Kate Stanforth

⭐️ Carers Week ⭐️

I created a similar post last year and it's truly shocked me how much these figures have changed. I'll be honest, the numbers on this one vary from each source and I think that's because of two reasons. Firstly, no-one actually knows how many carers we have right now; but it's a big number. And secondly, it's growing at a rapid rate.

I've seen first hand the impact caring has on people. My sister didn't have friends over during her time at school because I was too poorly to have people in the house - so that has lasting social repercussions. My parents were often doing full waking nights with me whilst still doing daytime routine which would inevitably lead to burnout. And even my nephew, who's had a very different experience growing up as a young carer himself.

What can I say. Carers, all of you. Heroes.

After a bit of a depressing post I shared yesterday about disability discrimination in the dance industry, it's time to lighten up the feed.

As I said, there are some good'uns out there doing great things. Individuals, brands, companies, organisations... the lot.

Today, I'm sharing a very special photo from Capezio. I was asked, as a disabled dancer, to model their dancewear. I wasn't the only disabled person on the shoot, which meant they had TRUE representation (we had the 1:5 ratio covered - if you didn't know, 1 in every 5 people have a disability)

I had the best time on this job, and the store opening was an experience I'll never forget when I met a parent whose child, now a lead in Matilda The Musical, was inspired to dance from my socials through a period of illness. Moments like that are exactly why I do what I do.

A big shout out to the team, especially Jimmy A Dancers Lens and Tom Bradshaw, for beautifully capturing these moments. There's a film to go with this, and right at the end you see Jimmy & I laughing whilst congratulating each other. It's my favourite part of it all and I can honestly say I loved being on this job.

Thanks team, 'til next time ❤️