Equality Bulletin Issue 15 July 2008 Vibrant Glasgow by Glasgow Equality Networks Forum

Equality Bulletin

issue Fifteen: July 2008

News & Views From Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

Contents Vibrant Glasgow 1 Glasgow Equalities Partnership at the Vibrant Glasgow Open Space Event 3 ‘Creative Nation’ : Creativity in the Age of Competitive Cultural Nationalism 5

Project Ability Diversity Films Deaf Youth Theatre What is Cultural Planning? Culture & Sport Glasgow Glasgow Mela

8 10 12 14 16 17

Glasgow Mela

vibrant glasgow

It is hard to pin down what makes a city special because it’s a mixture of so many different things: the character of the people, their friendliness, energy and ways of enjoying themselves; the formal culture of museums, theatres, music venues, libraries and sports centres; commercial venues that offer places to meet, eat and even shop; major events in the city centre like Hogmanay; local activities which make neighbourhoods good to live in; and the roads,

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Glasgow Black and ethnic minority Voluntary Sector Network : Glasgow City Council : Glasgow Disability Alliance : Glasgow Women’s Voluntary Sector Network : West of Scotland Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Forum

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

parks and buildings that provide the physical fabric of the city. One word which captures these diverse elements is ‘vibrant’ and it is this special quality which we want to foster to ensure that Glasgow is able to provide positive outcomes for all who live in, work in, or visit the city.

In order to achieve a Vibrant Glasgow, we need citizens that are healthy, have opportunities to work and learn, and who feel safe in their surroundings. It is therefore vital that Vibrancy permeates activities across all the community planning themes and that all stakeholders, including service providers and citizens, are provided with the opportunity to help shape the Vibrancy agenda. To this end, a group of Glasgow citizens were recently brought together with people working across the sectors that contribute to the city’s vibrancy for an Open Space Event to help develop

Vibrant Glasgow Open Space Event

‘Open Space’ is an approach which enables a large group of people to come together to discuss a subject they have a common interest in – usually because it directly affects them. Open Space has no ‘top table’ or ‘experts’ in the subject under discussion, nor does it have a pre-set agenda. Participants come together as a group at the start of the day and are invited to suggest issues they wish to discuss (related to the overall theme of the day). All participants then self-select which discussion groups they wish Glasgow Black and ethnic minority Voluntary Sector Network : Glasgow City Council : Glasgow Disability Alliance : Glasgow Women’s Voluntary Sector Network : West of Scotland Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Forum

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

In order to realise this vision, we will need the support of a range of partners, including local communities. The key issues identified by participants at the Vibrant Glasgow Open Space Event will be presented to local community reference groups over the coming months for further discussion, and will help to inform the Single Outcome Agreement for the city. In addition, a parallel event will be held for children and young people in early March to ensure that they have an active voice in developing the priorities for a Vibrant Glasgow.

to contribute to, and are free to move around between different groups throughout the day. Each group agrees 3 actions they would like to see taken forward and these actions are then voted upon by all participants at the end of the day to determine priorities. Approximately 130 people attended the Vibrant Glasgow Open Space Event at The Mitchell Library in February, convening discussion groups on 22 issues, including: Equality of Access; Dear Green Place; Traditional Arts and Identity; Support for Volunteers and Amateur Artists; Vandalism and Culture; Engaging Young People in Sport; Infrastructure and Access; Voice of the Community; and Public Art.

1. The Single Outcome Agreement sets out the outcomes Glasgow City Council is seeking to achieve with its community planning partners. These reflect local needs, circumstances and priorities that relate to national outcomes. To download a copy go to www. glasgowcommunityplanningpartnership.org.uk/ publications.aspx

Issues of equality, inclusion and access featured prominently across the various discussion groups, and a key message to emerge from the day was that the city’s burgeoning economic and physical regeneration must be balanced with addressing issues of equality and ensuring that the benefits of Glasgow’s renewal are shared by all.

Bridget McConnell, Chief Executive Culture and Sport Glasgow

Glasgow Equalities Partnership at the Vibrant Glasgow Open Space Event Glasgow Equalities Partnership (GEP) hosted a workshop at Culture & Sport Glasgow’s ‘Vibrant Glasgow’ Open Space Event. This workshop covered equality of access to cultural and sporting activities and looked at the role of community members in shaping the ‘vibrant theme’. Twenty two workshops were held during the event with 69 action points being listed as a result. The top priority came from the GEP workshop: that it is vital to balance the level of investment in tourism with investment in communities (groups and events): review prices of activities for people, including the low-waged, and throw money at the right things.

In order to understand why this was agreed to be the priority it is important to get a view of the underlying issues that were raised during the discussion. �

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

During the workshop, two key issues received universal support.

