Sensei Susan Hession has been training in karate for over two decades and taught alongside the late Shihan Cyril Cummins 8th dan for many years showing a particular aptitude when teaching children with her friendly but disciplined approach. Sensei Hession took her first dan grading in 2005, taking her second dan in 2008, her third dan examination in 2012 and her fourth dan examination in 2017 all under the watchful eye of Shihan Cummins and continued to train regularly with Shihan Cummins until his death in 2017. Sensei Hession was promoted to the rank of fifth dan in 2022 after undergoing an assessment by the NAKMAS National Management Committee. Sensei Hession was an active competitor in karate competitions winning medals in many of the events she has entered in recent years. In 2012 Shihan Cummins gave Sensei Hession the Weoley Castle dojo, one of the longest running Birmigham & Halesowen Shotokan Karate Club dojos which has been host to members of the club for over three decades to form Weoley Castle Shotokan Karate Club initially as part of the BHSKC group and then as an independent club with Sensei Hession as Chief Instructor. Upon Shihan Cummins death Sue also became the Chief Instructor of Birmingham & Halesowen Shotokan Karate Club and has been running both BHSKC and WCSKC since that time which were merged into a single club once more to become Birmingham & Weoley Castle Shotokan Karate. Sensei Hession continues to teach traditional Shotokan karate to new generations of students.
