4D Dance CIC delivers accessible, inclusive dance education across Cambridgeshire and Suffolk. The company was incorporated on 3 September 2024, and this report covers its first financial period, ending 30 September 2025. The activity carried on by the CIC has been running in the community since 2014, and this report reflects its first full year operating as a Community Interest Company. During the period the company delivered approximately 48 to 50 classes per week across eight community venues: FRESH Studio Ely, Chatteris Leisure Centre, Cherry Hinton Leisure Centre, Cottenham Community Centre, Fordham Primary School, Histon St Andrew's Centre, Littleport Village Hall, and Red Lodge Pavilion. Classes ran Monday to Saturday, with the largest programmes on Wednesdays and Thursdays. 581 unique students took part across the year, generating around 1,750 class enrolments, an average of roughly three classes per student, reflecting the number of young people choosing to train in multiple disciplines. Students ranged in age from 2 to 19, with the largest concentration in the 8 to 13 age group. This is significant: this is the age group most affected by cuts to arts and dance provision in state schools, and 4D exists in part to keep high-quality, supportive dance training accessible to those young people and their families. The disciplines taught during the period included Street and Hip Hop, Commercial, Acro, Contemporary, Jazz, Lyrical and Musical Theatre. Alongside weekly term-time classes, the CIC ran three Summer 2025 workshops, two in Ely and one in Cambridge, with 153 bookings, and Easter 2025 workshops with approximately 70 students. Access and inclusion are central to the CIC's work. During the period, 4D offered rolling scholarships to families unable to afford dance classes, arranged either through local schools or directly with families who had shared financial circumstances. The company also regularly offers payment plans and reduced fees, and provides free places at Spring and Summer Workshops. School partnerships are an area the CIC is actively looking to deepen. Many local schools have had their arts funding cut, and 4D's ambition is to bring high-quality dance training into schools without a cost to the school or the family. The company delivered a full programme of free community performances during the period, using its student community to bring audiences and energy to local events. These included Mill Road Winter Fair, Mill Road Summer Fair, Ely Eel Day, Ely Aquafest, Ely Rugby Club half-time show, summer fetes at multiple schools where 4D holds classes, and end-of-term performances at 4D's Spring and Summer Workshops in Ely. Two students also performed as backing dancers for a local rapper. In every case the performances were provided free of charge to the host events. A new development in the year was the introduction of termly training sessions for 4D's student class assistants. Teaching staff had identified that assistants were not always confident to step in or take initiative in class, so the company created a structured training and support programme to help them develop, adding real value to their work experience. The impact was significant, staff reported a marked improvement in confidence and capability across the assistant team. The following extract from a parent email, received during the period, reflects the CIC's impact on families: "Our daughter started in December. She was unsure about starting because she has had many negative experiences at other similar clubs in the past. She is Autistic and often struggles with social, sensory, cognitive and emotional challenges. She is currently struggling in all her other settings, so much so that she is not attending school. However, she is absolutely thriving in 4D Acro classes. She learns new skills every week, she feels safe and supported, she does not get overwhelmed and she looks forward to coming every week. She has even made some friends there." Another parent, whose daughter left 4D at the end of the period to pursue dance at sixth form, wrote: "You've been a part of our family's life for over 11 years. When both my girls have faced difficulties whether due to their health or issues at school, 4D gave them a safe place to be." The CIC's mission is to spread the sense of belonging, confidence and creative development that 4D provides to as many young people as possible, and in particular to reach young people who would otherwise miss out on high-quality arts provision. With arts funding continuing to be cut in schools, 4D Dance CIC is focused on developing partnerships that bring dance into school settings without cost to schools or families, and welcomes conversations with funders who share that mission.

The company's principal stakeholders are its students and their families, its teaching staff and student class assistants, the venues and schools it works with across Cambridgeshire and Suffolk, its 4DFEST Committee of parent volunteers, and its current and prospective funders and community partners. Consultation with students and parents is continuous and takes place through a mix of email, Instagram, Facebook Messenger, in-person conversations at drop off and pick-up, and formal surveys and polls. Before making any material change to venues, days, or class offerings, the company runs a survey or poll of parents to ensure the change reflects what families need. Teachers also play a central role, feedback from what they observe in class regularly drives improvements to the programme. Consultation with the teaching team happens through termly (sometimes twice-termly) staff meetings, held in person or online, and through a very active team WhatsApp group. The company also runs weekly admin meetings for the office and management team, holds termly staff socials, and provides regular one-to-one check-ins between team members and the leadership. In addition, the CIC runs termly Teacher Development Training sessions, delivered by the Creative Director or a member of the management team. These combine planned professional development content with a peer sharing session, in which two or three team members share teaching techniques, games and exercises, class experiences, moments that have worked well, and honest reflections on what has not. This format has proved consistently valuable in developing practice and in bringing teacher voice into how the company evolves. The 4DFEST Committee is a group of parent volunteers, joined by three members of the office team on a voluntary basis, who plan and deliver 4DFEST and associated fundraising activities. The committee meets monthly during a 4DFEST year, takes a year off in between, and stays in contact throughout via WhatsApp. During the period, several concrete changes were made in direct response to stakeholder input: 1. The class assistant training programme was created after teaching staff fed back that assistants needed more structured support to step in and take initiative. The company delivered the training and saw a significant improvement in assistant confidence. 2. The 4D Adults programme at Centre E in Ely was relaunched, with beginner, intermediate and advanced sessions, in response to sustained requests from adult students for more classes. 3. Provision at Chatteris was moved to Haddenham following requests from families and clear demand for that location. New venue launches in the Cambridge area (including Mill Road, Chesterton, Northstowe and Marleigh, launching Sept 2025) were similarly informed by community demand and by mapping local gaps in provision, so that new 4D classes do not compete directly with existing dance offerings. 4. Additional levels were added at existing venues in response to student requests, allowing young people to progress within their local class rather than travel. When planning new provision, the company combines parent and student surveys, direct conversations with local schools and community centres, and an assessment of local gaps, aiming to add value to a community rather than duplicate what is already there. The CIC recognises that its relationships with schools are an area to develop further, particularly in relation to bursary and scholarship referrals. Deepening these partnerships is an active priority in the next reporting period.

During the period, the following remuneration was paid to directors of the company: Sara Ford (Director): £23,334, in respect of her role delivering the company's operational, creative and management activities. Charlotte Wain (Director): £4,484, in respect of paid administrative & management hours worked for the company. Alan Harfield (Director) received no remuneration during the period. All payments reflect genuine work performed for the company and were approved by the board. Further detail is disclosed in the notes to the accounts.

No transfer of assets other than for full consideration