A final word on vibrancy that came up on the day, and regularly comes up in the discussions that GEP has with communities and partner agencies:

1... that decisions around the vibrant theme have to be informed by those affected – so, no different to any other community planning theme in strongly endorsing the role of the community in the development of positive services and activities for people in the city.

Vibrancy should not be seen as a community planning theme that stands alone. There is significant work being carried out under ’Vibrant Glasgow’ that is to do with learning, employability, health and so on. It would be detrimental to see art and culture as unrelated to initiatives that tackle unemployment, poverty and poor health. There is a key role to be played in promoting positive health (physical and mental), and personal and professional skills development through arts, sport and cultural programmes.

2... that in promoting equality it is important to guard against involving some people at the expense of others – it’s about developing processes and strategies that include rather than exclude (however inadvertently). Other issues that were raised included: The importance of promoting the passion that people in Glasgow have for culture and vibrancy.

For more information on the work of Glasgow Equalities Partnership please visit www.glasgowep.org.uk or contact the office 0141 221 8938 or info@glasgowep.org.uk

The need to get a wider spread of people at cultural events, including connecting with single people. Also, find out who isn’t participating (probably by monitoring who actually is) – follow this up by finding out what could be done to increase involvement. Being aware of what barriers people might face in accessing cultural and sporting activities – including ‘invisible’ barriers such as language and transport. Also recognise that poverty and social class are still barriers, and that whilst pricing policies can actively encourage non-waged people to participate, they can also excluded low waged people who don’t qualify for fee waivers or discounts. Recognise the impact that the massive change in the composition of Glasgow’s population is having on culture – be excited about learning about other people’s cultures and share Glaswegian and Scottish culture with those new to the city. That Glasgow’s success in securing the 2014 Commonwealth Games is exciting and welcome but it must be as much for citizens of Glasgow as it is for visitors to the city.

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

‘Creative Nation’ : Creativity in the Age of Competitive Cultural Nationalism With previous cultural policies emphasising ‘social inclusion’ now widely critiqued as tokenistic, and with the substitution of ‘evidence based policy’ with ‘policy based evidence’, the current terms of debate around Creativity are highly restricted.

Nor has there been sustained ethnographic and historical research into the sort of informal political disenfranchisement that can accompany regeneration. With Creative Industries policy there is a lack of attention to the way capitalist markets repeatedly work with other processes to produce inequalities of access and outcome in the domain of culture, as in many other aspects of society. Ultimately, the limits of the discourse appear to serve policies that reinforce both economic and cultural inequalities in our societies and diminish real social freedoms.

An unqualified policy and theory using the term ‘Creative Industries’ tends to be based on arguments which come close to accommodating, if not explicitly endorsing, rising inequality and a considerable degree of exploitation associated with contemporary neoliberalism. Under the auspices of the ‘City of Culture’ Glasgow smiled better, so the branding went. However, between 1970 and today the population of Glasgow has halved from 1.2 million to 600,000. In an area like Castlemilk (an inclusion zone enjoying high levels of funding) the population dropped even more sharply from 50,000 to 14,000. While the impact of ‘gentrification’ (urban restructuring) may be stark, no study has been undertaken to indicate what has happened to half of Glasgow during a historic process that may be understood as a form of population clearance.

‘Providers’ and artists alike need to question the political instrumentalism behind policy-driven consultation and seek to correct a number of misconceptions of an unqualified, overly celebratory literature on Creativity and regeneration which exploits the ‘moral prestige’ of the artist. Not least, the way in which an abstract rhetoric of creativity is becoming increasingly important to the fuelling of labour markets marked by irregular, insecure and unprotected work, and the

The move away from a rigorous discussion of cultural policy contains many pitfalls. If culture is to be instrumentalised through its political adaptation to market forces, a concept such as ‘Cultural Entitlement’ is prone to conceal basic questions of ownership and control over communication, expression and process; the key defining aspects of culture. Far from addressing inequality, the lapse of philosophical integrity and historical critique helps open the way for racism to assume the language of ‘fairness’ and multi-culturalism.

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Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

supposed existence of a ‘creative class’ that is intensely interested in cultural goods, in turn giving rise to the idea that cities must ‘invest’ in and through culture. “Without dealing directly with structural inequalities, social inclusion policy is ineffectual as a democratic instrument, functioning mainly as a cosmetic mask to disguise unequal power relations. Indeed, it is the potential of a wider cultural politics that social inclusion programmes deliberately exclude: it is this which cultural producers now need urgently to recover.” Beyond Social Inclusion : Towards Cultural Democracy, The Cultural Policy Collective http://www.variant.org.uk/20texts/CultDemo.txt

...the free arts and culture magazine.

