Written evidence submitted by ExcludedUK (CIC)
Impact of Covid-19 on DCMS sectors Inquiry
18 June 2020
SUMMARY
A. Executive Summary
B. Introduction
C. Clearly Identified Gaps in Financial Support for Creative and Media Industries Professionals
D. Survey - Key Findings
E. Selected Anonymised Comments from Case Studies of Creative and Media Industries Professionals Submitted to ExcludedUK
F. Conclusion – the short-term and long-term impacts
Appendix I_ExcludedUK Creative & Media Industries Survey_18 June 2020
Appendix II_ExcludedUK Creative & Media Industries Survey_Q15 responses_18 June 2020
Appendix 3_Open Letter to the Chancellor - Support for Arts and Culture_27 May 2020
Appendix 4_ExcludedUK_further information
A. Executive Summary
ExcludedUK was formed in early May 2020 and registered as a Community Interest Company with three founding directors, Sonali Joshi, Anneka Hicks and Aron Padley, in response to the financial challenges faced by individuals and businesses in light of the lack of government Covid-19 support.
ExcludedUK is a grassroots non-profit NGO, with a Facebook group of 10.1k followers and website www.excludeduk.org.
The aim of the organisation is to build a stronger collective platform for all those excluded from UK Government Covid-19 support, raise awareness, lobby for support, raise funds in the hope of providing hardship funds and small grants for those most in need. Most importantly, our hope is that our efforts can help propel affected individuals and businesses forward in the face of adversity resulting from Covid-19 and being excluded from Government support, while equally ensuring we are all able to help each other emerge from this crisis.
An initial survey was conducted across all industries represented by our community with 2,018 responses. 34% of respondents identified as workers within the creative and media industries.
A parallel survey specifically for those within the creative and media industries was conducted with 740 responses received. This survey was conducted to analyse short-term and long-terms financial impact of Covid-19 on these professionals, particularly in relation to income/loss of income, their circumstances, needs, future prospects and their feelings towards the Government’s response.
Survey results and further feedback received clearly illustrate how hard hit these sectors have been and that the Government must urgently address this crisis.
B. Introduction
This evidence is submitted by ExcludedUK, a newly formed grassroots non-profit NGO (registered as a Community Interest Company, company no. 12635856). ExcludedUK serves as a collective platform for those entirely or largely excluded from the UK Government's Covid-19 financial support measures.
As an organisation focused on the financial impact of lack of government support on individuals and businesses, this report focuses on the inadequacies in government support for those in the creative and media industries. According to a survey of +2,000, people we have identified that within our membership of people affected across different employment statuses, 34% belong to the creative and media industries, making it seemingly the hardest hit industry in terms of the negative financial impact of lack of government support.
However, through conversations and interactions with many individuals over the past 3 months, we are all too aware of the implications of the health crisis, physical/social distancing needs, the impact on civil liberties, widescale mental health and well-being issues across a broad spectrum of severity, knock on effects and wider ramifications for children, on education, single parents, families, those having to shield, the elderly, those from BAME communities and beyond.
Covid-19 and the ensuing lockdown have presented the most unforeseen challenges to many individuals and businesses across the UK. While government support packages have provided much needed support for many, there remain an estimated 3 million taxpayers, equating to 10% of the UK workforce, who find themselves left out of these measures.
C. Clearly Identified Gaps in Financial Support for Creative and Media Industries Professionals
We are submitting this evidence principally to highlight how individuals and businesses across the creative and media industries have been left out of government Covid-19 support and to illustrate the grave issues they face, together with the short-term and long-term implications arising.
We have identified the following categories of affected individuals and businesses which is consistent with the findings of the Treasury Committee’s report dated 15 June:
1. Self-Employed
- the newly self-employed
- the self-employed with +£50k trading profits
- those working a mix of PAYE and self-employed, unable to benefit from furlough and less than 50% self-employment
2. PAYE
- those in between jobs and denied furlough from previous employers, while new employers cannot furlough them
- PAYE freelancers on short-term contracts who cannot be furloughed
- those who cannot be furloughed due to working in the public sector (eg. BBC, government funded organisations)
3. Limited Companies/Owner-Directors
- directors paid PAYE annually and therefore cannot qualify due to the 19 March cut-off date for payroll to qualify
- directors paid in dividends
- directors of companies not in profit, and therefore payments drawn that would otherwise be dividends are in fact repayments to a director’s loan
- new businesses
- startups with less than £250k investment and therefore cannot benefit from the Future Fund
- businesses ineligible for business grants of £10k or £25k eg. those who work from home, in a non-fixed manner using co-working spaces in different locations and therefore not on a contract, those who work from a vehicle
4. Other situations
- those on parental leave
- those who have drawn from their pension
There are many other situations which we have identified from case studies submitted directly to ExcludedUK (see Section E).
As an organisation, ExcludedUK aims to build a stronger platform for all the above groups, raise awareness, offer support and advice and lobby Government and across Parliament so as to push for change that will enable affected individuals and businesses to emerge from this crisis in the best shape possible.
