Just because we spend our lives making telly doesn’t mean telly is life. We want to make a real difference in our local community, and began this mission by forging a wonderful relationship with our local school, Kensington Aldridge Academy.

Finding and nurturing new talent is at the very core of what we do. We want to provide a space for the next generation to flourish, offer them a foothold in the industry and a platform from which they can take their next steps. Which is why we’ve set up a Writer in Residence award.

Dancing Ledge have been a proud partner of the BBC’s TV Drama Writers Programme since 2020. This sees us develop an original pilot episode with an up-and-coming screenwriter over the course of a year, with the screenwriter attending masterclasses and workshops along the way with established TV screenwriters, production teams and experts. The scheme culminates in a readthrough, and the BBC have a first-look at the finished project.

We are proud sponsors of The Writers Lab, the first program of its kind devoted exclusively to script development for women and non-binary writers over the age of 40. Over 6 months a group of shortlisted screenwriters will be paired with mentors to develop an original TV pilot, and receive expert masterclasses and support along the way. The scheme is supported by Cate Blanchett’s Dirty Films and Untamed Stories. Check out the new mentors!

We have partnered with Wiltshire Creative to launch a bursary in honour and memory of Dawn Sturgess, who died on 8th July 2018 after coming into contact with the nerve agent Novichok. We intended to award one budding drama school acting student with £30,000 towards their living costs while studying (£10,000 a year for 3 years). However when it came to meeting the shortlisted candidates, we were so impressed with all three that we awarded the full bursary to Cassia, and also awarded £7,500 bursaries to Katie and Molly.