By Sensei Rebecca Kane, World Champion and Head of Weapons Training for the UK and Europe
Published 10 September 2026
Looking for a practical way to get fit, build confidence, and learn valuable self-defence skills? British Kempo Society brings Kempo Ju Jitsu, kickboxing, weapons training, and a welcoming community together for adults, children, beginners, and experienced martial artists.
A Martial Arts Community for Every Experience Level
Starting martial arts can feel like a big step. You may be wondering whether you are fit enough, flexible enough, or experienced enough to join a class.
The answer is simple: you do not need to be an expert before you begin.
At the British Kempo Society, our training is designed to support people at different stages of their martial arts journey. Some students join to improve their fitness. Others want practical self-defence skills, a positive activity for their children, or a new challenge that helps them feel stronger and more confident.
Whatever brings you to the mat, you become part of a community that values respect, inclusion, fairness, tradition, and personal progress.
What Is Kempo Ju Jitsu?
Kempo Ju Jitsu combines striking, movement, control, and practical self-defence. It brings together techniques that help you understand distance, balance, timing, leverage, and body movement.
Rather than relying only on size or strength, training teaches you how to use good positioning and efficient technique. This makes Kempo Ju Jitsu suitable for a wide range of people, including beginners, adults returning to exercise, and young students developing their coordination.
Your training may include:
- Punches, kicks, blocks, and defensive movement
- Escapes from common grabs and holds
- Throws, locks, and control techniques
- Balance, footwork, and body positioning
- Pad work and partner drills
- Awareness, discipline, and responsible decision-making
Kempo Ju Jitsu is not only about learning how to respond to physical danger. It also encourages awareness and calm thinking. Good self-defence begins with avoiding unnecessary confrontation, recognising risks, and knowing when to create distance and seek help.
This balanced approach is one reason many people searching for martial arts and self defense choose a traditional system with practical modern training.
Self-Defence Classes for Adults and Children
Self-defence should be accessible, realistic, and taught in a safe environment.
Our self defence classes help students build useful skills while developing confidence in their everyday lives. For adults, this can include learning how to move safely, respond to pressure, escape from common holds, and stay calm in difficult situations.
For children, training focuses on age-appropriate skills. Martial arts can help your child improve coordination, listening, confidence, focus, and self-control. They learn to respect others, work with training partners, and understand that martial arts should never be used to bully or intimidate.
The aim is not to make children aggressive. It is to help them become more aware, more confident, and better prepared to make sensible choices.
For families, joining a martial arts club can also become a shared experience. Parents see their children progress through training, while students build friendships and become part of a supportive community.
Kickboxing Training for Fitness and Confidence
If you want an energetic workout, kickboxing training is an excellent place to start. It combines cardio exercise, strength, mobility, coordination, and technical learning in one session.
A typical class may include:
- A warm-up to prepare the body
- Footwork and movement drills
- Punch and kick combinations
- Pad work with a partner
- Strength and conditioning exercises
- A cool-down and review of key techniques
You do not need to be in peak condition before joining. Our instructors can adapt exercises to your current ability and help you build up gradually.
For people looking for beginners kickboxing, the first few sessions are about learning the basics. You will practise your stance, guard, breathing, balance, and simple combinations before progressing to more challenging drills.
A kickboxing class for beginners should feel challenging but welcoming. You should be encouraged to work hard without feeling pressured to compete with more experienced students. The focus is on learning, improving, and enjoying the process.
Over time, regular training can help improve your stamina, strength, coordination, mobility, and general fitness. It can also be a great way to release stress after a busy day.
Martial Arts for Adults: More Than a Workout
Many people begin looking for martial arts for adults because they want to get fitter. They stay because of the confidence, friendships, and sense of achievement they gain along the way.
Training gives you clear goals to work towards. You may learn a new technique, complete a demanding session, attend your first seminar, or prepare for an upcoming grading. Each achievement shows you that progress comes from consistent effort.
Martial arts can also help you:
- Improve focus and concentration
- Develop discipline and patience
- Manage everyday stress
- Build physical confidence
- Learn how to work with different people
- Become more comfortable with challenge
- Feel connected to a positive local and national community
You do not have to be naturally athletic to benefit. You simply need the willingness to begin and the patience to keep learning.
Martial Arts for Kids: Confidence, Focus, and Respect
Children learn best when training is structured, active, and enjoyable. Our martial arts for kids programmes give young students the opportunity to practise skills in a safe and respectful setting.
Your child can develop:
- Better balance and coordination
- Improved listening and concentration
- Physical fitness and movement skills
- Confidence in new situations
- Respect for instructors and training partners
- Patience when learning something difficult
- A stronger sense of achievement
The community atmosphere is important. Children learn alongside other students, celebrate progress together, and see that everyone starts somewhere. A more experienced student may help a beginner today, then receive support from someone else tomorrow.
That shared experience teaches an important lesson: martial arts is not only about individual success. It is also about helping the people around you improve.
Learn from Experienced Instructors
The quality of instruction matters. At British Kempo Society, our senior teachers bring experience from Kempo Ju Jitsu, kickboxing, Thai Boxing, Filipino martial arts, Brazilian Ju Jitsu, weapons training, and other disciplines.
Shihan Ben Ledwick is Head of Kempo Ju Jitsu and has helped promote the art and its values to martial artists across the UK and internationally.
Rebecca Kane is a World Champion and Head of Weapons Training for the UK and Europe. Her background includes world championship success in Filipino martial arts, stick fighting, K1 kickboxing, and Thai Boxing. Through her own work at The Dancing Fighter, Rebecca also supports women and children through self-defence, confidence, resilience, and empowerment programmes.
The wider instructor team supports students at different levels, from complete beginners to experienced practitioners and club instructors. You can meet our instructors and learn more about the knowledge behind our training.
Looking for Karate in Huddersfield?
If you have been searching for karate Huddersfield, you may also want to explore Kempo Ju Jitsu. Kempo offers striking techniques familiar to people who have looked at Karate, while also including practical grappling, control, and escape skills.
This makes it a useful choice if you want more than a traditional striking-only class. You can develop your fitness, learn self-defence, and train with a community that welcomes people from different backgrounds.
Our classes are also suitable for people who have tried other martial arts and want to broaden their experience. Training across different disciplines can improve your understanding of movement, distance, timing, and technique.
Start Your Training Journey
Whether you are interested in ju jitsu classes, adult kickboxing classes, children’s martial arts, or practical self-defence, the best way to understand our training is to take the first step.
You can:
You do not need to wait until you are fitter, stronger, or more confident. Those are some of the benefits you can build through regular training.
Join a class, meet your training partners, and become part of a community that supports progress at every level.
Stay Connected with British Kempo Society
Our community continues beyond the weekly class. We share news about training sessions, gradings, seminars, instructor events, and opportunities to learn with other clubs and centres.
Contact the British Kempo Society to join our network and subscribe to our newsletter. You will receive updates, practical training insights, and information to help you continue your martial arts journey.
Learn more, join a class, and take your next step with British Kempo Society.