Equality, Diversity, Equity, Access and Inclusion Policy
Curiosity Productions is committed to embedding Equity, Access and Inclusion as an intrinsic element of all of our work.
We are a keen contributor and advocate of the Creative Case for Diversity (CCD), and we are signed up to the More Than A Moment pledge.
We will reflect this meaningfully through all strands of our work, we embed the CCD approach in our creative processes, output and internal values, and we continue to promote the creative case and More Than A Moment through our collaborations.
We are committed to:
· Be more pro-active to attract collaborators and partners who identify as racially marginalised, in particular, people of African, Caribbean and Latinx heritage, and people of Middle Eastern, South Asian, East Asian and South East Asian heritage.
· Be more pro-active about access for deaf and disabled participants, audiences and artists and removing any barriers that may prevent participation, working to the Social Model of Disability.
· Be anti-racist and not tolerate any form of discrimination within our workplaces or our projects
· Do more to ensure that all aspects of our work and structures are representative of the people who live and work in the communities that we engage with.
· Eliminate discrimination and foster inclusion within Curiosity Production’s operations and delivery.
This work is everyone's shared responsibility within Curiosity Productions and every organisation, partner and freelancer we work with.
Equity rather than Equality
Equality has to do with giving everyone the exact same resources and dividing resources in matching amounts, whereas equity involves distributing resources based on the needs of the recipients and dividing resources proportionally to achieve a fair outcome for those involved. We aim to provide support and opportunity equitably, providing greater support to those who have historically had less opportunity and have been systemically marginalised. Our priority is providing arts and creative opportunities for those who are less likely to access mainstream funded arts and cultural activities.
Positive Action
Positive Action applies to the protected characteristics outlined in the Equality Act 2010. It can mean it is not unlawful to take special measures aimed at alleviating disadvantage or under-representation experienced by those defined as having protected characteristics. Please refer to the Equality Act as positive action can apply to training, recruitment and promotion in employment.
Terminology around Cultural Heritage
We will not use terms that define a person based on their skin colour or the social construct of race, i.e. Black, unless a person uses that term to describe themselves. We will use the term Black as a political term, as it is used within More Than A Moment and the Black Lives Matter
movement. We will not use terms and acronyms that crudely group people together i.e. BAME. We will use the term ‘people of xxxx heritage’, and insert the relevant continent or country of heritage, or we will use the term racially marginalised. We acknowledge that people may personally prefer to self-identify according to race and that cultural identity has many intersections including religion and class. Where it is relevant for us to collect data about people’s ethnicity or cultural heritage we will allow space for people to self-define. We will be actively conscious about the language we use and regularly review it in all aspects of our work.
We will sometimes be required to report to funders using their terms in relation to cultural heritage, but where possible will clarify these within the context described above.
More Than A Moment (MTAM)
Our Creative Director participated in Culture Central’s Radical Listening programme in 2021 in response to the Black Lives Matter movement and we have signed up to the More Than A Moment pledge. The More Than A Moment pledge is the West Midlands Arts sector’s promise to take radical, bold and immediate action, to dismantle the systems that have for too long kept Black* artists and creatives from achieving their potential in the arts and cultural industries.
*More Than A Moment have adopted the Black Ticket Project‘s definition of ‘Black’ as of Black African, Caribbean, Afro-Latinx and African-American heritage, including those of mixed-Black heritage who identify as such.
LGBTQI+
LGBTQI+ is an abbreviation for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or questioning, intersex and more. This also encompasses people who define as non-binary and prefer the pronouns they/them. Curiosity Productions staff will share their preferred pro-nouns in email signatures and online meeting profiles. We will always ask people we collaborate with what their preferred pro-nouns are.
Systemic Marginalisation
Systemically marginalised people are those who are more likely to have their opportunities and life choices limited by structural and institutional discrimination against their race, gender, sexuality, religion or disability, or an intersection of these. This will include, but is not limited to, those who identify as D/deaf, disabled or neurodivergent, LGBTQI+, and people who experience racism, including people of African, Caribbean or Latinx heritage, people of South Asian, East Asian, or South East Asian heritage, people of Middle Eastern heritage, people of Roma or Irish Traveller heritage and people of Jewish heritage.
