Excuse the tone of today's blog but I am really fed up with dealing with people's blatant ignorance towards modern fitness pole dancing. I won't go into my usual rants as my regular readers will be more than educated about my feelings however for those of you who have not read my previous posts here are three that discuss my crusade to change peoples perception of modern fitness pole dancing:
Today's upset comes from a letter I received in the post today. Having struggled long and hard to make the art of dance financially viable I finally came to the conclusion that the only way forward was to register the art of dance as a community interest company, that status would have entitled us to grant funding, reduced business rates, improved credibility and many other benefits. However despite a lengthy cover note and a meeting with Business link to ensure I had covered all areas of the application I received this back from Companies House today:
"Although your application makes a passionate case for the positive aerobic and anerobic fitness training of pole dancing and improvement in certain participants' self esteem, you will no doubt be aware that certain sectors of society would question whether pole dancing ...... are appropriate activities for getting under 18's fit and building the self esteem of vulnerable young women, and for that reason I cannot at this stage, reach the conclusion that a reasonable person would think that The art of dance's activities are being carried out in the benefit of the community."
Although I have been invited to comment further and argue my case I do wonder if I will be wasting my time and energy. Whilst anyone who knows me or who has been involved with the art of dance will know exactly how much we do to help individuals and to work with charities and other local causes I doubt I will be able to change the mind of a person sat in an office reading about the art of dance. I am unsure how much longer the art of dance can trade effectively as a business with rising overheads and an economic climate that means many people can't afford lessons with us. If we could get grant funding we could work with so many more people and pursue many more goals but I fear that without any financial help we will fail to work with as many individuals as we would like to. Indeed the future looks bleak.
Plymouth is already known for having very high rental rates, the highest water bills in the country, high business rates and low wages, these factors are all contributory into why the art of dance is struggling financially. The C.I.C status would have had so many benefits for us and without it we will struggle to carry on. Despite my current negativity I am not one to give up easily and no doubt by tomorrow I will be digging my heels firmly into the ground, tackling companies house head on and continuing to try to move the business forward. Watch this space....
Stay healthy,
Sam x