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Campaign aims to get 100,000 more active through dance

The Department of Health's 'Dance Champions'Group, will embark on a nationwide tour to get the country dancing, Public Health Minister Gillian Merron will announce today. Dance stars including Arlene Phillips, former Come Dancing presenter Angela Rippon, Capital Radio’s Lisa Snowdon and Strictly Come Dancing pro Darren Bennett will today join Health Minister Gillian Merron and Dance Champions Chair Rod Aldridge, to launch their campaign to get 100,000 people more active through dance in the run up to the 2012 Olympic Games. The Dance Champions Campaign, part of Dance4Life, will see the Dance Champions Group: * travel the length and breadth of the country to host free mass-participation 'dance-celebration' events in each region. The events will encourage people new to dance and those who used to enjoy dancing when they were younger to get involved and get active; * offer free taster dance sessions for people who aren't very active and provide people with information about how they can get more involved in dance locally; *create the first ever dance directory website, providing a one-stop-shop to let people know how they can get dancing; * stage a Dance Summit to bring together national organisations involved in all types of dance and rally them behind the common goal of getting the nation active through dance. The champions will work with dance organisations to get a clearer picture of how the work of the dance sector can be co-ordinated to help get the population more active. Public Health Minister, Gillian Merron said: 'Our Dance Champions are some of the best known and leading talents of the dance world, but you don’t have to be a professional to enjoy dancing and feel the positive effect it can have on your health. "People of all ages and abilities can get active to music and have a lot of fun too. "The Chief Medical Officer recommends that adults do 30 minutes of physical activity at least five times a week, but over 27 million of us don’t manage it. With the leadership of the dance champions, we want to capture the national enthusiasm for dance and get at least 100,000 more adults active through dance in the run up to the 2012 Olympics. "The Dance Champions will help to make the Government’s Dance4Life campaign ‘come to life’ for many people across the country” Dance Champion, Arlene Phillips said: "We want to start a revolution to get the nation on their feet and onto the dance floor!" "Dancing is a great way to get fit and healthy and the Dance Champions want to get everyone involved. It doesn't matter whether you're young or old or if you've never danced before - we'll be touring the country to give everyone a chance to get dancing." Rod Aldridge, Chair of the Dance Champions Group and of the Aldridge Foundation, said: "Dance is one of the best ways to get people of all ages on their feet and fit. So whether you’re fifteen or fifty, Dance Champions will offer you enjoyable ways to try all forms of dance. "The Dance Champions tour is an incredible initiative backed by dance experts and celebrity ambassadors who’ll be bringing dance opportunities to your door".

Notes to Editors

1. For media enquiries only please contact the Department of Health newsdesk on 020 7210 5221 2. The 11 Dance Champions are: * Rod Aldridge OBE, Chair of the Dance Champions Group * Arlene Phillips, judge on the forthcoming BBC programme ‘So You Think You Can Dance’ and Youth Dance England patron * Angela Rippon, former Come Dancing presenter and former chair of the English National Ballet * Lisa Snowdon, Capital Radio presenter and former contestant on Strictly Come Dancing * Darren Bennett, Professional champion ballroom and Latin American dancer and star of Strictly Come Dancing * Roger Mosey, BBC Director of the London 2012 Olympics * Janet Archer, Director of Dance Strategy for the Arts Council England * Daran Bennet, Physical Activity Alliance * Miguel Doforo, expert dance coach and of MD Showgroup * Andrew Hanson, Head of Policy, Central Council of Physical Recreation * Margaret Peggie OBE, Former Chair of the Exercise Movement and Dance Partnership, and Vice President of the Fitness League 3. For more information about the Dance Champions log on to www.dancechampions.org.uk 4. All the Dance Champions are giving their time for free 5. The Dance Champions group will be launched at 1pm at the Clore Ballroom on Thursday 15th October 2009. 6. Rod Aldridge is an entrepreneur and Chair of the Aldridge Foundation, which uses entrepreneurship and education to improve the lives of disadvantaged young people and their communities. The Foundation recently piloted a scheme to teach children ballroom and Latin dance in school PE lessons. An independent evaluation by Roehampton University found that it significantly improved participants’ health, self-esteem and peer relationships with notable improvements in classroom behaviour and attainment. For more information visit http://www.aldridgefoundation.com/essentially_dance For more information about the Aldridge Foundation visit http://www.aldridgefoundation.com/ 7. The Dance Champions will be joined at the launch by a number of dance groups who will each give a short performance. They are Essentially Dance, MD Showgroup, Medau Movement and a group of older dancers who will perform a Latin American dance routine. 8. Essentially Dance is a new initiative to teach ballroom and Latin American dance within schools' core physical education provision. It is the first training package to be launched in the UK that will train school staff to teach students of all ages - from Key Stages 1 - 5 - and of all abilities - beginner, intermediate and advanced. For more information about Essentially Dance visit http://www.essentiallydance.com/ 9. MD Showgroup are a group of young dancers aged between 9 - 17 from Liverpool. MD Showgroup appeared on ITV's Britain's Got Talent with a theatrical dance piece to Michael Jackson's 'They Don’t Care About Us' expressing their feelings about gun and knife crime, abuse, bullying and racism. For more information about MD Showgroup visit http://www.mdproductions.org/showgroup.html 10. Medau Movement is a dance based workout, involving cardio, moves for strength, stretch and suppleness, with a variety of music and rhythm, pace and mood. For more information about Medau Movement visit http://www.medau.org.uk/ The Dance Champion’s Campaign is part of Dance4Life, a branch of Change4Life, the Government campaign to get people 'eating well and moving more, to live longer'

Contacts:

Department of Health
Phone: 020 7210 5221
NDS.DH@coi.gsi.gov.uk