ExcludedUK recognises that there are many interconnected links between the different excluded groups in relation to employment status. For example:
- many small limited companies rely on freelancers who have consequently lost work
- employees whose jobs are at risk if businesses are at risk
- mental health is a growing concern
There is a growing and pressing need for change - how long are people expected to live on no income? Many simply cannot access Universal Credit. In the creative industries, many simply have no work on the horizon whatsoever where our work relies on 'mass gatherings' - finding another job is not straightforward. One recent headline suggested that arts and music festivals may not resume until autumn 2021. In the film exhibition sector, a recent survey showed that 41% of cinemas do not think they can re-open with social distancing measures, 50% said they hope to reopen by September, yet 27% do not anticipate they can open this year at all (source: Independent Cinema Office) - this is just one area of creative industries, but illustrates how desperate the situation is for many sectors that rely on collective viewing/mass gatherings. Theatre is affected in exactly the same way, while performance rehearsals are also called into question through social distancing needs. This all has direct sever impact on people’s livelihoods and jobs, not least given that these industries have large proportions of freelance workers as well as many of zero hours contracts. There are also a significant number of small limited companies affected – micro-businesses of 1-2 directors/employees are particularly badly affected, having to choose between furlough for a mere £575/month (based on the usual PAYE salary element of £719/month) or working in order to fight to keep one’s business alive.
On 28 April, one of ExcludedUK’s soon-to-be founders, Sonali Joshi, was invited to participate in a roundtable on the impact of the Government’s support packages on the small business community. She was the only attendee from the creative industries and thus highlighted the urgent need to address to the the challenges faced by the sector, stating:
With cinemas closed, film festivals cancelled and film productions and distribution halted globally, every aspect of our work has been affected. The creative industries are amongst the worst hit. Independent cinemas are vital community hubs, but even when gradual easing of lockdown measures take effect, cinema spaces are likely to be amongst the last to fully reopen, and that directly impacts us too…”[1]
D. Survey - Key Findings
Day for Night Film & Visual Arts Ltd, a company working across film and moving image exhibition, distribution and access services (with 1 owner director, 1 additional director, 1 contracted freelancer – all affected, and working with a large team of +200 freelancers) set about creating a survey to analyse the financial impacts of Covid-19 on the creative industries. As ExcludedUK was born (in early May), this survey was combined with the efforts of ExcludedUK, one of its founders, Sonali Joshi, being the founder-director of Day for Night Film & Visual Arts Ltd.
The key points illustrated by this survey are as follows:
broadcast (17%) film (17%), performance (15%)
E. Selected Anonymised Comments from Case Studies of Creative and Media Industries Professionals Submitted to ExcludedUK
Here follows a selection on anonymised comments taken from case studies submitted by individuals via the ExcludedUK website, illustrating the far-reaching impact of the gaps in support and some of the harrowing circumstances many people are facing:
I have not qualified for UC as my partner is still working. I don't know when my business will be able to trade again at the level it was before this crisis. The shops I supply have been closed, selling and trade events I usually exhibit at have been cancelled, and it looks like there will be few, if any events for the rest of this year. I run workshops and have cancelled and lost bookings due to all the uncertainty. I still have a very small trickle of online sales, but this has never been a big part of my income, though obviously my focus will be on that going forward. My mental health is suffering due to the anxiety caused by this situation, I'm angry and frustrated about the injustice in how so many people have been unfairly dismissed by the government schemes.
Since graduating from my Arts degree in 2011, I've balanced self employment with employment since this time, and have never claimed benefits. In Feb 2019 I was made redundant and having built up my self employment work, I decided it was time to see if I could successfully take the leap into full self employment. 2019 was better than I even hoped it could be, but sadly this hasn't been taken into consideration in SEISS. I made a loss in 18/19, as I invested in the leap I was hoping to take soon. I work PAYE for an Art College, and I am not eligible for furlough as I get paid for work done, not promise of work. We applied for UC, but they've taken 2 months of my partners furlough into account because his employer had paid him one month out of his own pocket & was claiming it back. I've fought for this to be amended. My only income at the moment is from the CIC, as they have so brilliantly decided to honour our contracts. However, this is a very small amount that doesn't currently cover my outgoings. I'm living off money that would pay my taxes next year, and so worried for the future, as 80% of my work for this year has been cancelled or put indefinitely on hold. I struggle with health issues and the stress of this all has made my pain unbearable - I've had to ring my doctor for stronger pain relief. It's so unfair how you are made to feel like a criminal for being Self employed. I've always worked hard and paid my taxes and I was under the impression that in times of need you would be supported. I was wrong.
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I had just started a new profession at the beginning of 2020 to support myself alongside working in theatre industry, which generally offers unsustainable income. UBI would allow me to undergo more training in my new profession to maximise future earnings and grow my self-employed business. It would also allow me to take on more opportunities within the theatre industry, which are normally only available to middle-upper class people who have a financial safety net from their family. Basically UBI would allow people from benefits and working-class backgrounds an equal playing field, so they can partake in the same opportunities as people born into more financially-secure backgrounds.
The theatre industry is facing utter decimation if the government doesn't step in to help save it. Many people in the sector are now looking for new careers in case it does not recover.
Many people have lost their income or face redundancies after furlough - in reality if industries are not protected then there simply won't be enough jobs to go round and the country will face mass unemployment.
Then I waited for SEISS to be up and running to try for a grant. I have been doing my own tax returns for the last two years, but my return shows lots of short PAYE contracts, so I was told I hadn’t done enough work as a self employed person and was told I wasn’t eligible. This is frustrating for anyone in the film industry who has been forced to be taxed at source due to HMRC rules, though our jobs are freelance. I also calculated my average earnings to be Just £1000 over the threshold. It makes me so angry and disappointed that I have contributed so much tax over the last few years, in a high bracket, that during this time I have been denied financial assistance to get by. I live in a rented flat in London with my boyfriend who has also lost all of his work due to the pandemic. We have rent and bills to pay, and relying on what is left of our savings and borrowing money from my parents to get us by. It’s been a very frightening time, after working so hard in my career to get to a comfortable position, I never thought I would be worrying about how I will afford the next month.
