Folk Unlimited

What is Folk Unlimited?

Join us for fortnightly creative, inclusive, multi-sensory music and dance workshops at Cecil Sharp House on Sunday afternoons.

Young people will sing, dance, and play folk music from a range of different heritages in creative, inclusive, and multi-sensory sessions, including opportunities for participants to perform the songs and dances they have learnt to friends and family!

The sessions are led by folk artists who are experienced working with learning disabled young people with complex needs.

 At Folk Unlimited you can:

• Learn to sing, dance, and play folk music from a range of different heritages
• Participate in creative, inclusive, and multi-sensory sessions
• Learn and explore new instruments and accessible technology
• Learn new skills with fantastic tutors
• Make new friends

Who is it for?

The workshops are for learning disabled young people aged 12 to 30, who live or go to school/college in one of the John Lyon's Charity boroughs:

• Barnet
• Brent
• Camden
• City of London
• City of Westminster
• Ealing
• Hammersmith & Fulham
• Harrow
• Kensington & Chelsea

You do not need any experience of playing an instrument or folk music to take part in Folk Unlimited. The workshops are open to all abilities and levels of experience and are great fun!

When are the workshops?

Sundays, 2.30pm to 4.30pm, at Cecil Sharp House

Spring Term 2025: 12, 26 January | 9 February | 2, 9, 23 March

Term fee: £36 per term (advance booking required)

Please note that this is a single booking for the whole term.

We ask that one parent / support worker participates in the music and dance with their young person to support them. This assistant does not need to book a ticket.

Book now for Spring 2025

Want to see what it looks and sounds like? Watch this video from a Folk Unlimited session in action and hear from participants and their parents and support workers.

Please note: Folk Unlimited sessions take place in our busy public venue on the basement floor which is accessible by lift from the outside of the building. As there is no level access into or out of our building, and our lift cannot be used in the event of a fire, we need to create a personal emergency evacuation plan for all participants - especially wheelchair users - to make sure everyone can exit safely. Also, other events will be running in other rooms and our cafe will be open and we cannot therefore guarantee a nut-free environment.

Read more about access at Cecil Sharp House

Who leads the sessions?

Emmie Ward holds a PG CERT in music and special needs using Sound Of Intent with Roehampton University. She is a folk musician and works as a freelance music and folk arts practitioner and teaches a range of classes for people with learning disabilities. She specialises in using a multi sensory approach to storytelling and music. Emmie has worked in a variety of settings including Day Centres, FE colleges and schools where she has worked as a teacher for many years. Projects have included “Everybody Dance Company” a millennium funded dance project with performers with complex needs and working on the show “Weighting” by Extraordinary bodies an inclusive, touring circus.

Nicholas Goode has been a professional musician for over twenty years. He studied for a degree in music at Anglia University and then gained a PGCE in SEN/Music at Roehampton, London. He has taught and led workshops across the age range from early years to adults and worked with students with a wide range of complex needs. Nick’s main instrument is the fiddle and he also plays mandolin, banjo and accordion. As a musician, he has performed at gigs and festivals with a number of bands and artists including Sam Lee and Helen O’Hara. He has participated on recordings for a number of artists, performs regularly at ceilidhs and leads two weekly sessions. In addition to his work as a musician and educator Nick also works extensively in theatre as a composer/arranger, as musical director and as an actor-musician. 

Alice Western is a folk musician, songwriter, and artist from Sussex, now based in London. She began performing folk music at age 16 in Brighton and has been active in London’s music scene for the past decade. Alice’s current project, Glass Eel, combines traditional folk with her own compositions, with a debut single set for release early next year. Formerly a sound engineer and music producer, Alice shifted her focus to folk music and inclusive workshop facilitation, with a strong commitment to diversity and accessibility in her work.

This course is part of our wider commitment to inclusive folk music and dance. For more details on our Inclusive Folk project, please visit: Disabled Young People: Inclusive Folk

Inclusive Folk is funded by John Lyon’s Charity.

If you have any questions about our programme for learning disabled young people, please get in touch: email [email protected] or call 020 7241 8953.

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