“Dance is the hidden language of the soul of the body”. - Martha Graham. Ashleigh uses dance as a medium to break down barriers between disabled and able-bodied dancers. She is well known for her choreography and live performances. Through her lectures Ashleigh has also trained instructors to adapt dance movements for various disabilities. Her You-Tube channel Ritch-Ability focuses on the achievements of a disabled person as a dancer and also includes educational videos inspired by Ashleigh’s experience as a disability consultant. Last year she became the first person in a wheelchair to be awarded Dance City’s 'Creative Summer', an honor which gave her the opportunity to choreograph and perform.

How has your role as a Disability trainer enabled you to help others? What kind of training programs or strategies can help motivate people with disabilities?A: I’m a disability training consultant with a difference, - having a disability myself I believe I can bring my sessions to life. In a very unique way delivering legislation alongside discrimination I faced amusing stories showing my sense of humour and Funny side demonstrating my achievements too. Also using my knowledge of living with a disability that can’t be taught or found in a textbook.
- I write individual training programme tailored around the organisation that I am delivering to
- I’ve done a lot of careers days in schools, including training: Equality Diversity disability training, Customer service goods and service training, Disability confidence,Job carving training.
- Adapting dance and exercise for disabilities.

Can you tell us about your journey as a dancer?A: Two years later I went on a work placement in a school, and three weeks later I was offered my first job. I was sound therapist in a special school I was there for 10 years. When I wrote and run a personal Independence programme some of the service users on the programme wanted to do something around dance, so I engage with the dance school when they want to know more about me-I told them about my original training. They were really interested and employed me in five festivals, I did some public speaking and equality work for them somebody created a three minute documentary about me.
This was a big breakthrough in the dance world.I was awarded creative summer, I wasn’t the first disabled person to be awarded creative summer, but I was the first wheelchair user. Creative summer is where you get to choreograph your own pace.
I’ve created a dance training programme around dense called message not quite received made up of five videos. The piece was choreographed and able-bodied choreographer the piece was created around equality and diversity and adapting dance teaching people movement is dance dance is movement everyone can move on some way if you can move you can dance, if you can count to 4 or eight you can dance.
I also got chosen to be one of 20 dancers to work with an American Death choreographer. This was a great experience and a massive opportunity.

How and when did you start your YouTube channel “Ritch-Ability”? How do you usually come up with topics for your educational videos?A: Me and my partner set up Ritch-Ability. We set up Ritch-Ability, because the two biggest influences in society are the media and the Internet. Whilst I’m not in control of how many disabled people we see on television. Anybody can set up a YouTube channel. YouTube is really influential in this day and age, I knew YouTube was it to that I could use to reach people all over the world it would be a great way to educate society. My content is about positivity and disability and overcoming obstacles to achieve.

How do you face obstacles in your life? What keeps you moving forward?A: Everybody faces obstacles whether you’re disabled or not, disabled people or somebody with a protected characteristic faces what obstacles. But you’ve got a Face failure to recognise success, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.
Making a difference to people motivates me. I don’t believe that people mean to discriminate. they discriminate because they’re frightened of saying and doing the wrong thing knowledge is Power and where better, to get disability knowledge from unique knowledge that you can’t find in a textbook the best people to educate or disable people themselves.

Where do you want to see yourself in next 5 years?A: I hope that in five years time my YouTube channel is making money, as I want to use the revenue from my channel to run my project. The project would make a difference to so many people, I hope to have a adaptive clothing label. I hope to have had a meeting with the media about disability equality and I hope the media are are leading the way for society. I hope that some of the organisations that I’ve worked with over the years will have started job carving so that we see more disabled people in jobs and using more public transport.

Who is your inspiration?A: Well I was well brought up by my parents your family friends and teachers make me the person you are. So I guess they inspired me. I have done charity work For a lot of years with Graeme Danby the amazing opera singer. His kindness generosity to others and talent inspires me. Simon Cowell’s generosity to charities kindness to people less fortunate than himself I need an icon in society I look up to him. Zoe sugg is one of the most successful YouTubers of all time, she inspires me as she’s funny, bubbly beautiful talented. I like to be the disabled Zoe sugg. And help people that are less fortunate than myself. To be honest everyone in my life is in my life for a reason because they’re great people I surround myself with great people in the hope that one day that I can be half is great.

What do you like to do when you are with your family/friends?A: In my spare time, I like to beat with family and friends. Go for weekend breaks with my partner.

What is your favorite place that you would like to visit and why?A: The one place I would like to go but I’ve never been, i’d like to educate people on cruises because this way I will make people disability confident I would be able to work on the ship and in my spare time visit places that I’ve never had the chance to go before. I also like to spend time at home with my partner as I worked with the architects to purpose-built the bungalow for my needs.

What tips/advice do you have for those in our community who want to learn dancing?A: If I could give you some advice it would be. Embrace diversity, don’t be scared of it. Disabled or not we are all different, everyone has talents sometimes you just have to look further for some talents than others. Don’t look good does don’t look at peoples disabilities see abilities. If you can breathe then you can achieve. Dance is movement movement is dance everyone can move so everyone can dance if you can count to 4, if you can count to 8 you can dance.

Any special message for our community?A: My final quote if you can dream it then you can do it.