In-depth coverage in the context of broader social, political & cultural issues

http://www.variant.randomstate.org/

Artists in Exile, Glasgow (AiEG) is a network for refugee, asylum seeking, international and British artists across all disciplines. Artists from as far afield as Iran, Kosovo, Palestine, Congo, Bulgaria, Russia etc. regularly meet with artists from France, Poland, Scotland etc. to discuss personal practise and develop new work.

‘Boxed In’ is a Manifesto Club provocation essay by artist Sonya Dyer, arguing that diversity schemes and targets are pigeonholing black and Asian artists. She calls for an honest debate within the sector, and for artistic quality to be placed at the centre of arts funding. There is a comments page online with further discussion on the implications of the report.

These discussions are an opportunity to meet other artists and organisations, gain access to the arts community in Glasgow and its resources, providing opportunities for professional development.

http://www.manifestoclub.com/aa-diversity

http://www.aieg.org.uk

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

The North Glasgow Cultural Database

“Through raising awareness of the cultural activity in North Glasgow we hope to encourage more people to take part, so leading to a better, brighter, more vibrant future for the area.” www.northglasgowculture.com/

IMPACT DATABASE : Charting the Social and Economic Effect of the Arts The Impact Database holds valuable research on the social and economic effects of the arts, culture and major events. Developed and maintained by the Centre for Cultural Policy Research at the University of Glasgow, the database currently contains studies dating from 2000 on: arts and culture; arts, culture and education; arts, culture and inclusion; arts and health; arts, culture and audience development; arts, culture and society and arts, culture and the economy. The Impact Database is fully searchable with both simple and advanced search functions. Users can also submit information about their own research, and register to receive a quarterly e-mail newsletter with details of new material added to the database. www.impact.arts.gla.ac.uk Voluntary Arts Scotland Briefing

‘The arts must be placed at the centre of the Community Planning process’ - Community Planning explained Scottish Parliament Enterprise and Culture Committee Inquiry into Arts and the Community www.vascotland.org.uk/uploaded/map5759.pdf

Scottish Government: Cultural Pathfinder Programme A number of pilot projects are being supported throughout Scotland to explore effective and practical ways to widen access to, and participation, in cultural activity. These Cultural Pathfinders have focused their projects on communities known to be under-represented in terms of cultural participation and are intended to produce learning that can be shared across the local authority sector. The Pathfinder programme is also exploring links between cultural provision and community planning processes. www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/ArtsCulture/CulturalPolicy/workinggroup/Pathfinder

The Scottish Artists’ Network website is a directory of Scottish based learning disabled

artists and the visual arts organisations which support them. The website is designed to raise awareness about emerging and established learning disabled artists and artist groups; encourage communication and interaction between individuals and organisations; provide a point of contact for people looking for further information. www.scottishartistsnetwork.co.uk

Scottish Arts Council’s Cultural Diversity Strategy www.scottisharts.org.uk/1/artsinscotland/equalities.aspx

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

“We are a public body, dedicated to rigorous standards of integrity, excellence; commitment to learning and working in partnership with others. We strive to be open and equitable in all our work and mindful of our social responsibilities. We have a number of values, including: inclusion for everyone in all forms of art”. Introduction, Getting There: a practical resource for arts venues in Scotland to increase the inclusion of disabled people. Scottish Arts Council, 2006 There can be no mistaking the wealth of good intentions which lie behind the policies of every major player in the arts in Scotland. From the Scottish Arts Council to local councils, venues and other arts organisations, participation and inclusion are the name of the game. The ideological playing field has been levelled, with the impetus firmly behind moves to, for example, bed the social model of disability down as the default setting in thinking about arts and cultural provision. Yet nagging doubts remain: in the bums-on-seats world of audience development the numbers seem to stay resolutely static. Analysis by Glasgow Grows Audiences (Glasgow’s Audience Development Agency) indicates that attendance across a range of venues presenting various art-forms is skewed towards highly educated, high income brackets, while the others remain locked in an ‘it ain’t for the likes of us’ limbo. Working in the field of the visual arts and disability since 1984, Project Ability has been at the forefront of debates about equality and has worked to make inclusion a fact rather than an aspiration. In addition to providing the space in which disabled people can develop as artists Project Ability’s extensive exhibition programme, both touring and in its own galleries, provide a showcase for the talents of its participants. It is in this context that Project Ability has instigated SPAN, ‘Spreading Project Ability’s Networks’, an audience development initiative with a difference. Funded by the Scottish Arts Council, Paul Steer has been employed to coordinate a one year audience development programme. Partly in preparation for the opportunities and challenges presented by Project Ability’s participation in the £4 million Trongate 103 development, which will see seven of Glasgow’s arts organisations coming together under one roof in the Merchant City, SPAN aims Glasgow Black and ethnic minority Voluntary Sector Network : Glasgow City Council : Glasgow Disability Alliance : Glasgow Women’s Voluntary Sector Network : West of Scotland Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Forum

