How DJing is redefining brain injury rehab

First-of-its-kind programme created by BPM Rehab brings together neuropsychology and DJ education expertise

Rehabilitation is most effective when it is meaningful and purposeful to individuals. This was the ethos behind the development of the BPM Rehab programme; bringing together expertise from a neuropsychologist and DJ education specialist, to create the first DJ-led rehabilitation programme.

In 2009, Dr Penny Trayner began running her own community-based rehabilitation service for children and adolescents with brain injuries.

Over the next ten years, Dr Trayner gathered a wealth of clinical and research experience within the rehabilitation field. When attending a zero to hero DJ training camp in

2019, the benefits of DJing as a rehabilitation activity became immediately apparent.

Dr Trayner launched her DJ career as Penny Power and began to think of ways to incorporate DJing into her work as a Clinical Neuropsychologist.

Elsewhere, following a 34-year career as an internationally renowned artist, touring worldwide, DJ Mark One began to consider the toll that such a lifestyle can take on mental wellbeing.

Mark’s inspiration for using music as a rehabilitation tool came from personal experience caring for a relative, which inspired Mark to utilise his skills as a DJ and education specialist to train and teach others.

DJ Mark One was involved in writing the first accredited DJing exams, as well as the GCSE curriculum for music.

Upon meeting, Dr Penny Trayner and DJ Mark One quickly realised that they had a shared passion for utilising DJing as a vehicle to help people overcome catastrophic injuries and traumatic events in their lives.

Consequently, in July 2019, Dr Penny Trayner’s rehabilitation service, Clinical Neuropsychology Services (CNS), partnered with DJ Mark One to run a weeklong ‘Brain Bootcamp’, for brain injury survivors.

The camp combined cognitive training with real-world application through DJing sessions. This blended approach provided the young people with purposeful rehabilitation that was meaningful and motivational to them as individuals, as well as a social opportunity in which long-lasting friendships were formed.

The ‘Brain Bootcamp’ was a success and provisional outcome measures demonstrated improvements across many higher order cognitions, including resiliency and self-esteem. Following this triumph, Dr Penny Trayner and DJ Mark One seized the opportunity to pool their resources and established their DJ Training Academy, BPM Rehab in 2022.

In present day, BPM Rehab DJ Training Academy, is a nationwide network of tutors offering music education courses accredited by many notable programmes, including The Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music (ABRSM), The London College of Music and University of West London. Additionally, the programme is now delivering the AQA Unit award scheme.

The training academy currently offers activities including DJing, singing and music production in; London, Merseyside, Essex, Northampton, Wiltshire, Edinburgh, Hampshire, and Greater Manchester, with aspirations to continue this expansion into new areas.

Attendees begin with a ten-week programme that is finely tailored to the aspirations and needs of the individual. All students are provided with entry level equipment that meets industry standards and exam criteria. There is then the opportunity for students to turn their passion into a career, with guidance through DJing Grades 1, 3 and 5, as well as professional performances at festivals and corporate events.

However, if learners wish to continue DJing recreationally this is also encouraged with full support from the staff at BPM Rehab. The ethos underpinning all activities is inclusivity and access for all. Therefore, the staff at BPM Rehab can cater sessions to accommodate a variety of accessibility needs including visual impairment, reduced mobility/dexterity and cognitive problems.

This approach has been extremely successful as many students have been with the programme from the very first ‘Brain Bootcamp’, progressing on to achieve their graded music exams.

BPM Rehab is always accepting new learners. For a unique, unforgettable experience, visit bpm.rehab/contact.