TWINKLE-TOED Swindon Academy students danced their way to the top of a regional competition this week.

The 26 students, ranging from 13 to 18 years old, bagged first place at the Great Big Dance Off (GBDO) held at the Wyvern Theatre on Monday night, beating competition from over 25 schools across the south. Now, the group will represent the town at a national competition in the summer.

Rebecca Woolven, head of dance at Swindon Academy, said she couldn’t be more proud of the students who put forward two pieces in the competition.

“It was an emotional night for everyone because when we heard that one of our pieces had been awarded third place we thought that’s a good position but then they went on to say we had come first as well – we were all elated,” she said.

“We have a massive extracurricular programme at our school and we are able to get other groups and organisations come in such as Swindon Dance who work with us so there’s a lot for students to get involved in.

“By competing at these types of competitions and heats, the students get into that routine of training, which is similar to what they would experience in the real-life dancing industry.”

It is not the first time that Swindon Academy students have achieved dancing success in the competition after they came second at last year’s GBDO, which is a national dance competition solely aimed at schools all across the country.

“They were so proud of themselves when they heard they had been placed first and that’s what I love about them,” Rebecca added. “They are so professional and they get up and cheer and congratulate the competition no matter what.

“We able to teach them different skills and techniques and it helps them progress to more vocational activities because most of my students want to go professional.

“When we got through to the finals last year, the students were able to see what the other schools were offering. We thought wow, we are here competing at a national level and in a way, the students raised their game. They became even more dedicated with the amount of work they put in to their dancing.

“This year, I am hoping we place in the top five in the final. Last year we came 10th or 11th out of 35 schools which was brilliant but they have put in so much hard work that it would be great for them to get that result.”

The group of students from Swindon Academy will now go onto compete in the national finals on July 3 in Wellingborough.