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

to reverse the usual order of audience development. Rather than bring a new audience in, an action research model will be used to take Project Ability’s core audience - the disabled artists who use its workshops and studios - out, developing links with the partner organisations in Trongate 103 and beyond. Through a series of visits participants will get the chance to see facilities and opportunities which will be become more accessible in the new development, feeding in to their own growth as makers and appreciators of art. So far, so good. Equally, if not more important will be the feedback from the participants to the venues: the premise of the whole exercise is that the voices of the excluded are often not heard directly. The intention is to facilitate a dialogue in which best practise can be acknowledged while areas of concern can be addressed positively. Project Ability’s partners in Trongate 103 - Street Level Photoworks, Glasgow Media Access Centre, Sharmanka Kinetic Theatre, Glasgow Print Studios, Glasgow Independent Studios, Café Cossachok and Transmission Gallery each have their own history and aims for the future. It is to their credit and a reflection of how far the issue of equality has progressed from being a generally acknowledged ‘good thing’ to being accepted as simply part of the equation in planning any development, that they have all embraced this chance for collaboration so enthusiastically. The project is in its early stages: its usefulness in opening up the conversation about the value of the arts will need to be closely monitored. It is to hoped that it will have some practical impact on the shape of one of the biggest current art developments in Scotland; at least one example of good intentions becoming good practice.

Enquiries Contact: Paul Steer, Tel- 0141 552 2822 or email: Gallery@project-ability.co.uk

Project Ability 18 Albion Street, Glasgow, G1 1LH Tel 0141 552 2822 info@project-ability.co.uk Web: www.project-ability.co.uk

Email:

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

Diversity Films

Diversity Films was set up as a Community Interest Company (CIC) in April 2007 with the aim to work for and to promote the elimination of discrimination and inequality and to empower and enable individuals and groups to reach their full potential through inclusive training and community-based activities. As the name suggests, film and filmmaking is the main activity Diversity Films use to reach their aims. Through their own professional filmmaking work, the team behind Diversity Films became acutely aware that most often communities are observed and reported by media professionals and that there was a need for these communities to observe and report themselves, to be empowered and to be in control of their own image and portrayal.

With this in mind, Diversity Films launched the Community Filmmakers Project with support from Scottish Screen, 4 Talent and the Paul Hamlyn Foundation. Since June 2007, the project has focused mainly on working with communities in Greater Easterhouse and Scotstounhill areas of Glasgow, with partners Platform, FARE and Kingsway Health and Wellbeing Centre, to provide training, mentoring and film production equipment to community groups with the aim of creating sustainable film units in the areas which the groups will gain the skills to drive themselves. The main mode of training has been structured weekly workshops in basic filmmaking skills including digital camera, sound, production

Glasgow Black and ethnic minority Voluntary Sector Network : Glasgow City Council : Glasgow Disability Alliance : Glasgow Womenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Voluntary Sector Network : West of Scotland Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Forum

Scotland, France, Sri Lanka, Turkey, Ethiopia, Zambia and Russia. The wide range of projects the participants have been involved in filming, editing and producing include a half hour documentary following budding young musicians in Easterhouse, a half hour documentary about the Document International Human Rights Film Festival featuring acclaimed filmmakers such as Paul Watson and John Akomfrah, a short documentary about the effects untreated water damage is having on local residents homes and health, a celebratory series of shorts documenting the International Kingslink Carnival, an internet TV chat show pilot and some one-minute shorts made at the film schools. The diverse range of skills and experience of the participants also contributes to the unique nature of the projects output – from people who have never picked up a camera before getting involved to

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and editing. After that, mentoring and oneto-one development support has taken over as groups and individuals start making their own films and/or working on their fellow filmmakers projects. This method of training has been mixed with one-off events such as the Weekend Film School at Platform and two day FARE Film School. These events open up the project to new participants and also create further possibilities of building regular film groups who have identified their interest in doing something but need the impetus of working with like-minded people, access to equipment and a bit of support to build their skills and confidence. Since kicking off the Community Filmmakers Project, Diversity Films have worked with participants in Glasgow aged 9 to 72 from many countries around the world including Iran, Iraq, Azerbaijan, South Africa, Congo,

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

exiled professional documentary directors, Diversity Films has laid the foundations for bringing people from different communities and backgrounds together creatively, for providing space and resources to create some exciting film projects and for the organisation to continue its growth. Contact: Diversity Films Office, Room 6, 333 Woodlands Road, Glasgow G3 6NG Telephone 0141 357 7299 Fax 0141 357 7290 mail@diversityfilms.org.uk Website http://www.diversityfilms.org.uk

Deaf Youth Theatre Scotland’s first Deaf Youth Theatre (DYT) was officially launched in Glasgow on January 10th 2008. Deborah Andrews, Co-Artistic Director for Solar Bear describes how the project developed and their plans for the future....

