Joyful. Affordable. Empowering.
Our Mission
To redefine primary creative arts education by blending playful, high-energy discovery with rigorous, curriculum-aligned teaching — giving every child the safe space to unleash their inner larrikin, push creative boundaries, and develop a lifelong love for music, drama and dance.
Brand story
What being a larrikin means to us
A larrikin is an Aussie term for a lovable, cheeky renegade — someone with an innovative, playful spirit who refuses to stick to rigid, outdated scripts.
Founded by an Australian-born creative, Little Larrikins brings a genuine taste of Australian spirit to UK primary schools.
To us, bringing that energy into primary creative arts means having the courage to put the child first. Children need a safe, structured space where they can step outside rigid routines, make noise, and let their imaginations run wild.
While the standard school day requires sitting still, our sessions offer a dynamic release valve — transforming high-energy exuberance into bold creative expression, confidence and self-belief.
In practice
How we deliver our mission
Embracing the messy creative process
True creativity isn’t about instant perfection. As arts specialists, we provide a safe, supportive space to nurture every individual and grow each child’s unique potential through authentic artistic discovery.
Experiential teaching with real substance
Music is part of everyone’s life. We combine deeply immersive, experiential learning with a solid grounding in technique and history, delivering key fundamentals in the most enjoyable way possible.
Fully aligned & Ofsted-ready
We work seamlessly alongside the National Curriculum and Model Music Curriculum while keeping pace with current Ofsted priorities, giving SLT complete peace of mind.
Unleashing the inner larrikin
We give pupils the permission and confidence to express themselves freely, building authentic self-esteem that translates directly back into classroom focus and academic engagement.
Dependable, budget-friendly provision
Beneath our playful Aussie energy lies a robust, expert-led scheme delivered by reliable teachers — offering high-impact arts provision at a price primary budgets can afford.
Our greatest strength
We don’t do things the way traditional providers do — and that is our greatest strength. Through our bold, larrikin spirit, we use our passion to inspire, empower and bring lasting joy to your pupils.
Built on 20+ years of primary teaching expertise.
Nikki has taught, directed and led music across UK and Australian schools for two decades.
Company overview
About Little Larrikins
Little Larrikins was founded to bridge the gap between high-energy creative freedom and real educational rigour.
We partner with primary schools across the UK to deliver outstanding, budget-friendly music, drama and dance provision that energises whole school communities.
While traditional arts provision often relies on rigid, off-the-shelf worksheets or uninspired routines, Little Larrikins takes an experiential, child-first approach.
We build resilient, confident and expressive young people by honouring the messy creative process, teaching core techniques, and giving every pupil the space to shine.
Meet the founder
Nikki Aitken
Founder & Creative Director
With over 20 years’ experience across UK and Australian education, Nikki Aitken is a trusted specialist in primary music teaching, performing arts and curriculum design.
As Head of Music at Twickenham School and former Head of Performing Arts at Charville Primary Academy, Nikki brings a first-hand understanding of what primary settings actually need to thrive. She designs programmes tailored for reality — working directly with the timetables, budgets and hall spaces schools actually have, rather than ideal conditions that don’t exist.
Students consistently cite Nikki among their favourite teachers, pointing to improved confidence, personal growth, and a genuine, lifelong love of music. That transformative outcome is the exact blueprint she uses to design every Little Larrikins scheme.
Alongside her career in education, Nikki maintains an active professional career as a musical theatre performer, director and composer. Working within the professional industry keeps her standards for what children can achieve sky-high, ensures her repertoire remains current and engaging, and injects authentic stagecraft into every lesson Little Larrikins delivers.
An ambitious and bespoke curriculum.
Ofsted observation
Let's talk about your school's musical life
Tell us where music sits in your school right now — thriving, patchy, or waiting to be rebuilt. We will tell you honestly what we would do first.