Every donation helps someone

As a not-for-profit organisation, Aerial Edge C.I.C. puts people first.

We offer a Sponsored Places programme to fund circus training for people who experience barriers to participation. Circus may be perceived as niche, but it offers many unexpected benefits along with physical skills, which we want to make available to all.

In the years since Aerial Edge was established in 2007, we have worked with organisations to identify candidates for the funded places in fields including poverty, disability, LGBTQ+ and refugees.

We offer a welcoming, non-competitive environment where anyone can feel safe, yet free to explore their experiences on the apparatus in whatever ways work best for them, regardless of age, size, shape, culture, background, physical experience/expertise, or other factors.

Our teaching ethos encourages students to learn circus skills and techniques at their own pace, in their own style. We support and mentor them through their challenges so that they gain confidence in self-expression.

This can be especially valuable for people who have vulnerabilities arising from difficult or traumatic experiences in their lives.

Experience has shown us that our approach to teaching circus arts develops people in ways which can be hugely beneficial in many other areas of their lives.

This may include leadership and collaborative skills, creative problem solving, enhanced abilities in concentration and coordination.

As they become stronger and more flexible physically, these changes are often reflected in their mindset, and they can develop social bonds with a range of people that they may otherwise not have had the opportunity to meet.

At the moment, our Sponsored Places programme is available in Youth Circus and over time we aim to expand that to include adult and professional students.