Project SKIP - Supporting Kids in Performance

Project SKIP strengthens the wellbeing, resilience and life skills of young people by developing the trusted adults who influence them every day. Founded in regional NSW in response to the wellbeing challenges young people have faced since COVID-19, Project SKIP recognised that the greatest opportunity for lasting impact lies in equipping the adults who already have trusted relationships with young people: dance teachers, and increasingly, educators. Our model is intentionally intergenerational. We train dance teachers and educators first, strengthening their own self-awareness, communication and emotional skills. They then intentionally model these behaviours and use our structured, age-appropriate activities to develop the same skills in their students. Young people don’t just learn about resilience, empathy and emotional regulation, they experience it consistently through relationships with adults they already know and trust. Those young people are then better equipped to become the next generation of leaders, teachers, coaches and mentors in their own communities. We chose the dance industry because dance teachers occupy a unique position, often knowing a child for a decade or more, spending hundreds of hours with them each year. In regional communities especially, a dance teacher becomes far more than an instructor, they become a trusted mentor and consistent adult influence outside the family. Developed in consultation with a registered psychologist, Project SKIP equips these trusted adults with practical, evidence-informed tools they can confidently embed into weekly classes, exam and performance preparation and workshops. We intentionally transfer knowledge, skills and values from one generation to the next through relationships that already exist and are already trusted, creating a compounding cycle of stronger mentors and more resilient young people across regional Australia.