Market Research Document

GetIN2 Dance Market Research The background TIN Arts has been creating inspiring dance, arts and culture programmes since 1999, including for the last few years GeTIN2 Dance in County Durham for people aged 18 and above with a learning disability.

To get a better understanding of things which are important to two key groups and identify any areas for improvement, TIN Arts asked a local independent researcher to speak to: - Care Coordinators in the local authority who advise individuals about what is on offer and about funding the costs of taking part - Parents and Carers who support individuals in coming to decisions about what activities they want to take part in and liaise with care professionals and programme providers.

This took place in late summer 2012 through a series of telephone interviews with Care Coordinators and a focus group and telephone interviews with parents and carers.

Care Coordinators told us:  TIN Arts is well respected and well trusted and there does not appear to be anyone else locally delivering anything quite like GeTIN2 Dance. We do however need to get the message over that GeTIN2 is much more than just a dance programme to encourage more people to give it a try.  We have high quality and standards and as a result our prices are not the cheapest, and we need to do more to show the overall value of our work. This includes doing more to show the wider than dance benefits, and we could make better use of case studies and personal stories to get this over - including videos and web based evidence.  Building face to face relationships with care professionals is important and they appreciate being invited to attend performance events showcasing the work of participants and TIN Arts providing occasional updates via their team meetings.  Providing structured individual feedback at least once a year would add value for Care Coordinators in terms of the annual reviews they complete with those taking part, and if we could design this process with their help this would reinforce current relationships.

GetIN2 Dance “provides meaningful activity.....with a range of physical and wider therapeutic benefits .....which is directed at meeting each individual‘s needs.”

Parents and Carers told us  They also praise TIN Arts and would welcome more opportunities of this kind, including allowing individuals already taking part to carry on in the longer term or to double up and take part on more than one day a week.

 They rely quite strongly on Care Coordinators in terms of finding out what is on offer, and as a result we need to be certain this group of professionals is kept properly up to date.  The performance events are a valuable showcase for engaging with parents and carers, as are links with disability associations and our website - which was felt to be quite good, but could be improved.  Although the welcome from our staff and the quality of our delivery were highly praised, we were told we need to make the entrance to our building more attractive and easier to find for first time visitors.

GeTIN2 Dance “provides a challenging activity.....which is genuinely engaging.....and is much more than just a contemporary dance programme.”

Overall The positive feedback on the work of TIN Arts from Care Coordinators and parents and carers, alongside the feedback we already get from the individuals taking part in our programmes, provides a sound base for us as we look to the future - and we were very encouraged by repeated references to:  Enjoyment, fun and interest for those taking part  Safety and continuity in our delivery – seen as very important for many of those taking part, who find change hard to accommodate and take time to build up personal relationships  The quality of the experience and the wider than dance results it achieves – including 

Individuals gaining greater personal self confidence

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Gains in group and interpersonal skills and strong friendships being established

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Improved organisational and planning skills

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Increased levels of physical activity.

Current participants would also welcome increased levels of provision, if resources could be found for this, and many “would go every day if possible.”

This summary has been drawn from a detailed report prepared for TIN Arts by CPMA, an independent consultancy based in the North East of England, and both organisations would like to thank all those who took part in this process.