"Starting September 2026, students aged 11-12 will train through expanded regional Associate centers and a new UK Scholars programme rather than entering the school's Richmond Park boarding facility. Students aged 12-13 will follow this model beginning in 2027. Shifting Away From Early Specialisation Artistic Director Iain Mackay framed the changes around emerging research on early specialisation in vocational training. The School consulted healthcare specialists, mental health experts, and education researchers before concluding that intensive single-focus training from age 11 may not optimise long-term career outcomes."
"The school's announcement stated: "Evidence shows that later specialisers can benefit from increased mental resilience, longer, healthier careers and higher, more consistent levels of success." Karen Berry, the School's Head of Teacher Training, explored these themes in a companion essay examining vocational dance pedagogy. Berry addressed how "intensive, single-focus training from a young age" has come under scrutiny across multiple performance disciplines."
Royal Ballet School will remove full-time residential programmes for Year 7 and Year 8 students beginning in 2026, shifting 11–12-year-olds to expanded regional Associate centres and a new UK Scholars programme and extending the model to 12–13-year-olds in 2027. The decision follows consultations with healthcare, mental health and education researchers and reflects evidence that intensive single-focus training from age 11 may not optimise long-term career outcomes. The school highlights research linking later specialisation with increased mental resilience, longer healthier careers and more consistent success. Karen Berry, Head of Teacher Training, examined vocational pedagogy and criticised early single-focus training. Major British ballet companies publicly endorsed the change.
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