Echo Performing Arts CIC has been something born through life changing work with people with learning disabilities, spanning the past few decades. Lydia Hunt and Sarah Hamlett (our directors) have initiated projects in performing arts for people with learning disabilities throughout this time, and have been working together to change lives for the better since 2009.
Sarah and Lydia have an exceptionally close and intuitive working bond, and we are united in our ethos and belief in the people we work with.
Both Sarah and Lydia have had extensive and meaningful training in working with this community of people over the past 20 years. They both believe deeply in:
🌟 Empowerment – putting the people we work with in control of what we do! Believing in who they are, how they want to do things (no matter how abstract or “different” this appears to the neurotypical mind), what they are capable of and how they have the power to change the world around them for the better.
🌟 Inclusion – we want the performing arts to not only be accessible, but for people to thrive through the opportunities we provide.
🌟 Opportunities – we want people to have the opportunity to be social, active and to build treasured memories through our work.
🌟 Building Communities– we do this by not only bonding with the dancers/performers in our sessions, but by connecting with families and carers and building strong and meaningful relationships with everyone who supports our work. We also support the friendships that evolve between our performers and families by enabling social opportunities to happen outside of our weekly classes, such as going to see theatre shows, as well as taking part in our own performance opportunities too.
Our History
Our first ever project, The Far Far Away Musical, is a very special group that work together every Sunday. Sarah and Lydia support a talented and charismatic performer with Down Syndrome to teach the group. He is called Harry Fairchild, and this project exists because of him! Sarah and Harry have known each other since early childhood. They have worked together over the years, but came back into contact when he started attending Sarah’s Latin classes. They decided to start a new group together, and since starting The Far Far Away Musical, it has become very popular and meaningful to all involved. In January 2024, we also began a new dance project called Jazz Hands Dance, adding Fabulous Stars in April 2025 and Dreams in May 2025.
If you would like to get in touch, we are happy to hear from you! Our email address is echoperformingarts@gmail.com
We are a registered Community Interest Company – no. 11190049
We are supported by:
Echo Performing Arts CIC 