Meet the locals: Meet dancer and business owner Dominiquè Hepworth

The founder and principal of Rutherford's 5678 Academy of Dance, known affectionately as Miss Dom to her students, takes a different approach to teaching.

She focuses on a holistic, nurturing and gentle approach to dance.

Her students don't participate in any competitions, and dance to age-appropriate songs wearing age-appropriate costumes.

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They do take on performance opportunities, though, and are the official dance squad of the Maitland Mustangs.

"It's been just such a great environment in building their confidence and building their performance skills," she said.

"The organization, everybody there, they're very supportive of the girls and they know that they're primary kids. So they're quite encouraging of them."

Miss Dom is heading into her 20^th year of teaching in 2023, and has owned 5678 for 15 years, since 2007.

In that time, the studio has grown to more than 100 students and counting.

"I've been dancing myself since I was three years of age," Miss Dom said.

"I began dancing at Daphne Parker's which was a very well known East Maitland dance studio, and I stayed there my whole dancing career until I went to Sydney, and I won a classical ballet scholarship to attend McDonald College, which is a performing arts school in Sydney."

After training in Sydney, Miss Dom's career took her towards cheerleading - dancing and then choreographing for the Newcastle Knights, who she was with for a decade, and travelling the United States where she spent time with the renowned Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders and NBA's Spurs Dancers.

Miss Dom said her favourite thing about teaching dance is the experiences with all the children.

"I do pride myself on having a personal connection with each of the students, and each connection between all of them looks very different," she said.

"For us, it's much more than just coming to dancing, doing a dance class, being in a concert at the end of the year.

"We try and work through issues that some of them are having in schooling or personal life, and how they can build upon that.

"The power of dance is just being able to have, free movement to be their true selves.

"Within our walls, nobody's judged for any way that they want to express themselves. We're very inclusive."