Anti-Racism Commitments
Lyra is part of the Young Audiences Group (YAG), a collective of arts organisations and individuals in Scotland making work with and for children and young people.
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This document sets out the YAG’s commitments and actions to tackle racism in our sector. We uphold that an anti-racist approach is imperative to delivering work that nurtures and supports young audiences and those who work with them. We acknowledge that racism intersects with other forms of discrimination and recognise that developing an anti-racist approach means tackling all forms of oppression and injustice.
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The content of this document came from a consultation process in 2021 with artists and creative practitioners with lived experience of racism in Scotland. We pledge to uplift the voices of people who experience racism in the framing of the actions and language of this document.
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We acknowledge that this document is only a starting point and that we are all on a learning journey. We may not get everything right but we want to do the right thing, and actively encourage feedback and input. We commit to making this a safe process for anyone who would like to contribute and to remunerate appropriately for the labour involved.
If you would like to get in touch with any comments or questions, please contact Lyra's Engagement Producer, Anna Plasberg-Hill - Anti-racism Champion: anna@lyra.co.uk
Commitments
By signing up to this document, Lyra commits to the following actions as a minimum standard. We will:
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Sign-up to Inc Arts Anti-Racism Code of Conduct
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Keep an up-to-date Anti-Racism Policy and Action Plan which is publicly available and includes specific actions and targets.
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Ensure a percentage of our annual budget is dedicated to anti-racist training and actions and publish this % in our action plan
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Provide annual anti-racism training for all staff, including freelancers and board members led by people who experience racism and be transparent about who is providing the training.
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Actively develop equitable partnership projects with organisations led by people who experience racism, ensuring fair payment for time/services rendered and amplifying their work where possible.
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Commit to increase the number of professionals people who experience racism working for our organisation, including employees and freelancers by Oct 2022. We will publish specific data on the diversity of our workforce and the steps we are taking to increase (or maintain) it.
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Ensure individuals/organisations who experience racism are included in panels that are assessing applications for opportunities such as commissions, funding and callouts.
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Ensure that over the course of each year, people who experience racism are represented within our projects and our shows, including as lead artists or lead characters.
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Ensure there are members on our board who experience racism by October 2022, and that we have taken specific steps to make sure it is a safe space for them.
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Ensure all our auditions include candidates who experience racism and look beyond Scotland if we need to. Casting budgets will reflect this.
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Commit to offering interviews to all applicants who experience racism who meet the minimum requirements for a job/opportunity in line with other Equalities recruitment processes.
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Ensure there is enough time to enable proper consultation with organisations representing people who experience racism and reach artists and freelancers who experience racism when advertising opportunities to ensure we reach beyond our usual networks.
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Provide an option for people interested in a job or opportunity to discuss it in advance with someone in our organisation to help break barriers for people new to our organisation.
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As the YAG group, hold funders and membership organisations in the Scottish arts sector to account re: their anti-racism actions. This means:
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Use our leverage and relationships to keep anti-racism on the agenda
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Request support for our individual and collaborative anti-racist actions and challenge inaction or lack of support
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As the YAG group, commit to exploring ways to develop a complaint and whistleblowing process at an industry level within a year.