Salisbury MMA Gym Offers Free Children’s Self-Defence Sessions as Community Comes Together

A Salisbury martial arts gym is offering free self-defence sessions for children after concerns from local families prompted its owner to ask what he could do to help.

Sherwin, from Impact MMA, said the gym had received several messages over the past week from people worried about recent events in Salisbury. The idea began to take shape after local resident Laura Clark suggested that a self-defence session for children could be helpful.

“Rather than just adding to the worry, I thought, is there something practical we can actually do?” Sherwin said.

The gym decided to put on the sessions for free, giving children the opportunity to learn practical skills and feel more confident and aware. There was also another reason Sherwin wanted to help.

Just a few months ago, Impact MMA was close to closing down. Local businesses and people in Salisbury stepped in to support the gym at a time when its future was uncertain, and Sherwin said that support had not been forgotten.

“A few months ago Impact was very close to closing down,” he said. “Local businesses and people in the community stepped in and supported us when we really needed it.

“So when people started asking for something like this, it felt like the right opportunity to give something back.”

Making the sessions free was important to Sherwin, who said he did not want cost to prevent a family from taking part or a child from learning skills that could help them feel more confident and better prepared.

The response has been bigger than the gym expected. The first session, taking place on Wednesday from 5pm to 6.30pm, is fully booked, along with a second session on Saturday from 2pm to 4pm.

With both sessions filled, Sherwin is now planning to add more dates through to the end of the year. He said the response had also made him think about what the sessions could mean beyond self-defence.

“For me this is becoming about more than one self-defence class,” he said. “I’d love to see us build a stronger community again. Knowing our neighbours. Parents, coaches, businesses and other people in the community looking out for each other.

“I don’t want the answer to recent events to just be telling kids to stay inside and be scared. I’d rather we give them useful skills while making the community around them stronger too.”

For Impact MMA, the sessions are also a chance to give back to the community that supported the gym when it was struggling.

“A few months ago this community helped us when we needed it,” Sherwin said. “Now we want to give some of that back.”

More free children’s self-defence sessions are planned between now and the end of the year. Families interested in taking part can follow @impact.mma on Instagram for updates.

Website: Impact MMA