Why we developed this statement and our commitment to it
The Cartwheel Arts anti-discrimination statement was originally published in 2021, composed following the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, which shone a brutal spotlight on the inequalities in our society, and the Black Lives Matter worldwide response to the murder of George Floyd and outrage at racist policing.
The statement was published alongside an Anti-Discrimination Action Plan which outlined a series of measurable targets aimed at unlearning unconscious biases and understanding and reducing inequalities. We continuously review our Anti-Discrimination Plan to keep ourselves accountable, and in line with this review, have updated our Anti-Discrimination Statement.
Creativity and culture are fundamental parts of what it means to be human. Our vision is for a world where everyone has access and opportunities to create, participate & belong. We aim to ensure the arts are reaching and empowering as many as possible, but particularly those who are disempowered by societal structures. We aim to use creativity to support communities, to amplify their voices and experiences with a view to deepening our understanding of the barriers and inequalities they face and meaningfully work to overcome them.
We acknowledge that our approach to anti-discrimination will need to shift and change in response to the needs of our communities and society. Therefore, we encourage you to see this as part of an ongoing commitment and journey, and we are always open to feedback and thoughts on how to improve. There is space to do so at the end of this statement.
We aim to build trust, and work in collaborative partnerships, wherever we work. We are not ticking boxes, following trends or chasing funder priorities in this work. It continues to be a core part of the team’s efforts to become an organisation that actively tackles discrimination in everything we do.
How we are undertaking this work
Cartwheel has always worked to address inequalities within our communities. Working with individuals and communities who experience significant and sometimes multiple disadvantages to inspire, raise confidence and aspirations, and support them to achieve their potential. We wholeheartedly believe in the power of this work and remain committed to it.
We will tackle discrimination and racial and social disparities head on through our policies, processes, procedures, practice and our work.
Our Anti-Discrimination Action Plan has clear targets and timescales, set and agreed by the Board of Trustees. The plan and our progress towards our targets are reviewed by the staff team every quarter. The Human Resources & Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (HR & EDI) Task Group, comprised of senior staff and Trustees, scrutinises progress 4 times per year before presenting to the full Board on a quarterly basis. The action plan upholds our commitment to Anti-Discrimination and includes:
- Targets for staff, volunteer and Trustee training, including asking the full staff team to undertake the Harvard IAT Unconscious Bias tests each quarter.
- Education and development, including a dedicated EDI section at the start of each weekly team meeting, plus an in-depth Anti-Discrimination focused team meeting each quarter.
- Ensuring our projects and exhibitions reach the widest possible audiences, by using our audience & participant data tracking tools to understand who we are currently reaching, and who we are missing, and using that to inform future strategy, partnerships and funding applications.
- Consultation and co-designing with the diverse communities that we serve through ongoing communications, building in space for reflections and having an open door policy.
- Developing more creative opportunities for racially diverse communities and people living in areas of high deprivation, including our Reclaim the Space and Crafting Heritage projects.
We publish a summary of the progress made, or barriers encountered, in our annual Impact Reports.
Please contact us to receive the full Anti-Discrimination Action Plan, should you wish to read it: admin@cartwheelarts.org.uk or 01706 361 300
We are a small organisation, and do not have all the answers but we are committed to developing, learning, opening recruitment to diverse individuals, supporting and championing Anti-Discrimination strategies.
Let us ask ourselves what a world with genuine social equity would look like – and begin to action that change together with our communities.
We regularly update our Newsletter subscribers on our positive actions.
Created: April 2021
Revised: July 2024