“I began work with the D/deaf community after direct feedback from a Deaf audience member to a theatrical adaptation of Dream State: The New Scottish Poets that I staged at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 1998. In the feedback session the audience member asked if, when I used so much gestural movement in the piece, I had ever considered using sign language. It’s a rather long story from there… In brief I discovered that there were no professional Deaf actors in Scotland at that time (there is now a grand total of three!) Also that professional arts provision for the deaf community left a bit to be desired. This was at odds with the enthusiasm from deaf young people that we witnessed when we delivered drama taster workshops at Deaf Connections and for NDCS. In 2002, I co-founded Solar Bear with Gerry Ramage, and met a sign language interpreter

(SLI) with a drama background (Natalie MacDonald), and her sister - Katrina Fisher (Deaf). Katrina’s interest in dance and drama had been curtailed at a young age, although she had continued to be involved with community drama groups. Katrina became involved in our work and developed her acting and performance skills through workshops, rehearsals and performance with Solar Bear. As a Company, we have looked at the role of the SLI in theatre, and the potential for this role to be absorbed into the onstage action. We’ve used techniques such as shadowing and doubling up, taught hearing actors basic signing skills, presented scenes with Deaf actors using BSL alone and experimented with physical theatre and BSL to create what the National Theatre of Scotland called ‘a new aesthetic.’ We have staged two main-house productions (Seeing Voices and Broken) and translated Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream into BSL.

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

youth theatre experiences available to young deaf people prior to training at degree level.

In 2006, Katrina approached Solar Bear to discuss the potential for a Deaf Youth Theatre. Katrina, and one of the other Deaf actors working professionally in Scotland, EJ Raymond, were concerned that there were no professionally-led theatre opportunities in Scotland for young deaf people. Both Katrina and EJ feel that their lives may have been very different if they had had the kind of drama and theatre experiences available through Solar Bear when they were young people.

However, one of the biggest inspirations for us wanting to establish a Deaf Youth Theatre in Scotland was the fantastic response that we got from the young members of Deaf Connections Youth Club. Some members had never done drama before, and enjoyed it. Others told us they would love to do theatre, but didn’t think that it was ‘for them.’ When we asked them, they told us they wanted something long-lasting in terms of drama and theatre. They also wanted it to be independent of their Youth Club, so that it could be additional to their other activities, rather than instead of. We’re delighted to be able to offer that now,

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Solar Bear was also aware that there has been a shift in further education and conservatoire training to provide access for disabled and sensory impaired students in Scotland. We believe that there is still some way for drama institutions to go in terms of developing and adapting the current training available. Feedback so far from the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama (RSAMD) indicates that very few applications have come in from young deaf people, and that this may be due to the lack of training opportunities and

Over the past six years, Solar Bear has been working to help establish deaf role models in theatre, challenge the delivery of conservatoire training, increase work opportunities for deaf people in theatre, challenge mainstream theatre and develop new aesthetics.

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

thanks to the Big Lottery, the LankellyChase Foundation, Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland and Glasgow City Council. We’ve also had fantastic support from Scottish Youth Theatre (SYT), where the drama workshops are being held.

inclusive, with increased work opportunities for deaf actors and theatre technicians. I wonder if there will be a professional Deaf Theatre Company in Scotland one day. I think that would be fantastic. I would certainly buy a ticket! Mostly I am excited to see what the young members who are currently participating in DYT want for the future. I just want to make sure that they have equal access to training opportunities and the space to play, create, experiment and dream of what the future of Scottish theatre might look like.”

