Jen Anderson

🪡 I'll be sharing the key findings from my action research project #invisiblethreads (looking at the state of producing across the SW region) today & tomorrow with mailing list subscribers & those who were interviewed as part of the process. You've got a few hours to sign up to be on the mailing list if you'd like to read more. 🪡 Link below.

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Great summary update about a relevant, a joined up conversation. Thanks Georgie White Winter.

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The “W” “welfare” guidance series has expanded as we launched the W3 guidance note. The respect & dignity policy template. This guidance offers the 10 commitments to offer a simply way to guide and encourage people to reset. To remind people that although we work in a unique enviroment making theatre & live events, we are still at work and as such should behave with kindness & respect to all, so we can make the workplace a safer place for everyone. “I’m happy to see the welfare series of guidance expand with the launch of the W3 guidance note. I’m passionate about adding much needed Health and welfare to our industry technical standards. The respect & dignity policy & its 10 principals have been written to help us reset and redefine behaviour in the workplace. Written for everyone from a students, crew room staff, designers and senior management. Its goal is to see us unite and work together to make our industry a kinder, safer and more understanding place to work. I hope the W3 guidance note can be used as a simple cost-effective way to create a cultural change towards well-being in the work place” https://lnkd.in/eTineKj5

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We're proud to feature Go Live Theatre Projects (GLTP) for this month's Story of Impact. GLTPuses the power of theatre to create inspiring experiences and unlock possibilities for disadvantaged families and young people with SEND. IICF’s 2024 grant has allowed GLTP to deliver a 12-week creative drama project at a Youth Organisation in Westminster for young people aged 11-25 with mild to moderate learning disabilities and often from economically deprived backgrounds. What did participants experience? - 1.     Greater confidence to contribute and try something new.  2.     Improved wellbeing by taking part in a fun, creative and group activity.  3.     Greater ability to express themselves creatively and develop their social skills. “A was so confident and excited to devise her own character from the sorting hat exercise. She had ideas right away and directed the group! We have never seen her do this before or be so quick to jump up and put herself in the spotlight to perform (…) We all found ourselves in awe and wonder at her taking centre stage and were really proud for her to have this moment to shine.” –  Lead practitioner To learn more about the charity, visit https://lnkd.in/den8B3s9 About IICF The UK has one of the poorest rates of social mobility in the developed world. We’re working to change this by uniting the industry in volunteering, leadership, and grants to social mobility charities. In the UK, we’ve raised nearly £2M to change the lives of more than 7,200 people in the communities in which we live and work.  Learn how you can get involved and make a difference: www.iicf.org.uk #IICFImpact #SocialMobility

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Bidding for PIA privatisation to take place with one bidder

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Yesterday Bristol Old Vic Theatre School announced the closure of its Acting Ba. The news really is incredibly sad for the school and I wish all the faculty and students affected the very best. Growing up in Somerset, I remember seeing a graduating BA cohort fro BOVTS do a touring production of Twelfth Night at the Reagan Theatre in Minehead back in 2004. It was truly fantastic and one of the reasons I wanted to train to be an actor. It opened my eyes to the potential that a young West Country lad could become a professional actor. The following year I auditioned at BOVTS, got a recall, and despite not getting offered a place, I learned so much over that weekend and it helped me prepare for future auditions. Some of our finest actors have trained on the BA at BOVTS, including Olivia Coleman and Naomie Harris (to name just two) and although the post/grad courses will continue, it does seem a huge shame to loose a West Country based conservatoire course steeped in such prestigious history. The main causes for the closure sited in the press release are: * the capping of student fees * restrictions to international student visas * cuts in grants * increases in costs of living and teaching All of these causes link directly to choices made by governments past and present that have already caused closures of university courses across the U.K. The UK provides conservatoire training that is highly respected around the world. A training that is under threat. I can’t help but feel this is another big warning sign to drama schools across the UK and to the arts sector at large. If we can allow such courses to disappear, then what will stop us loosing more? And what will that mean for British actors, and British theatre and film of the future? Yes, Drama Schools need to evolve with the industry and training modes are changing, but the shortsighted restrictions to international student visas and cuts in grants are proving to not only be damaging for Drama School’s but to the UK economy at large. The number of study visas issued has fallen by 33% compared to the same time last year. When you consider that international students contribute £25.9 billion to the national economy annually, that’s a potential £8.6 billion gone from the economy. The potential financial loss to the country is clearly huge, as is the artistic and cultural loss of this course. #Acting #HigherEducation #PerformingArts https://lnkd.in/e5FcxJCU

