Throughout October, events are being held across the country, particularly in London. The aim is to highlight the often-overlooked achievements of Africans and Asians in science, politics and the arts.

Black History Month was launched in Britain in 1987 to address stereotypes and create opportunities for minorities. The concept has existed in the United States since 1926. Laveen Naidu, head of the community outreach project of the Dance Theatre of Harlem, is spending the month teaching ballet to college students.

Together with his company, Mr Naidu is touring FE colleges in central London. They will run workshops in classical-dance techniques.

Acknowledging the unlikeliness of his enterprise, he insists that ballet training provides skills of relevance to the MTV generation. “The idea is to give students experience of taking a professional dance class, but also to understand how that translates into their lives,” he said.

“It’s about attention to detail. The more you put into making something excellent, the better off you will be.”

This, he says, is equally true whether students are perfecting a complex dance manoeuvre or writing a business letter.

He and his company will emphasise two elements of dance in particular: discipline and passion. Discipline, he says, enables students to focus their minds and bodies. But it also needs direction. He said: “Young people need to be passionate about something to pursue it in their future.”

His company also places priority on body language, both in dance and in everyday life. Students will be taught to consider the messages conveyed through attitude and posture and to use them to serve their own purposes. By learning to control the impressions they create, he hopes minority students will begin to challenge conventional expectations: “Our job is to dispel stereotypes, to show that the world is a huge place, with lots of opportunities,” he said.

Paul Phoenix, head of Black Parents in Education, hopes to broaden the expectations of the black community by offering atypical role models. He will spend October touring the pubs of Peckham, Brixton and Tottenham, delivering lectures on notable black scientists.

“When people think of the grassroots community they think of social deprivation, ghettos and muggings. But grassroots communities have a great deal to offer,” said Mr Phoenix.

Britain has a rich multi-ethnic heritage, often overlooked by conventional historians. London, for example, has had a black presence since the Roman era when a prominent African general was stationed there. During the 16th century, the streets of the capital were so heavily populated with African merchant-seamen that Elizabeth I issued a decree declaring that there were too many of them.

Bus and walking tours of the capital will be held in October. “Black people have a fabulous involvement in London history,” said Lee Jasper, senior adviser to London mayor Ken Livingstone and principal co-ordinator of events in London.

Many of today’s white Londoners can trace their heritage to the black community, said Steve Martin, the historian who is conducting the tours. After recounting tales of prominent black figures, Mr Martin introduces a number of their contemporary descendants, all white.