F. Conclusion – the short-term and long-term impacts
ExcludedUK welcomes the Treasury Committee’s report on the first part of its inquiry into the economic impacts of coronavirus, published 15 June, identifying gaps in support and making recommendations to the Treasury.
With three months having now passed since the Government’s Covid-19 financial support packages were brought into effect, and with the Chancellor’s focus on the future and the economic recovery, we know there have been many failings in these measures with devastating impact on many individuals and businesses. In recent interviews with Sophy Ridge on Sky and Andrew Marr on BBC1, when question about whether anything further could be done for all those who have been excluded from support at this time, the Chancellor implied that everyone had been helped in some way. The fact is they have not. In an interview on BBC Radio 4, when asked about funding for the arts in the light of this crisis, Caroline Dinenage, Arts Minister, stated that £160 million had been made available for the arts sector. However, this was done so on a competitive basis and therefore many organisations simply could not receive an award. Therefore, the assertion that the arts have been assisted adequately and appropriately is simply not true, particularly with the further precarity faced by so many of those working in these industries.
While that report identifies that over 1 million people have fallen through gaps, based on our analysis of statistics available from the Office for National Statistics Business Population Estimates, the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and HMRC, ExcludedUK has estimated this figure to be closer to 3 million[2], as also quoted by Martin Lewis (Founder, Money Saving Expert) and referred to by Andrew Marr in a BBC interview with the Chancellor on 14 June.
Based on our survey of 2,018 responses, that would equate to something in the region of 1 million freelancers/employees/limited company directors/people with mixed employment status being entirely or largely excluded from the Government support. This would seem largely consistent with the projection of 406,000 anticipated job losses as per the Oxford Economics report quoted in yesterday’s press release issued by Creative Industries Federation[3].
This is a stark reality for the creative industries and as calls have been made across industry bodies – BECTU, Creative Industries Federation, Equity, IPSE and others – for urgent financial support for a renewal and rebuilding of these industries.
In our discussions within our ExcludedUK community, we repeatedly encounter comments to the effect of exclusions from government support are unfair with large disparities and discrimination. The very nature of many areas of the creative industries are highly competitive and many feel they have worked incredibly hard, often over long career, at other times just work really hard to establish oneself, and thus the current situation is destroying some peoples' careers. Many have been in higher education for many years, at degree level, postgraduate degree level and beyond in order to further their careers and invested in this, to see their careers now hanging in the balance.
A few areas that we have identified as particularly problematic are:
- self-employed arts education professionals, for example, drama school teacher, music teachers and dance teachers, who have been excluded from support. Many undertake such work alongside other employment. Arts education is a vital element within young people’s education and thus very much part of the fabric of cultural activities throughout society across the UK, and at a time like this, many children will be missing out on these opportunities
- as illustrated above, mental health and well-being is a major factor. On one hand, for creators across disciplines, the inability to produce or show their work, which is so often a form of artistic self-expression, is part of the well-being of such individuals. On the hand, audiences - the general public, are being deprived of many art forms in their traditional viewing environments, yet there is vital need for culture and entertainment in such a time of crisis
- perhaps at the very core of the current crisis within the arts sector, is the fact that collective viewing and mass gathering are inherently part of the world of theatre, cinema, and many areas of visual arts. This has necessitated rethinking traditional modes of viewing, rethinking buildings and spaces and the future of the collective/gathering aspect of the arts more broadly. This naturally has a direct impact on all those who work across the arts, from artists and performers, to producers and cultural mediators, to technicians and crew
Prior to the onset of Covid-19, the creative industries were the fastest growing part of the UK economy and employ 2 million people, a third of which are self-employed. It is therefore not surprising that such a large proportion of those affected according to our survey are those in self-employment.
The creative industries are in normal times are a major driver of economic growth, yet having increasingly suffered the effects of austerity over the last decade especially with ever-decreasing funding available, now with the impact of Covid-19 as clearly demonstrated by the included survey results, the creative industries are in peril more than ever and urgently need to be saved.
Appendix I
Results of ExcludedUK Creative & Media Industries Survey_18 June 2020
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JBlF1H-Pl-nksmkdjTQGh1SNNMOtQF6L/view?usp=sharing
Appendix II
ExcludedUK Creative & Media Industries Survey_Q15 responses_18 June 2020
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1WV8j81pZcCtSzgbH5dClbcmY5ZOTD7aQ/view?usp=sharing
Appendix III
An open letter to the Chancellor calling for support for freelancers working across the creative industries was published on 27 May and the originator of the letter permitted us to submit this letter as an appendix to our evidence, to illustrate the depth of concern and support across the creative industries with +700 signatories, including some particularly high-profile names.
Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP
Chancellor of the Exchequer
HM Treasury
1 Horse Guards Road
London SW1A 2HQ
Wednesday 27th May 2020
Dear Chancellor,
We welcome the support the government has provided for those in the arts and cultural sector who face a loss of income as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, there remain many in the sector who are unable to access much-needed financial aid.
We the undersigned ask you to urgently expand the current support package to include all those who fall between the cracks presented by the current measures.
The government’s announcement of 12th May 2020 stating that furlough will be extended until the end of October 2020 highlights the even more pressing need for support for those currently ineligible for assistance. Your support will protect us personally and professionally during the difficult months ahead.
The arts and culture sector is vibrant and varied: our professions, skill sets, breadth of experience and circumstances are wonderfully and necessarily diverse. The sector relies upon the flexibility presented by self-employment, and yet many of us remain unable to claim support.