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Our Director (Arts & Education) Sarah Eastaff, and Musician and Programme Manager Dyzelle Sutherland have been facilitating and leading sessions at today's Music Mark - The UK Association for Music Education South Yorkshire Conference. South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority mayor, Oliver Coppard, also launched the new South Yorkshire Music Hub, bringing together existing Sheffield, Barnsley, Rotherham and Doncaster (including darts) Music Hubs to strengthen opportunities for music education. Dyzelle led a session with musicians from across South Yorkshire discussing ways to build a more accessible music education model for the future. They discussed key ideas and language around disability, as well as pledging the steps we can each take today to make real change for the future. Dyzelle and Matt Harper-Hardcastle from Next Door But One have created 'Removing Barriers' - a new resource for educators and musicians to strengthen practice and improve confidence. The resource is coming soon (watch this space!) but for now, here are Dyzelle's top tips for good practice when working with disabled young people in the music classroom: The Social Model of Disability helps us to shape our thinking and approach - the idea that society is built for non-disabled people and that's what causes the barriers to access - the problem is not the person or the impairment, it's that society disables people. When we apply this thinking to our practice and start to look for those barriers, we can make real change.  We should adapt the activity or content to suit the needs of our pupils and meet them where they are at now. Focus on what they can do, rather than what they can't do and celebrate the wins!  You don't need to be an expert about every impairment and you don't need to ask about medical conditions - you simply need to ask 'what support do you need from me' or 'what do we need to change'. To find out more about darts' All Aboard programme, click here - https://lnkd.in/ehxepeCG

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Local arts organisations are set to benefit from a share of an additional £3.6m funding as a result of a Jobs Protection and Resilience Fund set up by Arts Council of Wales, supported by Welsh Government Funding will be distributed to venues and organisations across Wales, including Theatr Mwldan, Theatr Gwaun Community Trust, Torch Theatre, Aberystwyth Arts Centre, Anthem Music Fund Wales, Articulture, Live Music Now Wales, Ffilm Cymru Wales, Breathe Creative, People Speak Up and Mess up the Mess Theatre. Bydd sefydliadau celfyddydol lleol yn elwa ar gyfran o £3.6m ychwanegol o ganlyniad i Gronfa Diogelu Swyddi a Gwydnwch a sefydlwyd gan Gyngor Celfyddydau Cymru ac a gefnogir gan Lywodraeth Cymru. Bydd cyllid yn cael ei ddosbarthu i leoliadau a sefydliadau ledled Cymru, gan gynnwys Theatr Mwldan, Ymddiriedolaeth Gymunedol Theatr Gwaun, Theatr y Torch, Canolfan Celfyddydau Aberystwyth, Anthem Music Fund Wales, Articulture, Live Music Now Wales, Ffilm Cymru Wales, Breathe Creative, People Speak Up a Mess up the Mess Theatre.

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At the Roundhouse we’re proud to have submitted our response to the government’s curriculum and assessment review as part of a collective effort across the creative industry. The majority of the 10,000+ young people we work with every year choose to participate in Roundhouse creative activities voluntarily, outside of the school day. We’re fortunate that our iconic industry setting allows for that independent access, yet we are acutely aware that all young people are impacted by the lack of creative opportunities received during their school career. As such we work closely with pupils in secondary schools and further education colleges through bespoke targeted packages of work that provide creative opportunities to a broad range of learners (https://lnkd.in/ec9PDqrY). What is clear is that if arts and creativity are not valued in the curriculum then they are not valued in society, something – which if it stays that way – will continue to impact on all of us in the creative industry regardless of our setting. The government’s review is not a reform, however it needs to be a start to repairing the damage that has been done to arts and creativity within the current curriculum. The curriculum review needs to listen to the voices of young people and pave the way for equitable access to high quality creative opportunities within formal and non-formal settings that are shaped by industry.

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Want to improve your digital skills? 💻 RETAS are starting up a new term of our digital literacy courses, which will expand your knowledge and improve your digital confidence⌨️ For more info, get in touch📩

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A really interesting post. Let’s consider the heuristic qualities of writing - we work it out as we write! Children need more purposeful opportunities and we need to think about how we support writing for thinking .

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✨Supporting new voices through PPL Giving✨ Through our commitment of giving back to music, we support a broad range of initiatives which are driving positive change across the music industry. BABY PEOPLE LIMITED is the UK’s first dedicated hip-hop school, and with support from PPL Giving, have launched the ‘Unifying Melodies’ project – a new initiative bringing new opportunities to develop female artists on the rise in the Midlands. Hear from Esther B., our Member Relations Coordinator, whose role involves working with the incredible organisations supported through PPL Giving, such as Baby People. 🎶 The music used in the video is an original track 'T3' by AUDIO iLLS, one of the artists supported through Baby People. Read more: https://lnkd.in/ezBVtWqR

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Let's plan a year of music lessons together in less than 5 minutes 🤝 Using a Year 2 class as an example, discover how our music specialists design a full year of music lessons aligned with the national curriculum, structured with clear learning objectives each term, and crafted to promote steady progression in musical knowledge and skills. Here are our top planning tips: 1. Start with a baseline: What should your class already know from previous years? 2. Set clear topics for each half-term: Keep lessons organised and focused. 3. Define the end goal: What should students be able to perform or create by term’s end, and how do you get there? 👉 Download the full scheme of work to get detailed lesson plans for each year group: https://lnkd.in/eQCtvUqD #primarymusiceducation #primaryeducators #teachingtools #tipsforteachers

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