Hammond Academy Bournemouth

The Miss Hammond Award for Achievement.

Miss Hammond was born in Liverpool and from a very young age showed a love and passion for dance and drama. Music was part of daily life at home. She was always singing and choreographing to the latest songs and even “old” music that her parents would play at home. At the age of 7 she followed her big sister to dance class to learn Ballroom and Latin American at the Billy Martin School of Dance. By the age of 11 she knew that dance had to be much more. Changing schools, she began a long journey learning many genres that would shape her future. At The Vernon Johnson School of Dance and Drama, Miss Johnson introduced Classical Ballet, Cecchetti Ballet, Free Movement, Modern, Tap and Disco into her repertoire. Of course, along with Ballroom and Latin American. At the age of 16, a scholarship took her to full time college at Merseyside Dance and Drama Centre for 3 years before pursuing a long career on the stage travelling the world.
Retiring from performing, Mis Hammond embarked on a career of teaching. To date, thousands of students have passed through her schools to be trained by her, receiving so much knowledge and life skills in the process.
This award was presented to the school by the Staff and Cast of Cowboys & Angels in 2012.

The Grace Johnson Award for Improvement

Vernon Johnson owned a music shop in the wealthy district of Sefton Park on the south side of Liverpool at the turn of the last century. Whilst he taught pianoforte in the shop his wife taught Classical Ballet in a small studio at the rear.
They had two daughters Grace and Olga who both naturally grew up with a love of music and dance. A career on the stage followed for the girls, performing in theatre shows around the country and summer season every year at the prestigious Blackpool Tower Ballroom. The two girls eventually took over the family business and so The Vernon Johnson School of Dance & Drama was born.
Miss Johnson (or the Boss as she was affectionately known) never had any children of her own but saw all the children who passed through her school as her own. She loved to watch the development of toddlers as their first co-ordinated steps and actions would happen and praised the teenagers when those tricky combinations they had practised for weeks finally came together. It was not about being the best it was about being the best you can be.... was her ethos.
The Boss would tell us as students and teachers “No matter how big or small try to learn one new thing every day”
I was very fortunate to be trained by this great lady and indeed spent 15 years learning from her. When she died in 1993 a great void appeared in my life. The school continues and is now over 120 years old.
In memory of an outstanding lady and my mentor.

The Peter King Award for Enthusiasm.

Peter was born in Eastham on the Wirral Peninsula in Merseyside and from an early age showed a great love and talent for dance. After leaving school he went on to full-time college attending MERSEYSIDE DANCE AND DRAMA CENTRE for three years. It was here that he not only trained to be a dancer but also a teacher and choreographer.
After graduating he travelled all over the world performing. He later returned to England to teach not only at his former college but at other full-time establishments as well as local dance schools.
Peter never really “retired” from dancing, like the rest of us he continued to perform appearing in the West End in musicals and pantomimes each year.
I met Peter at the MDDC when I was in my first year and he his final year. I had an instant admiration for his enthusiasm and energy (especially whilst being thrown around the Pas de Deux class as he was often my partner!).
Peter was a very thorough teacher who never expected unrealistic goals from his pupils. When teaching he never had favourites and he didn’t care if every student had two left feet! Peter wasn’t looking for the next Nureyev or Fontaine as long as you had energy and enthusiasm he was happy to teach you. Indeed, when Peter walked in to a room it would light up with smiles and soon would resound with laughter. That was the effect he had on everybody.
I opened my former school in the Village where Peter was born and I taught many pupils who were children of Peter’s old friends. In 2001 I was honoured to be presented with a shield in Peter’s name by his mother Mrs Mary King. The shield was donated by Mrs Tina Murray, a close friend of Peter’s family.
The very first presentation of the shield was to Miss Julia who had been a pupil of mine for twelve years before being asked to join the staff. Her dedication and hard work were one of the reasons the school was such a success.
When HAMMOND ACADEMY OF PERFORMING ARTS was born in 2006 it only seemed fitting that I bring the shield back into existence. I have been honoured to perform with, and teach alongside Peter over the years and even though the months would pass without contact, when we met again it was as if no time had passed at all. In the years to come I will ensure that the shield is awarded in the same manner as if Peter himself were to present it.

A GREAT FRIEND, TEACHER AND COLLEAGUE WHO IS SADLY MISSED, FONDLY REMEMBERED AND NEVER FORGOTTEN!

Read up on our School Awards..............

Our 3 school shields are being awarded this term.
The Peter King Award for Enthusiasm.
The Grace Johnson Award for Improvement.
The Miss Hammond Award for Achievement.
Voting closes today so please send your nominations with a rationale to Miss H.
Good luck everyone!!!!

What it takes to be a dance teacher .....