There are a number of specific groups within the arts and culture sector who are particularly affected:
● Freelancers who have been operating at a loss, or where average taxable monthly profits (judged on average profits over the past three years) fall significantly below recent levels of income, remain without adequate support, almost two months after the initial self-employment support package was announced on 26th March 2020
● Many with mixed PAYE and self-employed status have also experienced huge losses and find themselves unable to claim towards the shortfall, for example where self-employed income represents less than 50% of their total earnings
● Some members of the workforce who have recently left PAYE roles also find themselves unable to access funds made available through the recent leavers furlough scheme. Employers – for example, Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisations in receipt of public funding – are concerned about ‘double dipping’ (i.e. claiming public funds twice), or are otherwise unable to put leavers back on the payroll
● Employees who would usually work a series of short-term PAYE contracts similarly find themselves without support
This is not an exhaustive list.
In what is already one of the sectors most severely affected by the pandemic, the current situation threatens an immediate future where many of us will unduly suffer as a result of inflexible and patchy support, incurring lasting damage to our livelihoods, affecting our ability to stay in the sector, as well as further injury to the sector as a whole.
While emergency hardship support provided by the likes of Arts Council England has in some cases provided a lifeline, these competitive one-off payments are no substitute for ongoing support.
We ask you to renew your offer to include sector-wide support for all those who remain excluded from the current measures.
Yours sincerely,
Jeremy Deller, Artist
Katie Mitchell OBE, freelance theatre director
Dame Evelyn Glennie, Solo Percussionist
Brian Eno, musician, record producer and artist
Tracy Chevalier, author
Mark Wallinger, artist
Errollyn Wallen CBE, Composer
Joanna MacGregor CBE, Pianist, conductor, Royal Academy of Music
Christian Marclay, Artist
Horace Trubridge, General Secretary, Musicians Union
Brett Rogers, OBE, Director, The Photographers’ Gallery
Professor Griselda Pollock, art historian, curator, University of Leeds
Jonathan Reekie, CBE, Director, Somerset House Trust
Christine Payne, General Secretary, Equity
Philippa Childs, Head of Bectu
Gabriel Prokofiev, Composer, and Artistic Director of Nonclassical
Will Self, Author and Journalist
Caroline Bergvall, Writer and Performer
Mark Neville - Artist
Tom Robinson, songwriter, recording artist and broadcaster with BBC 6 Music
Pil and Galia Kollectiv, artists and directors at xero, kline & coma.
Dr Sos Eltis, Fellow and Tutor in English, Brasenose College, Oxford, Associate Professor, English Faculty University of Oxford
Ruth Daniel, CEO, In Place of War
Janine Irons MBE, Co-founder & CEO, Tomorrow’s Warriors
Gary Crosby OBE, Co-Founder & Artistic Director, Tomorrow’s Warriors
Susanna Eastburn MBE, Chief Executive, Sound and Music
Lou Dalton, menswear fashion designer and brand
Tim Etchells, Artist, Artist DIrector Forced Entertainment.
Assis Carreiro MBE, Director, International Arts & Cultural Projects
Graham McKenzie, Artistic Director, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival
Professor Brian Irvine MBE -Ulster University/ Dumbworld.
Ben Christodoulou (AKA Ben Christo), Musician & songwriter, The Sisters of Mercy
Jocelyn Pook, composer
Sue Jones, Artistic Director & CEO, Whitstable Biennale & Cement Fields
Toby Litt, Reader in Creative Writing, Birkbeck College
Natalia Franklin Pierce, Executive Director, Nonclassical
Hettie Judah, freelance writer and art critic
Emma Cameron, Freelance Producer and Stage Manager
Sam Mackay, Researcher and editor
Helen Wallace, Artistic Director, Kings Place
Jimmy Sims, Musician, Songwriter
Cathie Boyd, Artistic Director, Cryptic
Zoe Sawyer, Offsite Curator, Eastside Projects
Michael Howcroft, Freelance director
Dr. Yael Flexer, Artistic Director, Flexer & Sandiland & freelance choreographer
Nic Sandiland, Artistic Director, Flexer & Sandiland & freelance digital artist
Alex Zawadzki - Curator Producer
Shona McCarthy - Chief Executive Edinburgh Festival Fringe Society
Fielding Hope - Senior Producer at Cafe OTO
Daniela Cardim - Choreographer and Project Manager
Filipe Sousa - Composer, pianist and educator.
Robert Pacitti - Artistic Director, Pacitti Company & SPILL Festival of Performance
Stephen Hiscock - Composer, founder member of ensemblebash
Nicholas Bannerman, Freelance music promoter
Nelson Fernandez, Director, NFA International Arts & Culture
Urja Desai Thakore, Artistic Director, Pagrav Dance company.
