English Folk Dance and Song Society facts for kids

The English Folk Dance and Song Society (EFDSS, pronounced 'EFF-diss') is a special group that helps keep English folk music and dance alive. It started in 1932 when two older groups joined together. The EFDSS is a charity that people can join to support its work.

Discovering English Folk Traditions

Cecil Sharp helped start the English Folk Dance Society. Both groups joined in 1932 to form EFDSS.

The EFDSS was created by combining two important groups. The first was the Folk-Song Society, which began in London in 1898. This group loved finding and sharing old folk songs, mostly from Britain and Ireland. Many famous people were part of it, like Cecil Sharp and Ralph Vaughan Williams.

The second group was the English Folk Dance Society, started in 1911 by Cecil Sharp. Its main goal was to save and promote traditional English dances. This included lively Morris dances, exciting sword dances, and other old social dances.

One of the best things EFDSS has done is create folk festivals. These big events bring people together to enjoy folk music and dance. Festivals like those in Whitby and Sidmouth are still very popular today.

Cecil Sharp House: A Home for Folk

Cecil Sharp House in London is the home of the EFDSS.

The main home of the EFDSS is called Cecil Sharp House. It's in North London and was built especially for the English Folk Dance Society. The building opened in 1930 and has a unique design.

The biggest room is Kennedy Hall. It's a large space perfect for concerts and dancing. The floor is specially built for dancing, making it bouncy and fun. During the Second World War, part of the hall was damaged by bombs. Later, a huge painting by artist Ivon Hitchens was added to one wall.

Besides Kennedy Hall, Cecil Sharp House has other rooms for practice and performances. There's also a café and the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library. This library is a huge collection of folk music, dance, and song. Cecil Sharp House is a busy place, hosting many concerts and events. Time Out magazine even called it one of London's best music venues in 2015.

New Steps for EFDSS

In 1998, the EFDSS decided to focus more on teaching and keeping records. Their main goal became making the Vaughan Williams Memorial Library the best place for folk music and dance history in the country.

In 2009, the EFDSS started getting regular funding from Arts Council England. This helped them continue their important work.

In 2011, they worked with the Shrewsbury Folk Festival on a project called the Cecil Sharp Project. Artists came together to create new music inspired by Cecil Sharp's life and work.

In 2013, EFDSS launched The Full English. This amazing online project has over 44,000 records and 58,000 digital images. It's the world's largest online collection of traditional music and dance. You can explore it for free!

Cecil Sharp House also hosts many different performers. Groups like the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain and the Swingle Singers have performed there.

In 2021, the EFDSS started thinking about changing its name. Some people felt the name didn't fully show what the society does today. They are still discussing new names like 'Folk Arts England'.

EFDSS Gold Badge Awards

The EFDSS Gold Badge Award started in 1922. It's given to people who have done amazing things for folk music, dance, or the wider folk community. Many people who have received this award are very well-known in British culture.

