- **Drum Kit Learning for Well-Being, Grounded in Research**

**Drum Discovery Labs creates inclusive drum kit learning and research programmes that support confidence, coordination, and well-being through skill, rhythm, and access.** 

**We focus on drumming research that prioritises well-being by exploring the physical aspects of drumming, the social resilience, and additional aspect of drum kit drumming on populations including, neurodivergent and neurodiverse youth and adults, SEND, people with mental health challenges who want support, older adults with conditions. We strive to be an leader in drumming research and application.**

drum discovery labs

Drumming For Well-Being Through connection and Research

Drumming For Well-Being Through connection and Research

our mission

share

Share and translate research insights so everyday people can benefit and programmes can continue to improve, adapt, and respond to the people taking part.

design

Design accessible, person-centred drumming curriculum that supports learning, coordination, and confidence across different bodies, minds, and nervous systems.

empower

Empower everyday people to build confidence, self-trust, and improve their well-being through drumming, without pressure, performance, or traditional barriers.

create

Create peer-reviewed research that deepens understanding of how drum kit playing supports well-being in real-world community settings.

our mission

our why

1 in 5 adults in the uk are living with a mental health problem

Among autistic people, around 70% live with at least one mental health condition. For older adults, 75% experience significant anxiety or low mood. Together, this shows how many people are living with ongoing emotional strain and need support that is accessible, practical, and sustaining alongside clinical care.

drumming improves our

❤️

Shared rhythm brings people together, supporting belonging, trust, and social connection over time.

connection

😎

Learning rhythms builds confidence through skill, accomplishment, and a growing sense of capability.

Confidence

🧠

Drumming can lift mood by releasing tension, increasing positive feelings, and supporting emotional expression.

mood

as well as focus,concentration, and positive shifts in identity

as well as focus,concentration, and positive shifts in identity

We focus on drum kit playing over percussion because it has unique benefits including: 

Drum kit playing

Multi-instrument coordination introduces higher cognitive and proprioceptive demand

Three- and four-way limb independence creates sustained learning challenge

Skill progression requires structured pedagogy over repetition

here are all the details

We're launching soon

upcoming:
Building phase 2

Once we've secured funding, we'll find a permanent space to host our 9 drum kits and grow our offerings. We want to create programmes and classes that are accessible and open to the community. 

As we grow our presence, we will be able to create research projects that contribute to our collective understanding of drumming impact on wellbeing while implementing that through community enagagement.

currently:
 pilot phase 1

We're currently in our pilot phase where we're seeking start up funding and launching pop-up workshops around Suffolk while we build the infrastructure and resources for our longterm vision.

These are group workshops hosted at community venues using drum sticks and pillows to teach in an accessible way.

We're looking for strategic partnerships and funding partners to help scale the vision.

How we'll do it

weekly open Community access learning sessions

focused group specific 8-week programmes

quarterly peer-reviewed research cohorts

How we'll do it

weekly open Community access learning sessions

Our weekly Community ROLLS offer open, accessible drum kit learning in a calm, welcoming local space. People can join regular sessions designed to support confidence, coordination, and well-being through structured learning and rhythm. Sessions are paced, inclusive, and adaptable, with space for carers or supporters to attend if helpful. These ROLLS create consistency, routine, and a sense of belonging, while allowing people to engage with drumming in ways that work for their body, mind, and nervous system.

focused group specific 8-week programmes

Our 8-week programmes are designed for specific groups, including neurodivergent children and adults, people experiencing mental health challenges, older adults facing age-related changes, and people from marginalised identities and backgrounds. Each programme is carefully adapted to the group taking part, with adjustments to pacing, teaching methods, sensory demands, and structure. This allows participants to build real skills while feeling supported, respected, and able to learn in ways that suit their needs and lived experience.

quarterly peer-reviewed research cohorts

Four times a year, we run focused 6-week research cohorts exploring how drum kit learning supports well-being for specific groups. These programmes combine inclusive teaching with mixed-methods research, developed through ethics approval and peer review. Participants are learners first, contributing to research through their experience rather than being observed at a distance. Findings are used to improve practice, adapt programmes, and build meaningful evidence that reflects real-world learning and community contexts.

the communities we prioritise

People from Marginalised
identities & backgrounds

We prioritise access for people who are often excluded from traditional learning and wellbeing spaces, including LGBTQIA+ people, Black and Brown communities, immigrants, refugees, and those facing socioeconomic barriers. Our programmes are designed to feel welcoming, respectful, and affirming, recognising how identity, access, and lived experience shape learning, confidence, and well-being.

We work with neurodivergent children, young people, and adults, including autistic people, ADHDers, and those with learning differences. Our sessions adapt to different ways of processing, moving, and focusing, rather than forcing one way of learning. We support regulation, coordination, and confidence through structured drum kit learning that meets people where they are and builds from their strengths.

Neurodivergent Youth & Adults

We work with older adults experiencing challenges such as loneliness, mobility changes, Parkinson’s, dementia, or reduced confidence. Drum kit learning offers structured, engaging activity that supports coordination, focus, and connection. Sessions are seated, adaptable, and paced to the group, creating space for enjoyment, social connection, and continued learning at later stages of life.

Older Adults facing Challenges

People with mental health conditions

Our programmes support people living with mental health challenges such as anxiety, depression, trauma, bipolar disorder, BPD, emotional dysregulation, and other acute diagnoses. We focus on learning and skill-building to support steadiness, focus, and confidence, without pressure to perform or disclose. Sessions are paced, predictable, and supportive, offering a practical, embodied way to engage alongside existing care or support.

I’m a professional drummer, educator, and researcher with over 20 years’ experience performing and teaching at a high level. I’ve worked with artists like the Pet Shop Boys, Zara Larsson, and Becky Hill, alongside a wide range of live, studio, and broadcast work. I grew up on a council estate and experienced abuse as a child, and drums became a place of focus, confidence, and joy when life felt unstable. 

I’m AuDHD and have lived with mental health challenges, which directly inform my approach to learning. I’m currently in year two of a PhD exploring how drum kit playing supports well-being. I believe everyone can learn, build confidence, and support healthier, happier lives through drumming, and we need meaningful research to support this.

affy green

I'm an audhd, mixed-black, gay musician & educator

co-founder, programme director

I’m an educator, curriculum designer, and creative director with over 15 years’ experience developing programmes and creative work across education, media, and brand spaces. I have a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a Master’s in Visual Studies, which inform how I distil complex ideas into frameworks that are accessible for people rocking with difference.

I built a career in the US as an award-winning commercial photographer and director, working with global brands including Nike, Adidas, and Google. That experience led to years of consulting for brands and creating internal programmes to support their teams’ resilience, mindset, and personal efficacy.

As a Gay, Mixed-Black, AuDHD-having woman, I’ve made a life and career navigating rigid systems and supporting others with the internalised shame that can comes with not fitting in. I believe each of us has unique gifts to share, and we can flourish in environments that empower and support our authenticity.

gia goodrich

co-founder, creative director

I'm an audhd, mixed-black, gay creative director & consultant

let's Connect

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Feeling Generous?

We have a quick survey to help us build our future programmes. if you can spare 5 minutes, you'll be helping us better understand our community and develop programmes that change it for the better.