Dan Mayfield, Freelance musician and head of School of Noise
Cath JAmes, Artistic Director, South East Dance
Catherine Ring - Freelance musician, member of ensemblebash & Colin Currie Group
Ben Eshmade - Freelance music producer and podcaster
Simon Rogers - Composer
Joseph Dunne-Howrie, Lecturer, Rose Bruford College of Theatre and Performance
David Blandy - Artist
Lucy Burge - Choreographer
Helena Rice- Creative Producer
Hannah Williams Walton, Executive Producer, Paraorchestra
Sarah Angliss, Composer and live performer
Colin Uttley, actor
Dr Alexandra Daisy Ginsberg - Artist
Rupert Morrison, director of Sea Change Festival
Catherine Bruzzone, director b small publishing
Marieke Navin, Cheltenham Science Festival
Hannah Tookey, Freelance Producer
Daniel Gott - Freelance Voice Coach
Rowena Price - Freelance Communications Consultant & Coach
Prue Skene, governance consultant
Amanda Parker, Director, Inc Arts UK
Angharad Cooper, Freelance Producer, Consultant and Coach
William Burdett-Coutts, Artistic Director Assembly Festival & Riverside Studios
Joe Crewe, TV Editor
Ceiclie Gravesen, Visual Artist and Producer
Jennifer Raven, Deputy Director, Sound Connections
Gemma Wright, Artistic Director of The Dance Network Association CIC
Jo Verrent - senior producer, Unlimited
Patrick Grant, Creative Director
Andrew Miller, arts consultant & broadcaster
Kelsie Acton, Inclusive Practice Manager, Battersea Arts Centre
Charlotte Mountford, Co-Director, Lyth Arts Centre
Andrew Hurst, Chief Executive, One Dance UK
Ruth Claxton, Associate Director, Eastside Projects
Beth Hinton-Lever, Freelance Actor
Bobby McCarthy, Freelance Theatre & Events Technician
Karl Jay-Lewin, Creative Director of Dance North Scotland, Choreographer
Glenn Boulter, Artistic Director, Full of Noises Festival
Stephen Budd - Stephen Budd Music Ltd / OneFest / Africa Express
Sam Francis - Project Producer, Outlands / Supernormal Festival / BEEF
Ashokkumar Mistry Freelance artist, writer and curator
Joanne Roughton-Arnold, Freelance opera singer, company director of formidAbility
Victoria Taylor, Head of Programmes, Cardboard Citizens / Freelance Arts Project Manager
Sho Shibata, on behalf of Stopgap Dance Company as its Executive Producer
Flora Fairbairn, art consultant and curator
Rory Beaton, Freelance Theatre Lighting Designer
Una NIcEoin: Executive Producer. Prime Cut Productions
Phil Simpson, Bookikg Agent, Strada Music
Mhari Robinson, Executive Producer, Independent Arts Projects
Wayne Ford, Independent Designer & Creative Director
Jen Shepherd, Producer, Tinderbox Theatre Company
Noel Jordan, Festival Director, Edinburgh International Children’s Festival, Imaginate
Conan McIvor, Freelance artist and Filmmaker
Jamie-Glyn Bale, Freelance performer & PGR Drama Student
Debra Deakin, Freelance performer & PhD student
Oisín Kearney, Freelance writer and director
Emma Reid, freelance director, technician & stage manager.
Natalie Murphy, Associate Producer, Prime Cut Productions
Kate Arnold, freelance musician
Deborah Templeton, freelance writer
Richard Hasnip, Head of Performing Arts, Regents Theological College
Michael Cordner, Ken Dixon Professor of Drama, University of York
James Macpherson, Artistic Director, Artizani, freelance lecturer
Kate Brown, freelance director and writer
Kurt Taroff, Head of the School of Arts, English and Languages, Queen’s University Belfast
Simon Murray, Theatre Studies, University of Glasgow
Daniel Tyler-McTighe, Director, Multilingual Performance Project, University of Oxford, Freelance theatre-maker
Nicola McCartney, playwright & dramaturg; Reader in Writing for Performance, University of Edinburgh
Megan Nolan, author and journalist
Ruth Cooper-Brown, Fight Director.
Corinne Silva, Artist
Robin Hellier, BADC Apprentice Teacher
John Britton, Artistic Director, DUENDE & The DUENDE School of Ensemble Physical Theatre
Paddy Cooper, Artistic Director, Dark Unicorn Productions Ltd
Eleanor Stourton, Executive Director, Dark Unicorn Productions Ltd
Caitlin Gleeson, theatre maker, facilitator and producer
Rishi Trikha, Senior Lecturer in Theatre and Performance, London Metropolitan University
Professor Gweno Williams, National Teaching Fellow, University of York
Dr Margaret Jackson-Roberts, singer and Council Member, National Early Music Association
James Loxley, Professor of Early Modern Literature, University of Edinburgh
Martin White, Emeritus Professor of Theatre, University of Bristol
Solen Fluzin, Project Manager (Development/Fundraising), Musicity
Greg Walker, Regius Professor of Rhetoric and English Literature, University of Edinburgh
John Keefe, Senior Lecturer & Academic Tutor, London Metropolitan University and dramaturg
Dr Gus Gowland, writer and lecturer
Max May, Chief Executive Officer, Rural Arts North Yorkshire
Geraldine Harris, Professor of Theatre, Lancaster University.
Elva Makins, Associate Lecturer Anglia Ruskin University & Freelance Director
Carien Meijer, Chief Executive, Drake Music
Jack Pinder, Freelance Voiceover
Francis Mezza, Actorf, Equity Young Members Committee.
Uta Kogelsberger, Professor of Cross Disciplinary Practice, Newcastle University and Freelance Visual Artist.
Sarah Gorman, Reader in Drama, Theatre & Performance, Roehampton University, London
Chris Hay, Freelance Production Manager
Becky Morris Knight, Artist and Freelance Arts Communications Consultant
Anders Morris Knight, Freelance Arts Consultant
Rebecca Todd, Actor
Stephen Gilchrist, Freelance Musician, Educator & Director of Brixton Hill Studios.
