“I been getting in trouble with the police all my life, getting in the wrong crowds, ending up in the wrong places… ever since I can remember, ever since I was a kid.  I never been in school, always getting kicked out for swearing, fighting, just being naughty things like that.  I lived in Hackney all my life. You sink or you live, you live how the roads live or live yourself behind a closed door. I aint living myself behind no closed door so I started living the streets. It’s postcode beef, everywhere is postcode beef…I’m from here, you’re from there… [before the Academy]I’d smoke drugs, see girls, jam on the street, do crack… I don’t do crack and don’t jam on the street no more. Cause I don’t wanna end up in the place I was…I don’t wanna end up back in jail that’s all… it’s not the place to be.” SHAUN (17), London

Shaun was referred to the Academy from a London Youth Offending Team. He had long-term involvement with probation services, being known to the YOT since he was nine years old.  Concerns regarding Shaun, were his criminal peers and lack of age appropriate friends. He left school at the age of thirteen when he was excluded for fighting and being abusive to teachers.  Shaun was known to be extremely anti-social, lacked consequential thinking and was prone to become violent at home. He was a known cannabis user.  Shaun’s neighbourhood ASSET score was very high, described as a “crime hotspot” by Metropolitan police, and known for prolific gang culture and prevalent drug usage.  Shaun had failed to engage in anything prior to the Academy project.

The most challenging cohort member in terms of his behaviour, Shaun showed no boundaries.  He was confrontational, volatile, hyperactive and easily distracted.  He abhorred being told what to do, was easily frustrated and reacted on impulse, frequently becoming verbally aggressive and storming out of the studio.  He was deeply influenced by street culture and boasted about his gang associations and “life on the road”. In the beginning, Shaun found it impossible to focus and be still.  However, he responded well to the rigorous physicality and constant challenges of the programme. Dance was an effective outlet in channelling his excessive energy in a positive and constructive way. Shaun enjoyed doing something different, feeling that “it’s not all about the street no more.  It’s getting my life sorted coming here and doing this”. Shaun was like a sponge absorbing all the new material and he impressed staff by the quickness in which he learned.

A capable and expressive dancer, Shaun featured strongly in the performance piece.  He was keen to perform which motivated and excited him.  Performing gave Shaun an incredible high and he enjoyed being seen in a positive light, especially by his family.  He realised he could commit and had completed something for the first time in his life.  Shaun struggled throughout the project to accept authority but improved dramatically in his ability to stop and think before reacting.  He continued to push the boundaries to the ultimatum stage, but showed a willingness to cooperate and an enthusiasm to learn.  The fact that Shaun engaged in something, actually completed a project and gained a qualification was a massive achievement. Shaun finished the project feeling that it had “opened my mind” and “I can do more than what I thought I could”. He was keen to go on to study performing arts or dance at college, remarking “what’s the point of just stopping after six weeks.”

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