse dance sector. The organisation recently relocated from London to Birmingham and provides one clear voice to: support all those working in the sector to achieve excellence in dance performance, education and management; advocate for the increased profile and importance of dance in all its diverse forms and settings; enhance dancers’ health, well-being and performance; and identify gaps, provide opportunities and improve conditions for dance to be learnt, discussed and seen.

The One Dance UK Awards has been developed to recognise the outstanding contribution of professionals and practitioners working in dance. The annual event is an opportunity for people in the dance community to get together, celebrate, acknowledge and reward those who have made an impact over the last 12 months on the UK’s vibrant dance landscape.

Annelli Peavot, Elmhurst Ballet School’s Assistant Principal, said: “It is a huge privilege to work with the talented young people at Elmhurst and we are very proud of the quality and range of support services we offer them. To have this recognised by One Dance UK is particularly pleasing and we are very much looking forward to sharing our work with the wider dance community on what should be a fabulous evening in Manchester this November.”

With thanks to an ongoing partnership between Elmhurst Ballet School and the University of Wolverhampton, Nico Kolokythas has also been shortlisted in the Award nominations. His dance research is already making an impact to the wider national and international dance community and includes: 11+ Dance, an evidence-based injury prevention intervention specifically designed for dancers; an investigation on the relationship of growth, development and overuse injuries in aesthetic sports; and the effect of Vitamin D supplementation in elite adolescent dancers on muscle function and injury incidence.

Nico Kolokythas, said: “It is a great honour and very exciting to see and feel the appreciation from the dance sector. One Dance UK has been has been pivotal to the dissemination of my work so I am very thankful for the support. Seeing my name next to other nominees, Doctor Pickard and Professor Redding, is very humbling, win or lose is beyond the point.

“I feel proud that with the help of my supervisors at University of Wolverhampton, the senior leadership at Elmhurst Ballet School and of course the dance teachers and students at the school, we have managed to create work that may potentially impact the future dancer.”

Working alongside Annelli and Nico and also part of the nominated Health and Wellbeing Team is Kate Liptrot, Nursing Sister, and Rachel Orton, Injury Management Coordinator & Sports Massage Therapist.