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Common Questions

Q: Do I need to Book?

A: Give me a call if you're thinking of training or fill in the enquiry form and I can arrange for you to have a free taster session.

Q: Do I need to stay with my children while you train?

A: No, you can drop them off and pick them up when training has finished

Q: What age can my children start to train?

A: From the age of 6, to right past retirement age !!

Q: What shall I wear for my first lesson?

A: Loose clothing, tracksuit bottoms and T-Shirt will be fine

Prices

There are no contracts and no complications. you simply pay as you train.

JUNIORS (under 18)

£5.00 per session

ADULTS (18 and Over)

£6.00 per session

ABOUT OUR KARATE SCHOOL

Welcome to RENSHU, one of Cheltenham's finest traditional Shotokan karate clubs.

RENSHU in karate terms means " training" which implies the hard endless training concept that is Shotokan Karate.

When added together with "practice" (Keiko), it forms the idea of "forging" (Tanren) and "Shugeyo" which is training and practice to "the extreme and for excellence". This is what we are all about as a Dojo.

As a Karate School, we have been around for a while and are a group of traditional Shotokan Karate dojo's based at various locations in and around Cheltenham.

We started our adventures under the tuition of Simon Shepherd sensei at his Dojo where many of us trained for many years. Renshu was formed in 2021 which was exactly 1 year after Simon retired from Karate.

As such, we have been part of this community for many years and most of our students, and black belts, not surprisingly, are from the local schools and the surrounding areas.

We are part of HDKI (founded by Scott Langley 7th Dan) which is one of the best non-Japanese Shotokan Karate organisations

We're an open, all-inclusive, family-friendly dojo. We teach and train with all ages, from 6 to 69.....and upwards of that too.

Our instructors have many years of experience in Karate and have attained many competition medals between them.

All our instructors are fully-insured, HDKI accredited and CRB/DBS checked.

Come along, train and enjoy!!! Your first lesson is FREE!

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PRINCIPLES OF OUR DOJO

To have respect for others

To maintain self-discipline

To be focussed

To gain confidence

To be safe

To be committed

and more importantly... to make it fun

MEET THE INSTRUCTORS

Dan started martial arts aged 8 with Judo, then as a teenager, took classes in kickboxing and spent many years learning Tae Kwon Do, gaining his black belt with the TAGB in 1999 and competed in many competitions including nationals.

In Shotokan, he gained his Shodan (1st Dan) black belt under Rob Bunting, Steve Bails and Amanda Gisby sensei in 2013 and his Nidan (2nd Dan) black belt under Simon Bligh, Chrissie Howard and Simon Shepherd Sensei in 2019 (HDKI)

Dan set up Renshu after being the Sempai for many years at Simon Shepherd Sensei's Dojo. When Simon retired in December 2019, Dan continued to run things and despite the challenges of Covid 19 and the lockdown, he still maintained a healthy training regime at the club when guidelines allowed.

The creation of Renshu takes the club back to the traditional origins of Shotokan, with focus being on continuous training, practice and refinement.

He loves all aspects of Karate from the sports side right through to Kata and Bunkai (the application of kata) and is proud of the friendly feel that exists at Renshu. Seeing children, adults and families benefit, grow and enjoy what Shotokan brings to people. In fact, both of his sons gained their black belts at the club.

Dan is also a qualified referee and DBS checked.

Sensei: Dan Pope

Owner and Chief Instructor

Natalie started sport karate at the age of 13 when she started training in Goju-Ryu.

She was soon invited to compete at regional and later national WKF competitions where she progressed to the national squad (in Slovakia) attending many more competitions and winning medals every time and went on to reach 1st Kyu in Goju-Ryu.

Natalie, took a break for a few years to raise her family but was back to training once time allowed.

Having done Goju-Ryu before, Natalie decided to join DOEJAP in 2017 with the aim of learning traditional Shotokan karate under Simon Shepherd Sensei where she went on to gain her Shodan (1st Dan) in Shotokan under Scott Langley and Simon Shepherd.

Natalie regularly instructs at Renshu attends karate seminars nationally and is an active member of the HDKI GB squad team competing in both Kata and Kumite where she has won many medals in the national competitions.

Natalie is the club coach for competitive sports and leads the teams that represent Renshu in both local and regional competitions.

Natalie obtained her class D judge/referee qualification in 2019, is fully DBS checked and she has also recently completed a sports first aid course to ensure that the dojo is a safe place to practice karate for everyone.

Instructor