From One Academy to 500 Young People: How James Aconley Built a Multi-Territory PQA Business

Growing a class business is one thing. Growing it across four territories, building a team of 25 and still making the experience feel personal is something else entirely.

James Aconley has spent almost 13 years doing exactly that.

He launched his first Pauline Quirke Academy of Performing Arts franchise in York straight after university, later expanding into Scarborough, Beverley and Hull. Today, the business supports 500 young people aged four to 18 every weekend across North and East Yorkshire.

It is a milestone James had been working towards for a long time.

“We finally did it, so we can say that’s what we do.”

Helping Young People Find Their People

James grew up immersed in performing arts, spending evenings and weekends involved in classes and productions. For him, the value went far beyond learning to sing, act or perform.

He believes extracurricular activities give children the chance to find friendships and a sense of belonging outside the groups they are placed into through school.

“Those real solid friendships and their tribe quite often come from extracurricular activities.”

PQA delivers comedy and drama, musical theatre, and film and television, giving students access to a wider range of creative roles than performance alone. Alongside industry skills, the programme also focuses on transferable qualities including:

• Leadership, resilience and communication
• Confidence and genuine self-belief
• Collaboration, creativity and responsibility
• The ability to express ideas and take positive risks

James sees an important distinction between confidence and self-belief. Confidence can sometimes be visible on the surface, while self-belief is the deeper sense that a young person trusts their own abilities.

“If they can find a group of people that enables them to really, truly, deeply believe in themselves, that is the most important thing.”

Scaling Through People

James began with one academy in York in 2013 before expanding across the region. The business now includes teachers, academy assistants, managers and office-based team members supporting social media and parent communication.

That team is what allows the wider group of businesses to operate without James needing to be in four places at once.

The aim, however, is not simply to delegate tasks. James has worked hard to create a shared culture so that the customer experience still feels consistent when he is not in the room.

The business reinforces that culture through:

• Team meetings at the beginning and end of each academy session
• Termly meetings and external training
• Clear communication between managers, teachers and the office
• Regular reflection on individual situations
• A shared understanding of how families should be supported

One of the best things James can hear from a team member is:

“I just thought, what would James do?”

That does not mean copying his every move. It means the values are clear enough that people can make aligned decisions independently.

The Local People Behind the Franchise

Marketing has changed significantly since James first launched.

In the early years, academies could fill quickly through leaflets, posters and local word of mouth. Social media then became the dominant route, but James now believes the landscape is moving back towards a combination of digital visibility and grassroots community marketing.

Parents are more cautious, there are more providers to choose from and trust takes longer to build.

James also believes franchises need to communicate the local people behind the national name.

PQA may be a recognised brand, but the academies are run by James and his wife, who live locally, shop in the same places and are raising their daughter in the same community.

That realisation has led James to invest more heavily in his personal brand, showing the people, values and wider performing arts work behind the PQA logo.

What Becoming a Parent Changed

James’s daughter attends several children’s activities, which has given him a different view of the customer experience.

From the parent side, the things that stand out are not always the complicated details providers spend hours perfecting. What matters is:

• Clear and timely communication
• A warm welcome for both parent and child
• Teachers remembering children’s names
• Useful feedback on progress
• Feeling confident that the provider cares

James has also realised that parents can be more understanding than providers sometimes assume.

A cancelled class or small mistake does not automatically mean families will leave. The overall trust and quality of the relationship matter more.

“We have to be good, but parents are understanding. Sometimes we need to give ourselves a little bit of space.”

What Comes Next?

James is now preparing for the major September recruitment period, launching three new Poppets classes for four and five-year-olds and potentially exploring another territory.

He is also looking to share more of his experience with other providers who are building teams and trying to create a culture that can support sustainable growth.

After almost 13 years, his biggest lesson is clear: scale is not created by the founder doing more.

It is created by building a team that understands what the business stands for.

Watch the Full Interview

James Aconley is a finalist in The Class Business Awards 2026, and his story offers a powerful look at multi-territory growth, team culture and maintaining a personal experience at scale.

From launching straight after university, to reaching 500 young people, to leading a team of 25 across four PQA territories. It’s all in this conversation.

👉 Watch James’s full interview here.

And if you want to be in the room with finalists like James, hearing these stories first-hand and connecting with the people shaping this sector right now…

Join us on Saturday 10 October 2026 at the National Conference Centre in Solihull for The Class Business Live, followed by The Class Business Awards & Afterparty.

Expect a full day of insight, energy and connection, from 9:00am to 3:00pm, with guest speakers, mastermind discussions and real conversations with people who get it. Then we come back together in the evening from 6:00pm to celebrate everything this community has built.

Book your place for the Class Business Awards here.