LAST Sunday was a day of dance, celebration and creativity in Peebles as the Fiona Henderson School of Dance (FHSD) held its annual Scholarship Awards.

Performers were put through their paces in a masterclass audition session at the FHSD Dance Studio with a panel of independent judges watching on.

The FHSD Scholarship Awards were created to recognise, reward and encourage talented dancers in the Scottish Borders.

In addition to their winners’ plaques, each FHSD Scholarship winner received a prize worth around £450 consisting of a free weekly dance class for one academic year as well as a series of private lessons.

Nina McDowall won the Junior award and Olivia Murray won the Juvenile award, with school principal Fiona Henderson delighted at the overall standard.

She said: “The standard for this year’s scholarships was really high so both winners are to be congratulated for being chosen by our independent judges who were impressed both at their current standard and ability as well as their future potential which both winners showed. This is a substantial investment by FHSD in local dance talent and its potential.”

The award ceremony was held at Eastgate Theatre, which also hosted the annual Evie Douglas Choreography Challenge.

The Choreography Challenge, set up in memory of local dancer Evie Douglas who was both a former pupil and teacher at the Fiona Henderson School of Dance, celebrates dance creativity and choreography ability.

This year’s award went to Natalie Beatton for her piece called ‘Beyond the Boundaries’.

Second place went to Noee and Gabrielle Sellar for ‘Dream’ and third place was awarded to Bronwyn Lewis and Eilidh Naysmith for ‘Home’.

The judging panel for this year’s Scholarship Awards consisted of Rachel Mearns, head of the Aberdeen Academy of Performing Arts and AAPA Casting; Eileen Graham, former championship dancer and founder of the Graham School of Highland Dancing; and Noel Proven, founder of the Manor School of Ballet.