Our Story
At Legacy Dance Academy our aim is to provide students of all levels with more than just dance classes. Instead, we want to provide unique experiences and life lessons allowing students to grow both mentally and physically as a dancer. Our priority will always be FUN, it is of huge importance to us as a school that all children enjoy their dance journey and where it may take them.
Legacy Dance Academy opened in July 2019 and, just 12 months after opening, was named Best Children's Dance Academy in Greater Manchester in the 2020 UK Enterprise Awards. The Academy has also been listed in the Three Best Rated dance schools in Rochdale and its students have achieved phenomenal success throughout a variety of dance competitions and championships.
Principal - Nikki - has a wealth of experience in teaching, performing and competing in dance, as do all staff at Legacy Dance Academy alongside a passion for the art of dance and for helping others discover their inner dancer.
Have a look around our website to learn more about our studio and what we offer. If you have any questions feel free to contact us using the chat box at the bottom of every page, by email, or by the contact number provided.
Principal - Nikki Cooke
BA Hons Primary Education
IDTA Freestyle Licentiate
IDTA Gymnastic Dance Diploma
AcroTrix Qualified
15 Years Teaching Experience
Fully DBS Checked
First Aid Trained
Nikki began dancing at a young age, taking great enjoyment and soon developed a driving passion. She competed as a freestyle dancer and later went on to assist in classes at the age of 14. Once she turned 16, Nikki began teaching dance classes and private lessons.
Nikki developed a love of working with children, and this led her to a Primary Teaching degree at Edge Hill University where she learned skills, attributes and techniques to ensure that her teaching methods are at the highest standard possible.
In 2016 Nikki took the Associate teaching examination with the IDTA and achieved 94% gaining Honours, the highest grade possible. In 2018 she went on to take the IDTA Licentiate exam achieving 95% and once again gaining Honours.
With a combination of teaching and dance knowledge, Nikki decided to start a new adventure in 2019 as the principal of Legacy Dance Academy. The academy quickly went from strength to strength, and now has over 100 enlisted dancers.
Studio Manager - Sam Cooke
BA Hons Sports Journalism
Food Hygiene Qualified
Fully DBS Checked
First Aid Trained
Sam is the person who makes sure absolutely everything at the studio runs smoothly, he is in charge of class bookings, enquiries, timetable scheduling, liaising with parents, payments, website building and also runs our onsite cafe.
Sam will usually be the first friendly face that you see when coming to our studio and he is always happy to help with any queries that parents or students may have.
Dance Teacher - Shannon Kutereba
IDTA Freestyle Pre-Associate
4 Years Teaching Experience
Fully DBS Checked
Shannon also began dancing at a young age, being taught by Nikki throughout her years of dance training. Shannon was a competitive freestyle dancer and has competed throughout the country, and in 2018 made it to the World Freestyle Championships semi-final.
By day, Shannon works as a teaching assistant in a special needs school, but also joined the full-time teaching team at Legacy in 2020. This was always a natural choice as her and Nikki have built up such a fantastic relationship over the years.
Assistant Dance Teacher - Millie Carberry
After joining Legacy in 2019, Millie was one of our competitive dancers for 5 years.
When she started college in 2024, Millie made the difficult decision to hang up her dancing shoes, but we are thrilled that she decided to remain part of the Legacy family and has joined our teaching staff on a part-time basis.