Chris Lewis started his career in Karate at the Poole Sports Centre in 1981. Chris trained with some of the top Martial Arts instructors in England and continued on his journey of karate until achieving the grade of Second Dan and it was at this point that he decided to open his own club called North Dorset Karate, which was formed in April 1991 at the Blandford Leisure Centre.

After obtaining his 3rd Dan grade in December 1993, Chris decided to join the Amateur Martial Association, a large National organisation affiliated to the English Karate Governing Body. More recently North Dorset Karate joined M.A.I.UK (Martial Arts Independent UK). This is a local independent organisation which operates with a 'No Politics Policy'.

Training is based on the traditional style of Wado-Ryu, which was developed in Okinawa decades ago. The only changes made to the traditional teachings are personal interpretation.
In March 2018, Chris decided that it was time to re-brand his clubs with a new name. The reason for the change was due to his clubs expanding into the Poole area. It was necessary to change the name because the clubs now operated in North and South Dorset. The new name was chosen to be 'MINAMI KAIGAN KARATE UK' the translation from Japanese to English is 'South Coast Karate UK'. It seemed a more fitting name for the geography of all his clubs.
Our clubs cater for students from 6 years old with no upper age limit, Males and Females. We have a good mix of ages and abilities at all of our clubs and in some of the clubs we encourage parents to come along and train with thier children. We also offer discounts for families of 3 or more students training together. The first lesson is free, giving you the opportunity to try it out and see if you would enjoy Karate.
All of the clubs are open for approximately 50 weeks of the year, with only a two week break around the Christmas holidays. We have a very dedicated and highly skilled team of instructors, although the Chief Instructor, Chris Lewis 6th Dan, generally runs nearly all of the classes at each club. all instructors are Insured, First Aid Trained and also have Enhanced CRB/DBS Certification.