In summer 2009, DYT will create a main-stage production that will participate in the Promote Y-T festival. That will be the culmination of the two years’ funding that we currently have in place. After that, I hope that DYT is able to continue for many years…as long as there is a demand for it. I hope that access to drama training improves for those who want to pursue a career in the theatre, and wish to go down a formal training route. I would like to see mainstream theatre become more

For more information, please contact: Deborah Andrews, Artistic Director, Solar Bear, The Arches, 253 Argyle Street, Glasgow G2 8DL T. 0141 221 3240 F. 05601 264 601 E. debs@solarbear.org.uk W. www.solarbear.org.uk

What is Cultural Planning? Cultural Planning is a holistic approach to sustainable cultural and community development which embraces a broad definition of culture as a way of life, takes as its starting point the process of identifying, mapping and building on community assets, values and traditions, and develops those assets through creative activities which engage, involve and empower local people and involve artists in cross sectoral/inter-agency partnership working In Scotland and in many other parts of the world (including Australia, the USA and mainland Europe) at neighbourhood, city, regional and national levels, there is a growing realisation that culture can deliver on many aspects of community engagement, empowerment and leadership. However, in Scotland to date, the policy framework for implementing integrated cultural projects and schemes is still relatively underdeveloped with local authorities and community regeneration bodies still locked into an approach that views culture as an add on to existing programmes. The Cultural Planning approach has emerged over the past twenty years (in both the United States and Australia) as a successful way of enabling policy-makers to think strategically about the application of the cultural resources of localities and the delivery of policies capable of responding to local needs in a flexible, bottom up way.

How Does Cultural Planning Differ From Traditional Cultural Policies? Cultural planning approaches differ from traditional cultural policies - which are still based mainly on definitions of ‘culture’ as ‘art’. Instead, cultural planning adopts as its basis a broad definition of ‘cultural resources’ (history, heritage, traditions, the geography of the terrain, landmark buildings or natural heritage, the diversity of local people are some of the many possible resources). While traditional cultural policies tend to take a sectoral focus – policies for the development of theatre or the visual arts etc – cultural planning adopts a territorial remit to cultural and community development. Its’ purpose is to see how the pool of cultural resources in every place can contribute to the integrated development of Glasgow Black and ethnic minority Voluntary Sector Network : Glasgow City Council : Glasgow Disability Alliance : Glasgow Women’s Voluntary Sector Network : West of Scotland Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Forum

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

In particular, Cultural Planning attempts to take a holistic approach to development rather than starting from the identification of all the problems and issues in a community and addressing them one by one or separately. This holistic model puts culture and people at the core. It addresses jobs, training for employment, the development of new small to medium sized enterprises, planning, and regeneration, but never in isolation.

a community (whether a neighbourhood, a city or a region) By placing cultural resources at the centre of policy making, two way beneficial relationships can be established between these resources and any type of public policy – in fields ranging from economic development to housing, health, education, social services, tourism, urban planning, architecture, townscape design and cultural policy itself

The current Scottish policy focus on citizens, outcomes and entitlements is a progressive development, which demands the implementation of integrated policy solutions on the ground.

It is also important to clarify that cultural planning is not intended as the planning of culture – an impossible, undesirable activity – but rather as a cultural approach to planning and policy.

As emerging Community Planning Partnerships in Scotland are looking at with issues of “how to” engage meaningfully with local people and develop community leadership, Cultural Planning offers the timely potential of participatory opportunities combined with long term strategic thinking.

Advocates of cultural planning suggest that policy makers and professionals should not only be making instrumental use of cultural resources as tools for achieving non-cultural goals, but can let their own mindsets be transformed by contact with local culture. This can happen if policy makers adopt the five key sets of attributes of the type of thinking that characterise the processes of creative production. This thinking tends to be: - Holistic, flexible, lateral, networking and interdisciplinary - Innovation–oriented, original and experimental - Critical, inquiring, challenging and questioning - People-centred, humanistic and nondeterministic - ‘Cultured’ and informed by critical knowledge of traditions of cultural expression.” Bianchini and Ghilardi – The culture of neighbourhoods

Moreover, the administrative accessibility of the main players, and the Scottish Executive’s willingness to actively consider the potential of improved linkage of the cultural and community regeneration agendas, is very encouraging in this regard. The potential convergence of cultural planning and community planning, at this stage of development, offers a unique opportunity to affect a major shift in the quality and extent of community engagement in terms of learning about inclusion and regeneration strategies as well as their delivery. National Cultural Planning Forum Liz Gardiner, Convener, National Cultural Planning Forum (NCPSG), c/o Fablevision, 7 Water Row, Govan, Glasgow G51 3UW Tel/Fax 0141 425 2020 Email liz@fablevision.org www.ncpsg.org

A ‘culturally sensitive’ approach to local development and professional continuing professional development (CPD) such as this has the potential to deliver on the social agenda. This approach encourages individual and organisational accountability and discourages a “box ticking” approach to evaluation.

