Creativity is... made to measure.
A New Direction is a not for profit organisation that generates opportunities for children and young people to develop their creativity. I Am Festival is their yearly celebration empowering Deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent young people to explore their creativity. Over the past eight years, the festival has provided a platform for hundreds of young people to showcase their talents, leadership, ideas and opinions. This year’s festival will be taking place from 11 - 15 March 2024 in venues across London - as well as in schools and online - exploring the theme ‘See Me! Hear Me!’
“Through this year’s festival, we’re highlighting our resources, including our Inclusive Progression Routes Toolkit , a resource for cultural organisations who want to provide more and/or better progression routes and career opportunities for Deaf, disabled and neurodivergent young people aged 16-25. This toolkit has been informed by existing research, lived experience and a myriad of people who have generously given their time to share their insights and recommendations.
In the recent Disability Report (2022) by Creative Access, 88% of disabled people who work in the arts said that the two biggest barriers they faced in developing their creative careers were:
• Employers’ understanding of reasonable adjustments and how they can support disabled employees to do their job to the best of their abilities
• Awareness of disability issues amongst non-disabled colleagues.
In our Inclusive Progression Routes toolkit, we wanted to ask how cultural organisations can minimise and ultimately remove these barriers. Beyond that, what can we do to play our part in this essential movement?”
Do
To listen to the creative prompt below, please use the Userway Accessibility plugin in the left-hand corner of the screen. If you need any further assistance, please contact [email protected]
Create an access rider.
We’re told that rockstars and celebrities have riders. Cookie dough ice cream on the tour bus, dill pickles and red licorice in the green room. Why not? And doesn’t everyone work better when their needs are respected and supported? An access rider captures information about someone’s access and needs, providing a considered and detailed list of what might be needed to support someone without assumptions and guess work.
Create a collection of objects that represent what you need to operate at your best. And another one that shows the things that make work more challenging. Photograph or draw your arrangements. OR Make a map, as simple or complex as you like: a mind-map, a road-map, a sensory map that outlines what you need on your access rider. See our examples and feel free to create something that works for you.
“In our Inclusive Progression Routes resource, we’ve included an access rider on page 16. You can download it and use it as a starting point for your own rider in circumstances that apply to you.”
Think
Access for you might be about overcoming physical barriers. Or about creating the optimum working environment: sound, light, temperature, break-out space, and management of other people’s behaviour.
Do you just get your head down and get on with it? Do you avoid some types of work because they don’t work for you? Have you ever really thought about what’s possible with better communication about access? What would you like other people to know about you? What would help you to work at your best?
Share
Could your access rider start a conversation with work colleagues or even people you share living space with? Could you invite a friend to create an access rider and then compare notes? Could you share it with A New Direction and become part of the I Am conversation?
If you share on social media include hashtags #IAmFestival2024 #CreativityIs #64MillionArtists
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