Elmhurst Ballet School

Our mission is to inspire, nurture and celebrate young ballet dancers sharing a talent, commitment and passion to become exceptional dance professionals, regardless of financial circumstances.

Our expert staff deliver elite training in state-of-the-art facilities, an experience enriched by our highly-esteemed association with Birmingham Royal Ballet. As well as privileged access to the company’s Artistic Director and his team, our association also gives students significant performance opportunities to work with the Birmingham Royal Ballet - both at the Birmingham Hippodrome and on tour.

Our holistic ethos encourages students to LIVE, DANCE and LEARN in equal measure. This successful and rounded approach continues to produce happy and healthy elite classical ballet dancers, who are interesting, inquisitive and grounded, and ready to take their next steps in life.

Founded in Camberley, Surrey in 1923, Elmhurst was one of the UK’s first vocational dance schools. In 2004, the school moved to its purpose-built new home in Edgbaston, Birmingham forming a close association with Birmingham Royal Ballet, formerly Sadler’s Wells Royal Ballet.

Elmhurst has a history of notable alumni and continues to be a world-renowned centre of excellence, providing full-time vocational training in classical ballet in conjunction with a sound academic education across the whole school.

Joining Elmhurst

• Elmhurst is an independent school for classical ballet students aged 11-19 years’ old. Entry to the school is by audition with students joining from Year 7 onwards and graduating after Year 14.
• In a typical year, 80% of our students receive financial assistance to train with us.
• In geographical terms 20.6% of our students are from the Midlands; 26.9% from London and the South East; 13.7% from the South West; 18.8% from the North of England; 1.7% from Scotland; 2.9% from Wales; and 15.4% are from overseas.
• Most of our students are new to boarding when they join Elmhurst. We have capacity for 169 students to live on-site and nearby at The Elms boarding house. Our graduate students live independently. We also welcome day-students.

The School provides world-renowned training and education for dancers who go on to work with Birmingham Royal Ballet and other national and international dance companies. This includes giving students an excellent grounding in ballet and allied dance genres, a quality academic education and a principled, caring living and working environment, combined to provide a solid foundation for their life-long learning. The School selects students on the basis of their ability and potential in classical ballet. It does not select in any way on the basis of academic ability. The primary aim of the curriculum is to support students in preparing for and accessing the professional dance world and life beyond.

The curriculum is designed to meet students’ artistic and academic needs, with the emphasis on each changing as they develop through their school years. The curriculum meets all students’ needs in terms of linguistic, mathematical, scientific, technological, human and social, physical and aesthetic and creative education. Students study at Elmhurst from age 11 to 19, or school years 7-14. Students in years 13 and 14 are beyond the compulsory school age and their curriculum reflects this.

What We Believe

• We put our students at the heart of everything we do and strive to maximise potential by providing rigorous, brilliant, inspirational opportunities that prepares them for life.
• We are passionate and proud of our work and the excellence of the dance and academic outcomes we achieve.
•  We actively listen by dynamically researching, evolving and adapting our elite performance environment to be leading-edge through world-class teaching.
•  We foster a caring culture that is inclusive, demonstrates integrity, and where people are aspirational, energetically engaged and take ownership in maximising their own potential.
•  We believe that talent is classless and we only engage with and teach top people who have the desire to perform exceptionally.
•  We demonstrate the courage to question, challenge and change the cultural norms in the dance world.

How We Are

• Caring
• Inclusive
• Inspiring
• Dynamic
• Courageous
• Proud