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A local organisation, whose service users include young adults with disabilities and learning difficulties, will be holding the island’s first inclusive club night in a bid to give everyone “a chance to dance”.
In a true example of a community project, New Horizons Support Services has partnered with Rojo Bar and Nightclub and Beresford Street Kitchen to host 'Chance to Dance' at the nightclub on Thursday 16 March from 18:30 to 23:30.
New Horizons Director Tony Evans explained that he first started looking at the idea for the event just before the pandemic started, following the example of similar events held in the UK which had been very successful.
However, after covid hit the island, the project had to be put on hold until now.
Pictured: New Horizons Director, Tony Evans.
“We all love the Mencap Disco so we wanted to develop that love for dancing and provide people with an opportunity to experience an environment they may not have had the opportunity to experience before,” Mr Evans said.
“There’s a lack of night-time activities for some of our young adults,” he added. “Lots goes on during the day, but in terms of them having stuff to do in the evening, it’s far and few between. They can go out for a meal and go to the cinema, but beyond that, it’s very limited.”
Mr Evans noted that while there are lots of initiatives in the UK that encourage a night life for individuals with disabilities or learning difficulties, such as gig buddies, similar opportunities are lacking in the island.
Video: Similar events have been held in the UK.
“It’s about providing opportunities for real inclusivity,” he said. “The people we support are adults, they are not children. The young adults want to be able to access the same things and same experiences other adults do. Mencap’s discos are very well attended but it’s a night in a hotel and, for some of our young adults, while it’s great, it’s still not the same as going to a nightclub.”
Mr Evans explained that New Horizons see the inclusive club night as a bridging event between the disco nights and the local club scene. The organisation hopes it will not only give individuals the opportunity to “have a drink, a dance and access events like everyone else” but also allow them to attend other events in the future.
“For some this could be the stepping stone to building confidence to access what Jersey has to offer in terms of night life,” he said.
Pictured: Mr Evans said Rojo could not have been more accommodating.
“Going into a nightclub for the first time, it’s a bit daunting. Some of our young adults do not have the confidence to go there and they haven’t had the opportunity to. This event is about giving more opportunities for people with disabilities to build the confidence to access other events in the island or attend other nightclubs. It allows them to experience a new event and a new environment.
“They are not children, they are adults. They have the same wants, feelings and needs as any other adult. They want to be living as normal a life as possible and they want to do the same things everyone does.”
In addition to giving new opportunities to young adults in the island, the event will give them the chance to enjoy the benefits of music and dance, both of which have been an important part of various therapies for some time as Mr Evans noted.
“Music and dance are both foundational activities in therapies that are offered and there’s lots of research around their benefits,” he said. “They are both good for emotional and mental health, while music in itself is an opportunity to express yourself without being judged.”
Mr Evans explained the event was only made possible thanks to a wonderful community effort that involved New Horizons, Rojo, Beresford Street Kitchen as well as local DJs who volunteered to play on the night: DJ Hellhound and DJ Dripp.
Pictured: BSK will remain open on the night to serve food and a safe space as well as accessible toilets.
“We went to Rojo’s who were more than happy to help us," he said. "We couldn’t have asked for them to be more accommodating.
“Beresford Street Kitchen have agreed to remain open to serve food and to provide a safe space for any individuals who might find the event too stimulating. Rojo’s do not have accessible toilets so anyone who uses a wheelchair will also be able to use the toilets at the café."
“Everyone has come together to make something happen,” he added. “It’s become a real sort of community effort and project. It’s a great example of a partnership to make things happen. People can come together and when they do, real things can happen.”
Mr Evans hopes the event will show there’s an appetite for inclusive club nights. He explained there are small adjustments establishments can make to be more inclusive.
“There are things like adjusting the volume or strobing so that it is not too intense and does not flash as quickly,” he said.
Pictured: Mr Evans said the Mencap disco are always well attended.
“You can also make your door staff aware that there maybe people wearing ear defenders, ear plugs, or sunglasses. A lot of the individuals we support will carry rucksacks because they may have various items they carry in terms of their needs and care. Individuals on the spectrum might become too stimulated, so there might be some stimming or self-regulation.”
“It’s just about things becoming normal and people not questioning them,” he added. “A lot of it is to do with acceptance.”
As proof that there is “a real want and need” for such events, Mr Evans explained that half of the 200 tickets for the inclusive club night were sold in one week, with the event being on track to sell out.
“There are also about 100 to 150 people at each disco hosted by Mencap, they are always very well attended,” he said.
“It’s definitely something we want to repeat. Rojo have already said they are more than happy to support us when we want to do that. BSK have also said they are very interested in supporting us and other DJ’s have contacted me to say they are happy to play at future events.”
“There’s an opportunity to grow even further and make it a more regular feature on the night scene.”
Entry for ‘Chance to Dance’ is £6, carers will have free entry.
Contact admin@newhorizons.je for tickets.
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