FAQ

Initially, just wear something you're comfortable exercising in. Something loose works well as you need your full range of motion. You'll be bare-foot during the training session, so no need to worry about trainers. Please no raunchy gym outfits - we want to focus on the martial art! Important bit: bring a bottle of drink and a good attitude. Please don't wear jewellery. You need to take it off before training and we'd rather no-one lose an ear-ring, etc.

Before your first grading (typically 2-3 months) you will need to buy a "Dobok" - a training uniform. You're welcome to buy this as early as you like and there are special sign-up deals if you get it early. We like you looking the part 🙂

Absolutely fine. Our classes are beginner friendly. You'll be partnered up with one of our senior students until you find your feet. If you're extra nervous, check our Events calendar for our Beginners Course. In that 8 week course everyone is an absolute beginner.

Absolutely! Lots of adults train by themselves. Everyone over the age of 12 is able to join. You'll normally be partnered with people close to your age & size.

Yes, our family sessions are designed so that the whole family can train at the same time - discounts for families too! When training with parents, we reduce the minimum age to 10. Your time in lessons will be split between partnering with your child and partnering with people your own age/size.

This is a great question really. Our gradings are held with the ITF TaeKwon-Do syllabus and so our students can rest assured that what they learn with us applies in clubs all around the world.

However, in typically Unity fashion, our students are also taught elements that used to exist in ITF TaeKwon-Do and still exist in other styles of TaeKwon-Do such as TAGB. From time-to-time, we'll also teach elements from Shotokan Karate, plus some weapons training. We do this through our regular heritage sessions and our weapons sessions.

We hate clubs that tie people into long contracts. We want you to train with us because you enjoy it and are making progress. Therefore, our contract is rolling monthly, you can cancel anytime.

If it is the same/similar style then yes it is very likely. We'll conduct a placement session with you or observe you for your first few sessions, then discuss with you the best route. In most cases it's likely you'll continue where you left off. Where there is a gap, an action plan will be discussed to get you to where you should be in the quickest time possible.

Not initially, but from Green belt you will need to. We recognise that it's an expensive purchase (£120-£140) but will work with you to spread the cost. Unlike most clubs that force you to order through them adding a large mark-up, if it's cheaper for you to order direct then we'll let you. We receive discounts from the manufacturer and pass this on to you.

Sparring is a mandatory part of the ITF TaeKwon-Do syllabus, so you will need to do it from Green Belt. However, we build you up to this. For the first year of training you'll practice sparring with no contact, you'll practice your distance with set sparring and you'll learn to spar making feather like contact in our control sessions. This all helps to make your first sparring sessions very comfortable.

We also have a policy of "safe partnering". This means that under most circumstances you'll be partnered with someone a similar size and ability to you as much as possible. In sessions where we widen this it's taught with a specific goal in mind and students are briefed beforehand.

Our senior students will stand in for people that are not a similar size. They are well trained and will increase/decrease the level accordingly to ensure that you make the progress you need.

While TaeKwon-Do is a Korean Martial Art, the other arts we've trained in and will offer in the near future are Japanese. The founder's surname has a Japanese meaning too (Dragon). Even TaeKwon-do has some of it's origin in Japan.

Every one's journey is different, so it's hard to say.

On average it's probably 4 years. Getting your 1st Dan black belt is just the beginning though...

Hell no! Our belts are earned.

If you're after one of those clubs that never fails a student, we are not one of them. While it's true that almost every student will pass gradings, that's because we will only invite you to grade when we have seen you deliver the standard needed.

This might annoy some parents/students that want to progress quickly, but from experience, we know that students that actually earn their belts are the ones that are actually making personal development.

At the moment no, sorry. You need to be a practicing student, ideally of Unity, but we will consider students from other clubs.

Our Kenjutsu and Iaido classes are starting in April 2026 which will focus on weapons training.

Ryu Do, or "way of the dragon" is a new martial art combining elements of various arts into one well rounded art. The curriculum is being finalised and will then be approved by a board of master/grand-master level practitioners of the selected arts. We're not trying to take over the world, or reinvent the wheel with Ryu Do, we're just trying to create a super interesting holistic martial art that combines elements from all the arts we love with real world applications. Sign up to our newsletter for more information when it becomes available.