Paloma Faith presented with an Honorary Doctorate from London Contemporary Dance School

The Place is proud to announce that our Patron Paloma Faith was presented with an Honorary Doctorate from London Contemporary Dance School at the University of the Arts London (UAL) Graduation ceremony held today at the iconic Royal Festival Hall. Part of a group of 13 exceptional creatives, UAL honored influential artists and public figures who push boundaries and are at the forefront of the creative industries, across a wide range of disciplines.

An award-winning singer, actress and author, Paloma Faith uses her global platform to raise awareness about social causes. Since 2009, the London born and raised artist has released 6 critically acclaimed platinum-selling albums. She is the first female artist in the UK to have 4 double platinum selling albums consecutively in the UK.

Her study began with a BA from the Northern School of Contemporary Dance in Leeds before obtaining an MA in Scenography from Central Saint Martins. Paloma’s extensive and broad ranging study has seen her push the boundaries between music and interdisciplinary performance throughout her career where she has always challenged the status quo in her unique and theatrical performance style. Alongside music she has acted in several beloved films and television series including playing the deranged but loveable Bet Sykes in Pennyworth and Andrea the endearing goth in St Trinian’s among others. Her podcast Mad Sad and Bad reached number one in the UK podcast charts shortly after its debut and has seen her interviewing several of her peers including Samuel L Jackson, Eve, Alan Carr and Paapa Essiedu. Her 2024 memoir titled MILF bravely details her experience of fame and modern motherhood, was on the Sunday Times Best Seller list for 9 weeks.

Her advocacy for important social causes has permeated her impressive career. She is a vocal and unwavering ally for the LGBTQ+ community and has strong ties with Oxfam, Greenpeace, and several children’s charities. Her activism has included trips to Poland to document the Ukrainian refugee crisis and to a Honduras to report on the work Oxfam have done to aid women’s rights initiatives. She has also taken part in many fund-raising concerts including Gig for Gaza, Help Refugees, Choose Love , Caudwell Children’s charity to name a few.

An artist with immense creative brilliance, Paloma Faith was taught at the very beginning of her creative journey by Clare Connor, Chief Executive of The Place who was then a school teacher, and today remembered a vividly original teenager, already fierce, imaginative and utterly herself. She was a member of the Youth Dance Company at The Place when she was 11 year old, and today thanked her teachers Clare Connor, Wayne McGregor and Pete Brooke.

“Clare was the first person who made me believe I could be whatever I wanted to be.”

With a background in contemporary dance and theatre, and a degree from Central Saint Martins, Paloma Faith is an artist who resists categorisation and whose work spans mediums: singer/songwriter, performer, writer, actor, filmmaker, podcaster – a whole creative ecosystem contained in one deeply expressive individual.

“At LCDS, we champion artists who challenge convention, who push their form, speak their truth and help others to find theirs. Paloma Faith is exactly that kind of artist, who continues to inspire, question, connect and lead, and who reminds us that creativity is not just about what we make, but how we shape the world around us.” – Clare Connor

Paloma Faith said “Nothing is ever more important than the message. Everything we do has the potential to be art. If you train as a dancer you are an artist – and if you train as an artist, you are a dancer. What matters is the message, and it can take many forms.”

Find out more about London Contemporary Dance School's World Leading dance education here.