Sop, Artist
Professor Claire Cochrane, Professor of Theatre Studies, Worcester University
Dr. Sadie Harrison Freelance Composer/Educator/Chair of the Board of SOUNDWORLD
Carmen Bradford, Composer
Victoria Couper, Singer / Performer
Simon Cooke, Lecturer, English Literature, University of Edinburgh
Irene Revell, Curator/researcher
Mark Aerial Waller, Artist/researcher
Antonio Roberts, Artist
Xavier Ribas, Photographer
Michael Wilson, Professor of Drama and Head of Creative Arts, Loughborough University
Sally Rose, Freelance arts producer and Producer of CONTINUOUS Network
Syma Tariq, researcher, University of the Arts London
Keith Hughes, Lecturer, English Literature, University of Edinburgh
Dr Robert Marsden, Freelance Theatre Director and Associate Professor (Acting and Directing), Staffordshire University.
Luke Younger, Artist / Musician
Claire Llewellyn, Fight Director, Stage Combat Teacher
Ania Bas, Artist
Francine Dulong, Freelance Theatre Artist, Teacher and Co-Artistic director of Blooming Ludus and BAGEL+BALLOON
Leon Clowes, freelance arts curator/creator
Lara Eggleton, freelance editor and writer
Sarah Taylor Silverwood, Artist
Alessandra Cianetti, performingborders Founder & Curator
Jamie Crewe, artist
Susan Bixley ARAM retired freelance musician
Reyhan Yusuf - Freelance musician
Frank Moon - freelance composer
Richard Speir - Freelance Theatre Director
Louise Pack - freelance film maker
Clare Summerskill - Playwright and performer
David Lefeber - Record Producer, Sound Engineer and Filmmaker
Sam Belinfante, artist and academic fellow at University of Leeds
Carole Jones, Senior Lecturer in English, University of Edinburgh
Chris Kirkwood. CEO Lincoln Drill Hall.
Grace Gelder - photographer & educator
Lu Williams, Artist and Founder of Grrrl Zine Fair
Jane Alexander, Lecturer in Creative Writing, University of Edinburgh
Yvonne Carmichael, Director, South Square Centre, Bradford
Alex Parry - artist and educator
Chooc Ly Tan - Freelance artist, DJ and lecturer
Alison Barnes, Company Director / Musician, Licence to Ceilidh Ltd
Philippe Barnes, Company Director / Musician, Licence to Ceilidh Ltd
David McLeavy, Curator and Artistic Director
Victoria Davison, Operations Director, London Children’s Ballet
Cath Heinemeyer, postdoctoral researcher in theatre, York St John University
Gianna Bouchard, Senior Lecturer in Theatre, University of Birmingham
Tracy Crossley, Senior Lecturer in Performance, University of Salford.
Barry Gornell, freelance writer
Alex Neilson- musician and writer
Paul Jackson, freelance academic and musician
Amelia Hawk, Freelance artist & EOP and Public Programmer, Eastside Projects
Kate Cox - Freelance Producer & Curator/Clik Clik Collective/Cabinet of Lost Secrets
Astrid Breel, Impact Research Fellow at Bath Spa University and Associate of Coney
Arthur Swindells, sound engineer
Sadie Edginton - Freelance artist and researcher
Adam Aggiss - Freelance Musician & Educator
Lauren Velvick - Associate Creative Producer, Lancaster Arts and freelance artist/writer/curator
Kerry Harker - Co-founder, The Tetley/Founder and Artistic Director, East Leeds Project
Kim McAleese - Programme Director, Grand Union
Kate Macfarlane - Co-director, Drawing Room and trustee of Tannery Arts Studios
Dr Patrick James Errington, Poet & Early Career Researcher, University of Edinburgh
Andrew Bracey -Artist and Senior Lecturer at The University of Lincoln
Warren Harper, Director, the Old Waterworks
Professor Anna Furse, Goldsmiths, University of London
Frances Niall Black, Freelance Production Manager, Glasgow
Anneka French - Freelance writer, curator, artist
Katharine Hawnt, Singer & AHRC supported PhD student
Jimi Smith - Rehearsal Studio Manager & Recording Artist
Alasdair Roberts - musician
Tamara Tomicć-Vajagić, Senior Lecturer in Dance, Roehampton University
Hannah Putsey Roberts, General Manager, Hearts & Minds
Mike Cranny, Musician
Bern Plain - Company Director, Musicbox Studios, Cardiff
Dr Sian Rees, Lecturer in Acting & Performance, University for the Creative Arts
David Steans, Artist and Lecturer at Leeds Arts University
Céline Condorelli, Artist
Chris Alton, Artist
Paula McFetridge, Artistic Director, Kabosh
Dr Sophia Lycouris, Reader, University of Edinburgh
Dr Suzanne Trill, Senior Lecturer, English Literature, University of Edinburgh
Jeremy Birchall - Freelance Singer and Record Producer
Kaye Toland, Freelance Designer and Teaching Assistant, University of the Arts London
Nicki Wells - Singer Songwriter Composer, London
Emma Bailey, performance designer for theatre and dance, London
Peter Bonnell, Senior Curator, QUAD, Derby
Mathew Parkin, Artist
Dr Sarah Cardwell Davies, freelance dance teacher & Honorary Researcher
Annette Corbett - Independent producer, fundraiser & coach
