SCHOOL disco standards in Pershore should improve over the coming months thanks to a new dance class which could set the next members of Steps on the road to stardom.

International medal-winning dance expert Paul Pritchard is taking on Robbie Williams and Spice Girls hopefuls aged 12-17 for eight weeks of pop video dancing classes. They started last Friday and got tucked into Geri Halliwell's It's Raining Men, working on moves based on the video.

"We're taking the videos as the basis of the dancing and working on easier routines which look just as good," he said. Even if they have never set a toe in the waters of the dance world, the youngsters - male or female - are invited to have a go. But if they don't end up hip-thrusting S Club 7 off their teen pop throne, they will certainly learn a few new hot moves for their Friday night repertoire and, Paul promises, have a lot of fun giving it a try.

The classes are held in a dance studio already set up at No 8, the High Street building in Pershore which is gradually transforming itself into a new arts centre.

Paul and his wife are taking an active part in the arts centre project now they have made Pershore their home and they are also giving it the benefit of their experience by acting as consultants over the plans for the centre.

Paul is from a dancing background and has danced since he was about nine. He has travelled all over the world competing in ballroom and Latin American competitions and exhibition-style dancing. He was once ranked ninth in the world and has been placed second (twice) and third in the British championships which are open to global competition.

He then felt the lure of the ocean and set sail on a career on cruise liners, starting in the entertainment department and then becoming cruise director, working with stars like Tony Bennett, Neil Sedaka, Anthony Newley, the Andrews Sisters and Cab Calloway, as well as other big names on Broadway.

But when he and his wife, who met on the cruise ships, wanted to settle down and start a family, they wanted to wave goodbye to months of separation and make a home on land. Paul had lived in London during his dancing years and moved further away as it was less necessary to be near the capital. He ended up in Broadway but eventually settled in a quiet corner of Pershore.

He worked for the NHS and started doing dance classes in the evenings but the interest has been so great that he has given up work to concentrate on building it up as a business.

His next project for youngsters looks set to be holiday workshops in Salsa and American Jive. For adults there is the Latin and Ballroom Intermediate dance club, as well as one for beginners, a Let's Dance practice session combining Latin, Ballroom, Salsa, Swing and Merengue, Salsa for beginners and Latin Line Dancing and Zydeco, the latter being hailed as the next big thing here.

It is a Cajun-style dance from the Louisiana swamplands and Pershore folk have the chance to be at the forefront of the next craze if they sign up on a Monday night.

Better get those swinging and jiving boots on too, said Paul, as these are also set for a big time comeback. "Apparently youngsters are fed up dancing on their own and they want to dance with partners again," he said.

Paul stressed that the classes were not just for women and there was a money-back guarantee to men who want to sample a session. "It's great exercise and great fun and that's what it's all about," he said.

l Visit the Dance at 8 website for more information at www.danceat8.freeserve.co.uk.