April 2023 marks 1 year since I started my Yoga for All class at the Linskill Centre in North Shields. Yay! Here's the story of how it started and how it has grown over the last 12 months.

My Sunday class at The Yoga Station, Whitley Bay was doing well, but people kept asking for a mid-week class. There was no space in the Yoga Station schedule for me to offer a class there so I started to look around for another venue. I tried a few halls in Whitley Bay and Cullercoats without success so I decided to look further afield. I've always liked the ethos of the Linskill Centre - it is run as a not-for-profit community interest company - so I decided to go and have a look at their spaces. They do have a proper dance studio but the high ceilings and mirrored wall didn't have the introspective feel that I like for a yoga space. I settled instead on the Collingwood room - an old classroom with big windows, a lovely parquet floor and the lingering odour of school art supplies.

I decided to make this class a little more physically challenging to balance the relaxed vibe of my Sunday class, but I still wanted to make all kinds of people feel welcome so I settled on the name Yoga for All. The first class had just a handful of students - almost all loyal Sunday yogis - but it grew quickly to a steady group of around 8-10 and that continued all through the summer.

Yoga classes go through an annual cycle - busier in the darker months, but quieter in the summer. It makes sense - in the summer people are out and about enjoying the lighter evenings and outdoor leisure activities. In the autumn and winter we naturally turn to indoor and introspective activities. As we came into autumn 2022 class numbers started to climb and the Collingwood room began to feel like a bit of a squeeze. I knew January would be even busier - the world goes yoga-mad in January! - so I took the leap and decided to move the class into the much bigger Burnett Hall. It proved to be the right choice as in early 2023 classes swelled to over 20 students some weeks. Now as we come into late spring and early summer I know that numbers will dwindle and we might revisit the Collingwood Room for a time. But I also know that come September they will return.

The Wednesday class now has a lovely community feel with students chatting before and after class, old friends and new. I am particularly proud of the diversity in the class - all ages and body sizes, runners and retirees, and a good number of male students which can be unusual for a yoga class. Words have power and I like to think that in choosing the name Yoga for All I have created a space where all kinds of people feel welcome. And it is a space where new people are welcome too - so do come along if you'd like to try it out.

So here's to a year of Yoga for All at the Linskill Centre! Thank you to all of my students over the last year, especially the ones who took a chance on those early sessions. And thanks to Linskill for being a great host. Here's to another 12 months and beyond!