Access and Inclusion
Access is a broad term to encompass any measure that needs to be put in place to remove barriers and make an opportunity equitable. This can include:
· Removing physical barriers, such as ensuring level access to a space, or minimising the potential for sensory overload.
· Removing financial barriers such as travel and childcare costs.
· Practical support provision such as an interpreter (BSL or any spoken language) or a personal assistant.
Access is also having a process in place to ask everyone involved in a project or activity what their needs are and what can be put in place to enable them to be their best.
Inclusion is the process of ensuring that a space is provided where everyone has equal access to opportunities and resources, and everyone is valued, safe and cared for, and able to participate on their own terms.
Neurodivergent is a term used to acknowledge that neurological differences are normal variations rather than disorders. A person might define themselves as neurodivergent if they are autistic, dyslexic, experience ADHD or Tourettes.
Neurodiverse is term used to describe a group of people that may include people who identify as neurodivergent.
Social Model of Disability
Curiosity Productions’ approach to all projects, events and work practices is informed by the Social Model of Disability. The Social Model holds that a person isn’t 'disabled' because of their impairment, health condition, or the ways in which they may differ from what is commonly considered the medical 'norm'; rather it is the physical and attitudinal barriers in society – prejudice, lack of access adjustments and systemic exclusion – that disable people. To say that someone is 'just different' or 'differently-abled' ignores the fact that they face these disabling barriers created by society, and implies that they do not experience discrimination, and that society does not need to change to become more accessible and inclusive.
The Social Model was developed by disabled people to identify and take action against discrimination, and to centre equality and human rights. This is in contrast to the traditional Medical Model, which presents disability as an individual, medical 'problem', focuses on what a person can't do because of their particular physical, neurological or psychological characteristics, centres care, cure and welfare instead of accessibility, independence and inclusion, and places responsibility and burden on the disabled individual. The Social Model takes the focus away from impairment; it places responsibility on government, organisations, businesses and individuals across all sectors of society to identify and implement constructive changes to remove barriers and increase access.
By approaching all activity from a social model perspective the focus is on how we as event organisers, facilitators and creative space holders can remove barriers to enable access. When asking people about their access needs we do not need to know their medical diagnosis or label, we just need to know what we can put in place or what we need to remove or minimise in order to make that person isn’t prevented from participating and is more comfortable and supported to be their best selves.
For example if you ask someone to tell you what their disability is and they tell you they are autistic this does not give you any information about what you actually need to do to make the activity more accessible for them, as every autistic person has different needs. It is more useful to know whether they require a quiet breakout space or for the volume of music to be minimised. For more information about the social model go to:
Putting access measures in place
Whilst it is important to ask people about their access needs in advance this is not always possible, so considering a wide range of access measures when planning an event or activity is also helpful. These can include things such as:
· Ensuring there are accessible toilets with a wide entrance, and ideally a changing area if possible, and giving clear information about toilet facilities, such as measurements, and possibly a film of the space and facilities. This enables people to make their own judgment on whether the space is suitable for them (for example will their powered chair fit inside the toilet.)
· Ensuring there is a quiet breakout space from the main activity.
· Considering sound levels and potentially providing ear plugs or ear defenders
· Providing a British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter.
· Minimising physical barriers to access such as steps by adding ramps where possible.
· If there is a more accessible entrance with level access make this the main entrance for everyone, rather than making anyone who needs step free access go through a different entrance to everyone else.
The more you ask people about what you could put in place to make your activity accessible for them, the longer your list will become of things you can design in from the planning stage next time, but keep asking as there will usually be things you haven’t thought of yet.
It is really important to communicate the access measures you are putting in place on marketing and event information so that people can see that it would be something they could come along and enjoy that has considered their needs.
Intersectional Identity
We acknowledge that many of us have intersectional identities and that different aspects of our identity become more relevant within different settings.
Language, attitude and welcome
Language around cultural identity, disability and neurodivergence does evolve and change over time. Different people use different terms which can make things confusing.
Generally it is important to treat everyone with respect and avoid being patronising, this sounds obvious, but it doesn’t always happen.
We ask all staff, freelancers, partners and volunteers working with us to use this policy as a guideline and above all treat people with respect and always ask a person how and if they would like to be supported or helped, and how they would like to identified when necessary.