Vocal Health First Aid

This pathway ensures a basic knowledge of vocal health first aid. Every touring company, theatre school, conservatoire, choral society or school needs a Vocal Health First Aider, who will be the first port of call for any voice user with a problem.
The VHFA is trained to guide the voice user in self-help or to refer to a specialist if required.
Vocal Health Practitioner

The VHP pathway is for singing teachers and voice coaches who would like to be able to offer vocal rehabilitation to singers who are having voice problems, or who are recovering from voice injuries. The VHP has a distinct role from a singing teacher, and will often follow on from work undertaken with a speech and language therapist.
Vocal Rehabilitation Specialist

The Specialist will have extended knowledge in the relevant areas of pathology and clinical treatment, palpation and manipulation, mental health and counselling, as well as advanced voice rehabilitation techniques.
The VRS will be delivering vocal health training within colleges and institutions.
Our passion behind the project
Both Stephen and Jenevora had to prematurely curtail successful performing careers as a result of injury or chronic dysfunction. There was a lack of knowledge around health and wellbeing of the elite performer, and rehabilitation was a dream not a choice. Stephen and Jenevora started with a question…“Can we help everyone in the UK understand Vocal Health?” … and they’re not going to stop until they get a “YES!”. So putting a plan of action together, they decided that education is key to preventing issues, so they began planning… and planning… and ended up forging a customisable pathway through which Singing Teachers, Vocal Coaches, Musical Directors and Speech Therapists can receive important education surrounding vocal health, in order to guide and empower their students and patients.
They also sought to empower and educate the next generation of singers and performers across the UK by providing subsidised, specialist vocal health education to drama schools, music colleges and theatre companies – which is no mean feat for two people to achieve. They needed help to achieve this massive goal, so they amassed an initial team of specialists from across the UK to help educate those in need. They realised that there needed to be more accountability for the work undertaken with singers and their health, and no accreditation in the UK seemed to be facilitating and safeguarding this. Thus, the VOCAL REHABILITATION SPECIALIST pathway, in three levels (see above), was established.