Eric appapoulay, Musician, songwriter, producer, London
Sheila de Val Madsen, PhD Researcher, Uni of Manchester
Radhika Aggarwal, Actor and facilitator, London
Colin Moncrieff, Performer, Glasgow
Nicola Shipley, Director, GRAIN Projects
Laurie Stras, Professor Emerita in Music, University of Southampton; Research Professor, University of Huddersfield; Co-Director, Musica Secreta
David Barnett, Professor of Theatre, University of York, and Executive Committee Member of SCUDD (the Standing Conference of University Drama Departments, the Drama, Theatre and Performance subject association for the UK)
Olga Taxidou, Professor of Drama and Performance Studies, University of Edinburgh
Lillian Wilkie, publisher and lecturer
Crispin Gray, Artist & Musician
Stephen Burke, Photographer & GRAIN Project Producer
Barry Sheppard, Theatre Manager and Producer (rtd), Vice-President The Society for Theatre Research
Rachel McMurray, Freelance Theatre Director and Applied Theatre Practitioner
Cory Shipp, Theatre Designer and Scenic Artist
Sean Read, Musician and Producer, Famous Times
George Tarbuck, Director, Edinburgh Lighting & Sound School / Lighting Designer
Elizabeth Howard, Freelance producer, performer and researcher
Amy Voris, Freelance dance artist, lecturer and researcher
Craig Ashley, Director, New Art West Midlands
John Slyce, writer and critic, Senior Tutor, Royal College of Art
Angharad Lee, Artistic Director of Leeway Productions, freelance director, lecturer at UWTSD
Caroline Kershaw, musician
Alex Mermikides, Doctoral Programme Leader, Guildhall School of Music & Drama
Ainslie Roddick ATLAS Arts
Karen Wood, Assistant Professor, Centre for Dance Research, Coventry University and Associate Director of Birmingham Dance Network
Jane Deppa, on behalf of Grand Union Orchestra
Lily Hayward-Smith Research Assistance, Centre for Dance Research, Coventry University
Robbie Synge, Artist
Tony Herrington, Publisher, The Wire magazine
Dr. Marie-Louise Crawley, Assistant Professor in Dance and Cultural Engagement, Centre for Dance Research, Coventry University
Josephine Starte, Writer Performer
Sofia Martins-Gray, Visual Artist
Mark Anstey, Booking Agent, Unique Gravity
Rachel Colles - Performer, Clowndoctor & Co-Artistic Director of Dirliebane Theatre Company
Elisabeth Orion-Gray, Professor Emerita Carnegie-Mellon University USA
Del Mak - Freelance Choreographer, Movement Director, Dance Teacher & Judge
Frances Babbage, Professor of Theatre, University of Sheffield
Rob Parton, Freelance Producer and Fundraising Consultant Plugged/Amplify
George Boundy Mres - Marketing Officer, Marina Theatre Lowestoft
Michelle Man, Senior Lecturer in Dance
Paul Hegarty, Teacher, Actor and Theatre Director
Colette Hansford, Executive Producer, Hofesh Shechter Company
Fiona Millward, Dance Artist
Sarah Beddington, Artist and Filmmaker
Maria Delgado, Professor and Director of Research, The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London
Jo Stendall, Executive Director, Boy Blue
Patrick Staff, artist
Sophie Cooper, Creative Producer
Rachel Gomme, artist and researcher
Jack Knowles, Lighting Designer
Carl Dunnington, Head of Drama, Poole Grammar School
Andrew Joshi, Actor
Adam Perry, Musician
Jason Perry, Record Producer, Musician
Felicity Riddy, Emerita Professor of English, University of York
Howard Loxton, theatre critic
Sarah Wishart, artist and researcher
Nathan Clark, Promoter and Director, Brudenell Social Club
Trevor Baines, Freelance Sound Engineer
Duncan Tulloch, Touring Sound Engineer
George Holmes, Promoter & Booker, This Feeling
Wendy James, Musician, Transvision Vamp
Lisa Lovebucket, Playwright, Artist in Residence
Sarah McWatt, Director, NYMAZ
William Russell, freelance theatre critic
Carolyn Deby, Artist/director, sirenscrossing
Tina Carter, Circus Practitioner & Researcher, Airhedz Aerial Training
Sarah Weston, Lecturer in Theatre and Performance
Anna Meadmore, Dance Historian and Lecturer
Tina Ellen Lee Artistic Director Opera Circus
Sarah Bartley, Lecturer in Theatre and Performance, Queen Mary University of London
Robert Golden Photographer and Documentary Film maker
Cara Dillon, Singer, co-owner Charcoal Records
Sam Lakeman, Musician, Record Producer, co-owner Charcoal Records
Giulia Casalini, independent curator and PhD, Roehampton University
Rebecca Kemp, Tour Manager, On Tour Logistics
Gail Cooke, Booking Agent, Laughing Dog Music
Edward Black, Producer, Session Guitarist & Guitar Tutor
Josephine Berry, writer and Research Tutor, Royal College of Art
Robbie Knight, Musician, Community Music Teacher
Steve Beresford, musician and lecturer at LCC, University of the Arts London.
Dr Blanca Regina, artist, curator, educator. Lecturer at University of Kent.