• 1922 Lady Mary Trefusis; Grizelda Hervey
• 1923 Cecil Sharp; William Kimber
• 1928 Maud Karpeles; William Wells
• 1929 Helen Storrow
• 1930 Winifred Shuldham-Shaw
• 1934 W H Bonham Carter
• 1938 Anne Gilchrist; Miss E F Lawrence
• 1940 Miss C Holbrow
• 1943 Dr Ralph Vaughan Williams
• 1945 Miss H Cornock Keen
• 1946 Lady Ampthill; Frank Howes
• 1948 Frederick Keel; R J Tabor; Rev E A White
• 1950 Richard Callender
• 1954 Violet Alford; Elsie Avril; Marjory Sinclair
• 1956 P J Terry
• 1957 Janet McCrindell
• 1960 Kenneth Constable; Irene Fisher; Marjorie Heffer; Dr Robert Kenworthy Schofield; George Osborne
• 1961 Kathleen Adkins; Miss L Chapin; Lily Conant; May Gadd; Margaret Grant; Sybil Lightfoot; Grace Meikle; Philip Merrill; Marjorie Penn; Evelyn Wells; Elsie Whiteman
• 1962 Alec Hunter
• 1963 Everal de Jersey
• 1964 Mary Trevelyan; Dorothy Bessant
• 1965 Douglas Kennedy & Helen Kennedy
• 1969 Harry Cox; Arthur Marshall; Edward Nicol
• 1970 Dr W Fisher-Cassie; Fred Hamer
• 1971 Nan Fleming-Williams; Patrick Shuldham-Shaw
• 1973 Mollie Du Cane; Dr Leonard C Luckwill
• 1974 William Ganiford
• 1975 A L Lloyd
• 1976 Kenneth Clark; Johnson Ellwood
• 1977 Stan Hugill; Rev Kenneth Loveless
• 1978 Sybil Clark; Bob Copper (Copper Family); Kathleen Mitchell
• 1979 Bill Rutter
• 1980 Dr Russell Wortley
• 1981 Dr Lionel Bacon; Bob Cann
• 1982 Sam Sherry; The Watersons (Lal, Norma and Mike Waterson, John Harrison and Martin Carthy)
• 1983 Nibs Matthews; Walter Pardon; The Spinners (Tony Davis, Mick Groves, Cliff Hall and Hugh Jones)
• 1984 Philip Bloy; Leslie Hyner
• 1986 Hugh Rippon
• 1987 Reg Hall; Ewan MacCoIl; Peggy Seeger; Michael Yates
• 1988 Joe Brown; Ursula Vaughan Williams
• 1989 Peter Dashwood; Jack Hamilton
• 1990 Tom Cook; Pat Tracey
• 1995 Ivor Allsop; Liza Austin; Brenda Godrich; Cyril Jones; Fred Jordan; Harry Pitts; Rex Laycock
• 1996 May Beeforth; Elsie Cloughton; Tony Foxworthy; Francis Shergold
• 1997 Barbara Kinsman; Ivy Romney; Cyril Swales
• 1998 Jill Copper, John Copper & Jon Dudley (Copper Family); Marjorie Fennessy; Dr Ian Russell
• 1999 Roy Judge; Ron Smedley
• 2001 Roy Dommett; Dr Denis Smith; Trevor Stone
• 2002 Dr Christopher Cawte; John Kirkpatrick; Dave Swarbrick
• 2003 Dave Arthur; Shirley Collins; Iona Opie; Roy Palmer
• 2004 Steve Heap; Peter Kennedy; Geoff Rye; Malcolm Taylor
• 2005 Alistair Anderson; Tony Engle; Phil Heaton; Aubrey O’Brien; Doc Rowe
• 2007 Eliza Carthy; Michael Heaney; Frank Purslow; Pat Wilkinson; The Yetties (Bonny Sartin, Pete Shutler and Mac McCulloch)
• 2008 Ray Fisher; John Heydon; Lou Killen; Colin Ross
• 2009 Jack Brown; Beryl Marriott; Roger Nicholls; Steve Roud; Derek Schofield
• 2010 Jim Coleman; Vic Gammon; John Howson; Katie Howson; Taffy Thomas
• 2011 Johnny Handle; Nic Jones; George Peterson; Les Seaman; Jackie Toaduff; Eddie Upton
• 2012 Bill Leader; Graeme Miles
• 2013 Ashley Hutchings; Ricky Forster; David Blick
• 2014 Maddy Prior; Sandra Kerr; David Leverton; Alan Bearman
• 2015 Ian A. Anderson; John Tams; Rollo Woods; Paul Wilson and Marilyn Tucker (Wren Music)
• 2016 Maggie Fletcher; Pete Coe and Sue Coe; Mike Wilson-Jones and Mary Wilson-Jones
• 2017 Johnny Adams; Nicolas Broadbridge; Dave and Maggie Hunt; The Wilson Family
• 2018 Frankie Armstrong; John Bacon; Antony Heywood; Vic Legg
• 2019 Carolyn Robson; Chris Coe; John Graham; Mike Norris; Kate Rusby
• 2020 Paul and Liz Davenport; Benny Graham; Mick Peat
• 2021 Lynette and Jim Eldon; Kerry Fletcher; Chris Metherell; Rod Stradling
• 2022 Madeleine Smith; Lawrence Heath; Roger Watson; Carol and the late Gwilym Davies
• 2023 Sean Goddard

See also

• Vaughan Williams Memorial Library
• Country Dance and Song Society, the American version of the EFDSS