Must be able to count to eight in ways that do not appear to follow the laws of mathematics.

Must know that “from the top” does not always mean from the top, and “one more time” has never actually meant one more time.

Must be able to teach technique, inspire confidence, tie shoes, fix ponytails, remember birthdays, locate missing water bottles, and answer questions that have nothing to do with dance.

Must understand that a five-year-old may need a bathroom break the second class begins, a twelve-year-old may need encouragement more than correction, and a teenager may need someone to believe in them before they believe in themselves.

Must be able to say, “That was better,” while knowing it is going to take at least fourteen more times.

Must celebrate the child who nails the turn and the child who finally walks into class without holding onto their parent’s leg.

Must have patience, energy, creativity, kindness, high standards, a sense of humor, and the ability to keep going even when the Bluetooth speaker has decided not to.

Payoff includes hugs, handwritten notes, inside jokes, proud parents, tired feet, lifelong memories, and the occasional moment when a child looks at you and says, “I want to be a dance teacher just like you.”

It is not an easy job.

It is one of the best jobs in the world.

To every dance teacher showing up for children week after week, you are doing more than teaching dance.

You are becoming part of who they grow up to be.

Grade VI Tap with Miss Green. Lexi is a very lucky candidate.

CONGRATULATIONS to our beautiful ballerina, Hannah and her new husband Louis.
May the years ahead be filled with love, health and happiness.
From all of us at HAPA ❤️

Today, the world celebrates not just a birthday, but a century of wonder, wisdom and unwavering curiosity. Sir David Attenborough turns 100 years old today and it is impossible to measure what that means to our planet, to storytelling and to generations of people who learned to see the Earth differently because of him.

For one hundred years, Sir David has walked beside nature not as its owner, but as its student, its translator and perhaps its greatest guardian. Through his voice, forests breathed. Oceans spoke. Tiny insects became miracles. Creatures hidden in the deepest corners of the Earth suddenly mattered to millions of people sitting quietly in their homes. He taught us that the natural world was never “background scenery” to human life, it was life itself.

There are very few voices in history that can instantly make people stop what they are doing and listen. His is one of them. Calm, gentle, endlessly patient, yet filled with urgency when it mattered most. Across decades of television, Sir David Attenborough didn’t simply narrate documentaries, he narrated our relationship with the planet. He gave us awe when the world felt cynical. He gave us perspective when humanity felt too consumed by itself. And he gave us truth, even when that truth became difficult to hear.

What makes his legacy extraordinary is not only the beauty he showed us, but the compassion behind it. He never spoke down to audiences. He invited us to be curious. To care. To look closer. To understand that every living thing, from the great blue whale to the smallest beetle has a role in the story of Earth. Because of him, millions of children grew up wanting to become scientists, conservationists, filmmakers, explorers, and protectors of wildlife. Millions more simply learned to appreciate the fragile miracle of life around them.

And perhaps most moving of all is that, even after witnessing a century of change, world wars, technological revolutions, environmental destruction, and the accelerating climate crisis he never surrendered to hopelessness. Even in his later years, when he could have comfortably stepped away from public life, he chose instead to keep speaking for the planet. Not for fame. Not for recognition. But because he understood that future generations deserve a world worth inheriting.

That kind of dedication is rare. That kind of integrity is even rarer.

Sir David Attenborough reminds us that wisdom is not loud. It does not demand attention. Sometimes, wisdom arrives in a soft voice describing penguins crossing ice, birds dancing in rainforests or coral reefs glowing beneath the sea. Sometimes, wisdom is simply helping humanity fall in love with the Earth enough to save it.

A hundred years is an unimaginable milestone. Yet somehow, it feels as though his work belongs not only to the past century but to the future as well. Long after all of us are gone, people will still hear that unmistakable voice and feel wonder awaken inside them.

Thank you, Sir David, for showing us the beauty of this planet. Thank you for reminding us that humanity is part of nature, not separate from it. Thank you for a lifetime of curiosity, humility, and hope.

Happy 100th Birthday, Sir David Attenborough, a national treasure, a global icon and one of the greatest storytellers humanity has ever known.

✨ Adult Dance Classes
Step Into the Joy of Dance! ✨

Looking for a fun way to get moving, boost confidence, and meet new people?

Join one of our Adult Dance Classes!

💃 Suitable for all levels
🕺 Learn new skills in a supportive, welcoming space
🎶 Great for fitness, fun, and stress relief
👯 Make friends while discovering your passion for dance

🩰 Ballet |💃 Tap | 💫 Ballroom & Latin | 🔥 Dance Fitness

Whether you’re a complete beginner or returning to dance, our welcoming classes are suitable for all levels!

For Details call
⁨07971 540703⁩