INSPIRING INCLUSIVITY – FOUNDATION RICHMOND PROFILE INSPIRATIONAL WOMEN. NUMBER FOUR: CHARLOTTE PORTER.
In the run up to International Women’s Day today, we finish showcasing local charity Foundation Richmond’s profiles of inspirational women from local communities. This has hopefully helped raise awareness of Foundation Richmond, International Women’s Day and of course, our amazing alumni!
CHARLOTTE INSPIRES INCLUSION THROUGH DANCE
On International Women’s Day we are delighted to celebrate the great work of Charlotte Porter, proprietor and teacher of a highly successful and award-winning dance school. She started her business in 2017, when she was just 24 and moved to her spacious and stunning premises at the Station, in Richmond, in January 2019.
Charlotte is bursting with enthusiasm, energy, and an enormous amount of community spirit. She is passionate about inclusivity and aims for everyone who wants to be involved in dance to be given the opportunity. She delivers a breadth of dance classes including tap, jazz, street dance, ballet, contemporary and musical theatre, leading to exams if desired. Her classes are inclusive across the generations, from as young as two through to seated dance classes for the elderly. Serving a Dales’ community, Charlotte is also keen to ensure that children and people in more remote settings have the opportunity to experience dance and are not excluded due to their location.
Charlotte, who was brought up in Swaledale, one of the most northerly of the Yorkshire Dales, and a Richmond School and Sixth Form College alumna, said: “I opened the Charlotte Jacqueline School of Dance as a way of providing other children in rural areas the same chance I had to enjoy dance and musical theatre. I wanted to stay in the Dales but there weren’t any jobs in the performing arts so I set up my business so I could secure my future in the place that I care for and love so much.”
Charlotte added: “As a young woman, I encountered several challenges along the way, such as being told I was too young, too inexperienced, and not having the right type of business model. At times, this was wearing and made everything more difficult, but I rose to the challenge and seven years later, I have taken on the unit next door to my original premises which makes everything more spacious and allows for larger classes. One of my key values is that nobody should be excluded from dance, and I offer payment plans and a second-hand uniform store for additional support.”
Charlotte is a great community champion and often volunteers her time to choreograph for local amateur dramatics and pantomimes. She is also a valued member of Swaledale Mountain Rescue and is one of the youngest in the organisation.
Charlotte’s advice to young people on finding ways to be included in the community and to make new friendships or develop a hobby, is for them to seek out classes and groups locally. There are a host of activities and events happening in the Richmond area, from photography and running, to dancing, singing or writing, and there are also lots of volunteering opportunities where young people can support others and inspire inclusion. Richmond Library is the place to go as they have some great resources available to signpost to the many organisations and groups that are running in the area.
You can find out more about Charlotte’s Dance School and the wide variety of classes available at this link:
You can follow Charlotte on Facebook here:
or Instagram here: