A "UNIQUE" dance exercise class set up in Enfield by two entrepreneurial working mums has gone nationwide after only one year.

Sue Wybrow, 38, and Stacey Smith, 37, founded Popdance in January 2009 after a class they set up with friends proved more popular than they were expecting.

They began with just one session at The Dance Studio, in Green Lanes, Winchmore Hill, but have now expanded to 12 across Hertfordshire, north London and Rochester.

The classes, which combine dance and exercise, have proved so successful that the pair how hope to have a further 70 up and running across the UK by the end of the year.

They are already auditioning teachers in Manchester and Birmingham to expand the Popdance brand.

Mrs Wybrow, who has two young sons and works in marketing, believes the idea has touched a nerve.

"I wanted to do a class like this to try to relive a bit of my youth and dance like I did in the Eighties - but without anyone pointing and laughing at me," she said. "But I couldn't find anything out there.

"So we decided to set this up to let people have some fun, relax, enjoy themselves without any pressure.

"You can just walk in and feel comfortable as there aren't any skinny 16-year-old girls making you feel like a fat, frumpy mum.

"I think it's unique in that way. You can feel like a teenager again, dancing to Footloose, and get fit at the same time.

"Everyone seems to really love it."

The classes involve simple dance routines to pop classics and movie theme-tunes, all of which are taught by a professional dancer. Costumes and props are sometimes thrown in "as an entertaining extra".

The founders are currently searching for people to help them expand the business in and around London - especially working parents like themselves.

Mrs Wybrow said: "We want to open 70 more classes by the end of the year, so we'll need a lot of help.

"It could be a great chance for other mums out there to run their own business by taking over their own section of Popdance.

"It's a lot of work, but it's fun too. My kids go to school during the day and I work a lot at night. It's just about getting the balance right."

Classes are currently running at The Dance Studio, at 843/845 Green Lanes, Winchmore Hill, on Monday and Wednesday nights from 8pm to 9pm. .

For more information visit www.popdance.co.uk, contact info@popdance.co.uk or call Stacey Smith on 07888 704 889.