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

Arts and Social Inclusion Email Newsletter

A quarterly email newsletter to share information, enhance current links and spark new opportunities in the arts and inclusion sector. To receive the newsletter email arts.development@csglasgow.org

Glasgow’s Cultural Pathfinder

Glasgow’s Cultural Pathfinder is an arts project for people over 60 which has grown from the Encourage programme. A number of pilot projects are being supported by the Scottish Government throughout Scotland to explore effective and practical ways to widen access to, and participation in cultural activity. These Cultural Pathfinders have focussed their projects on communities known to be under-represented in terms of cultural participation and are intended to produce learning that can be shared across the local authority sector. There are 13 projects happening across Scotland. Glasgow’s Pathfinder Project is for the most disadvantaged older people and aims to spark interest in the arts and raise awareness of creative opportunities available in the city. The project is being managed by Culture and Sport Glasgow - Arts Development www.csglasgow.org The project has involved a whole range of activity from digital photography workshops at the Museum of Transport to intergenerational performances at Platform in Easterhouse! A limited edition book will shortly be available written by Glasgow based writer, Chris Dolan. The book is called ‘Hour After Hour’ and is about growing older in Glasgow. For further information on this or any aspect of the project please contact Kirsty White, Arts Development, Email: kirsty.white@csglasgow.org Phone: 0141 2879845

Arts and Social Inclusion Booklet

A booklet which documents a selection of arts and social inclusion projects is now available. The booklet aims to help community groups and social work organisations develop and carry out good quality and enjoyable arts and inclusion projects. For a free copy contact the Arts and Social Inclusion Officer. Phone: 0141 287 9845 or Email: kirsty.white@csglasgow.org

Spare a Minute Arts Directory

www.csglasgow.org/services/ArtsDevelopment/ArtsInfo/

s h [out]: Contemporary a r t a n d h u m a n r i g h ts

is the fourth social justice programme developed by GoMA, part of Culture & Sport Glasgow. It will include outreach projects, major exhibitions, educational arts workshops, arts events, acquisitions and residencies. The main aim is to develop an innovative and challenging programme of visual art exhibitions, outreach projects and education events to promote respect of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) human rights. It will also promote tolerance, acceptance and understanding, encourage debate and tackle questions about LGBT representation, place and history in today’s society. Contact: Katie Bruce, Social Inclusion Coordinator, Gallery of Modern Art (GoMA), Royal Exchange Square, Glasgow, G1 3AH Tel 0141 287 3051 / 0141 229 1996 fax: 0141 204 5316 text phone: 0141 248 2891 email: katie.bruce@csglasgow.org web: www. glasgowmuseums.com Glasgow Black and ethnic minority Voluntary Sector Network : Glasgow City Council : Glasgow Disability Alliance : Glasgow Women’s Voluntary Sector Network : West of Scotland Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Forum

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

Glasgow Mela The Glasgow Mela is a multi-cultural music and dance event based on the traditions of the Indian sub-continent. Before the year 2000, the Mela was generally viewed as a South Asian festival, and most of the attendees were from Glasgow’s South Asian communities. The event continues to retain its South Asian flavour, however, the artistic programme has adopted other cultures and the Mela has now become a truly multicultural and inclusive event, reflecting the diversity that exists in the city. The programme now features not only South Asian music but also music that represents many different cultural communities in Britain including, Irish, Polish, African, Caribbean, Chinese, Japanese, Kurdish, Indigenous Scottish, and many more

- provide a platform for young local talent within these diverse communities, and also the wider community, whilst encouraging and developing musical skills and innovation.

- act as a showcase for development work within minority ethnic and disadvantaged communities, creating access to the arts, and in particular musical arts, for these socially excluded groups.

- promote an appreciation and understanding of different cultures.

- enhance and promote Glasgow’s national and international image as a creative, cosmopolitan city: a centre for artistic and cultural excellence.

- programme traditional and contemporary music, and also dance, from mainly national, and local artists, but also international artists.

- promote partnership work with other arts providers / artists to encourage new music and

The Glasgow Mela aims to:

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Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

dance projects, including fusion and cultural diversity projects and visual arts collaborations.

- assist equality of access to the arts and culture, regardless of age, gender, disability, race or sexual orientation, providing an opportunity/information for future involvement in activities showcased at the event.

