“It feels like everyday there is a new story in the news where someone has been attacked or worse. I’m often in situations where I feel uncomfortable whether I’m walking the dog, nipping to the shops or on my way home from a night out [and I’ve been learning Ju-Jitsu since I was 7 years old]. The courses help us to give back to the community, and help empower people with the knowledge and skills to feel confident and safe. And its apt we are announcing it now, on the 10 year anniversary of This Girl Can.” Hannah Charlson, 1st Dan instructor at Kokoro Ju-Jitsu club.
Established in 2017, Kokoro Ju-Jitsu Club offers adult (14+) and junior (6-16) classes which teach traditional Ju-Jitsu and self defence techniques. Located within Lowton Community Hub the club aims to create well rounded respectful martial artists, build confidence in their students and empower as many people as possible with basic self-defence skills.
After a long history of successfully running Women’s Self-Defence Courses, the martial art club has announced their newest 5 week course dates. The course aims to teach basic self defence techniques and skills to women of all shapes, sizes, ages and abilities regardless of background. The simple yet effective techniques included within the course can be used against a range of different real-life situations including; grabs, punches, knife attacks, and more.
“It’s back by popular demand! I’m so overwhelmed at the number of people asking us when our next women’s only course is, I developed the course 15 years ago to fill the gap for those who can’t commit to or aren’t interested in joining regular classes and it’s amazing to see that they are still just as popular now. It’s a bit of a crash course in how to react to and avoid different situations.” Sensei Ian Charlson, Chief Instructor at Kokoro Ju-Jitsu Club.
“The courses allow us to pass on our knowledge of self-defence to anyone, whether they have a desire to learn martial arts or not. We don’t teach Ju-Jitsu in them. Some of the situations we are exploring are quite intense subject matters [defences from weapons, on the ground or strangles] so we prioritise creating a really safe space for everyone who attends. And we’ve always got such great feedback because of this” Sensei Steve Boughton, Chief Instructor at Kokoro Ju-Jitsu Club.
The course begins on the 17thth February at 7.30pm until 8.30pm, and will run for 5 weeks. There are still spaces available for people to join by visiting https://kokorojj.co.uk/martial-art-classes/womens-self-defence-course/