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Today we are working with one of our Music Hub partners on inclusive recruitment. There is a big gap in our music & arts workforce. Disabled people are hugely under-represented. So if you want to help change that, where do you start? Where can you find Disabled talent? /Thread 1.
First, it takes time and lots of different actions to begin to broaden out your team. There’s no ‘one size fits all’ approach, but there are lots of ways you can change things (big and small) to begin to diversify your workforce. Here are some thoughts... / 2.
Start by reviewing things internally. Are you ready to work with Disabled people? Do you understand access? The Social Model of Disability? Are your policies and procedures up to scratch? Get ready, so you can welcome new people into the organisation and retain that talent. /3.
Where to reach out to Disabled people? Be open about wanting to bring more Disabled people into the organisation. Develop and show your understanding of access. Listen to Disabled people. That builds trust. /4.
Talk to and collaborate with Disability-led organisations & other Disability arts/music organisations. Look to your local community and local organisations. Connect in and ask for help in sharing your recruitment. /5.
Think about relationships. Create a pipeline by working with young and emerging artists/musicians via
commissions or apprenticeships, training and ensembles. Create open accessible events where people can get to know your org in a softer way. /6.
commissions or apprenticeships, training and ensembles. Create open accessible events where people can get to know your org in a softer way. /6.
Ask for advice. Talk to Music Hubs or arts orgs who you see doing good work in this area already. Pay for a Disabled inclusion consultant to identify networks to target or changes you can make in your recruitment process... or something else entirely! /7.
If you have a Board, make sure you include your board in your diversification plans. Make sure your trustees are a diverse group representing the communities you work with. /8.
Create opportunities with Disabled people taking the lead. /9.
Don't just do what you've always done. Change requires pro-active effort. Look for new communities on Facebook that you can share job opportunities with, reach out to individuals you would like to join your board, put an ad in a community newsletter... get out there! /10.
And a final thought... Keep going! Taking action moves you forward each time. It's not a static process, done once and ticked off a list. You can develop and improve each time.
What did we miss? Anything you'd do differently? All good ideas welcome!! /11.
What did we miss? Anything you'd do differently? All good ideas welcome!! /11.