Mela is a Hindi word meaning gathering. Set up in Glasgow in 1990, during the year of culture, the Glasgow Mela has grown from being an indoor event to an outdoor extravaganza. The Scottish Academy of Asian Arts (SAAA) took over the organisation and management of the event in 1999 and since then SAAA’s ongoing development of Glasgow Mela has focused on making it an artistically driven, key cultural event for families which celebrates cultural diversity and integration. Glasgow Mela is the west of Scotland’s largest multi-cultural arts event. It has been growing in size and popularity and now regularly attracts a large vibrant mix of people who are proud of their own culture whilst embracing and celebrating cultural diversity. It is a free, un-ticketed, open air festival which targets a family audience. Glasgow Mela also hosts an Urban Zone, Holistic Zone, an Art Zone, a Sports Zone, Children’s entertainment, workshops, a fun fair, trade stands and authentic catering outlets from all over Britain. Headline acts have included Apache Indian, Jassi Sidhu, Jinx, Josh, DCS, Legacy, Malkit Singh, Arif Lohar, Sabri Bros, Sahota Brothers, Stereo Nation, Dr Zeus and Jazzy B. The Mela is supported by Glasgow City Council, the Scottish Arts Council and sponsors and advertisers whose help makes delivering an open air event on this scale possible. Since 2006 Glasgow Culture & Sport have been working in closer partnership and provide the infrastructure for the event to bring health and safety standards to the highest level. SAAA retains

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

control of programming and sponsorship. The programming of the Mela aims to: Strengthen Glasgow Mela’s presence in the Scottish cultural arena and to promoting the festival’s ability to play a strategic role in nurturing and supporting new aesthetic ideas, concepts and styles within the context of cultural diversity. Provide an opportunity for emerging artists to perform alongside artists of established status. Promote BME artists & art forms and fusion projects to the wider public. Provide a platform for local talent within Glasgow’s culturally diverse communities whilst encouraging and developing artistic skills and innovation. Mela Outreach Programme: Glasgow Mela is more than just an annual event; it has become a showcase for development work throughout the year, with many community group performances showcased at the festival. Mela 2008 outreach programme will include a timetable of integrative, culturally diverse workshops in music, performing arts, video and animation arts for young people from tough realities, those with disabilities and those seeking refuge & asylum in Scotland.

Contact: Scottish Academy of Asian Arts, Govanhill Neighbourhood Centre, 6-8 Daisy Street, Govanhill, GLASGOW, G42 8JL Telephone: 0141 423 2210 Fax: 0141 423 2294 E-mail: info@saaa.org.uk or scottishasianarts@yahoo.co.uk Website: www.saaa.org.uk Glasgow Black and ethnic minority Voluntary Sector Network : Glasgow City Council : Glasgow Disability Alliance : Glasgow Women’s Voluntary Sector Network : West of Scotland Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Forum

Equality Bulletin Issue Fifteen : July 2008 News and views from Glasgow’s Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council

Glasgow’s Equality Networks

Aims and Submission Details

Glasgow Women’s Voluntary Sector Network Contact: Lorna New Tel: 0141 550 7557 Email: lorna_wisewomen@hotmail.com

The Equality Bulletin is produced on behalf of Glasgow’s Equality Networks Forum. The Forum is made up of representatives from Glasgow’s four Equality Networks and from Glasgow City Council.

Glasgow Black and Ethnic Minority Voluntary Sector Network Contact: Ashay Ghai Tel: 0141 572 1140 Email: ashay@gara.org.uk

The aim of the Bulletin is to raise awareness of Equality issues in Glasgow, and to support information-sharing and joint working between Glasgow’s Equality Networks and between the Equality Networks and Glasgow City Council.

Glasgow Disability Alliance Contact: Tressa Burke Tel: 0141 556 7103 Email: tressaburke@gdaonline.co.uk

Each Equality Network will be responsible for agreeing its own input to the Bulletin. If you are interested in writing an article or having a particular issue covered in the Bulletin please take your suggestions along to your own Network meeting for their agreement. If you have any comments or ideas, or additional items, reports, news etc. that you feel the Bulletin should be publicising please contact us at the address below.

The West of Scotland LGBT Forum Contact: Sheila Brodie or David Thomas c/o Glasgow LGBT Centre, 84 Bell St, G1 1LQ Email: info@sgls.co.uk (with ‘WoS Info’ in the Subject line)

The Equality Bulletin can be provided in large print, braille, on tape, and on computer disc. It can also be emailed to you as a text or as a PDF document. Please contact us at the address below for copies, or download your copy from the Equality Network Forum website at www.enf.org.uk EQUALITY UPDATES, FUNDING EXTRA and JOBS EXTRA e-newsletters Keep up-to-date by subscribing to these free weekly e-newsletters, simply email kate.henderson@gcvs.org.uk or subscribe online at www.enf.org.uk NEW ENF Blog Newsletters, Events Diary, Bulletin articles, YouTube,Training Resources at www.enf.org.uk/blog

Equality Bulletin GCVS, 11 Queens Crescent, Glasgow G4 9AS Tel: 0141 332 2444 Fax: 0141 332 0175 Email: kate.henderson@gcvs.org.uk Web: www.enf.org.uk The views expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of Glasgow City Council or the Equality Network Forum The Equality Bulletin: funded by Glasgow City Council, produced by Equality Network Forum, printed by Printing Works