Morna Young, Playwright
Fiona Grady, Freelance Artist
Rachel Barker, Musician/Artist
John McCann, Playwright, Co-chair Scottish Society of Playwrights
Clio Unger. PhD Candidate and VIsiting Lecturer at The Royal Central School of Speech and Drama, University of London
Dr Sara Reed Associate Professor of Dance Coventry University and Co- Chair of Independent Dance
Elaine Mitchener, Vocal-Movement Artist and Visiting Professor of Composition Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Isolde Freeth-Hale, Musician / Teacher / Musical Director
Alex Fthenakis, Freelance Performer, Producer, and Director
Peter Arnott, Playwright
Linda Duncan McLaughlin, Writer and Actor, Co-Chair, Scottish Society of Playwrights
Andrew Bick, Artist, Director, Tannery Arts
Stephanie May, Music Programmer/Producer
Melanie Manchot, Artist
Carey Young, artist
Chrissy Kinsella, Chief Executive, London Music Fund
Anna Fox, Professor of Photography, University for the Creative Arts
Sarah Pickering, Artist and lecturer
Alice Channer, artist
Indy Vidyalankara, Founder/Director, Indypendent PR
Marianna Simnett, artist
Simon Holland - sound engineer
Bettina von Zwehl, Artist
Sally Peerless, dancer, singer and musician
Gemma Hood, Freelance TV Assistant Producer
Liz Carruthers, Freelance Theatre Director and Lecturer
G.R Greer, Playwright
Andy McGregor, playwright, composer and director
Cameron Forbes, Playwright and Drama Teacher
John Carnegie, Theatre Director
Dr Michael Dempster - Scots writer and theatremaker
Brian Dillon, freelance writer and Professor of Creative Writing, QMUL
Abi Bliss, freelance writer and editor
George Gunn, poet and playwright
Gemma McAdam, Freelancer, Sound Recordist/Designer
Ishbel McFarlane, freelance theatre maker, writer and performer
Skye Loneragan, freelance writer/performer
Frances Kearney, Artist & owner of The Studio Bed and Breakfast, Cley next the Sea
Ian Low, Playwright
Ian Brown, playwright and poet
Kolbrún Björt Sigfúsdóttir, director and playwright
Alastair Cording, freelance actor, playwright and director
Rajha Shakiry, Freelance Performance Designer and Scenographer
Max Jones, Freelance Production Designer.
Cassandra Layton, Artist
Alasdair Satchel, Theatre and Filmmaker
Judy Price, Artist and Academic
Eve Nicol, freelance playwright and director
Dan Rebellato, Playwright and Professor of Contemporary Theatre, Royal Holloway, University of London
Kamila Kuc, artist and academic
Nelly Kelly, playwright and performer
Astrid Schmetterling, Senior Lecturer in Visual Cultures, Goldsmiths, University of London
Sarah Carpenter, Reader in English Literature, University of Edinburgh
Ruth Novaczek, artist and academic
Katie Beswick, Senior Lecturer in Drama, University of Exeter
Jessica Cottis, conductor
Merryn Glover, writer
Clare Strand, artist
Tristan Bryant, Booking Agent and Tour Manager
Isabel Wright, playwright
Adam Falkner, musician
Chloe Shrimpton, Producer
Ren Renwick, CEO, Association of Illustrators
Neil McPherson, Artistic Director, Finborough Theatre
Bobby Baker, Artistic Director Daily Life Ltd
Adele Thomas Opera Director
Richard Whitelaw, Chair of Trustees, Marsden Jazz Festival
Lola May, Actress
Alannah Chance, Radio Producer
Johnny McKnight, Playwright, Director, Writer
April Chamberlain, Producer, Director
Holly Fulton, Designer
Claudia Molitor, Composer
Anna Fleischle, Set and Costume Designer
Laura Bettinson, music producer/DJ, lau.ra / FEMME / Ultraísta
Mikko Gordon, music producer
Jane Hartshorn, PhD Researcher, University of Kent
Paul Smith, musician & singer with Maximo Park
Hannah Starkey, Artist
Davis Wilkie - Musical Instrument Technician
Bethan Clark, Fight Director and Stage Combat Instructor
Nicholas Arnold, National Professor Emeritus of Cultural Studies, Adam Mickiewicz University
Madeleine Girling, Set & Costume Designer
Louise Fedotov-Clements, Artistic Director of QUAD / Director of FORMAT
Amy Conway, Freelance Theatre Maker, Actor & Playwright
Alex Lipitch, freelance actor
James Birchall, Director, Fuse Art Space / CAMP
Elizabeth Holden Retired Senior Lecturer in Music Education
Lynsey Murrell, actor, voice artist
Markus Hansen, Artist
Nathan James Dearden, Composer, Conductor, Visiting Lecturer in Music Composition at Royal Holloway University of London
Louise Brodie, Community Artist and Project Manager
Cheryl Frances-Hoad, Composer
Eduard Solaz, Director, IKLECTIK, London
Isa Ferri, Sound Engineer, IKLECTIK, London
Judith Robinson, Head of Education, Sound and Music
Katrina Lindsay, Freelance Set & Costume Designer.
Karl Collins, Freelance, Actor
Jacqueline Boatswain, Freelance Actor
Beth Morton, Freelance Director, Theatre Maker & Dramaturg
Sarah Nicolls, Pianist, Composer, Piano re-inventor
Vanda Playford, Artist
Dr Stephen Wilson, Theorist, Writer & Senior Lecturer, University of the Arts London
Richard Squires, artist and joint course leader, BA Filmmaking, Kingston University
Tony Lidington, artistic director, Promenade Promotions (Prom-Prom) Limited
Hannah Turner-Duffin, Artist and educator
Daniel Easton, Freelance, Actor
Katie Ann Smith, Head of Museums & Arts Consultant
Gregory Sigston, Picture Editor and Photographer
Dr John Butcher, Musician / composer
Steve Mead, Artistic Director/CEO, Manchester Jazz Festival
Staff (Niamh Flanagan, Orla McGrady, Molly Rose Street and Kieran Lambe) & Board of Theatre and Dance NI
Lewis Hetherington, Playwright and Director
Freya Hellier, Freelance Radio Producer
Dr. Hilda Paredes, composer
John Harris, Chief Executive, Red Note Ensemble Ltd
Jennifer Phillips, Producer, Starcatchers
Bela Emerson, co-director Open Strings Music
Amber Priestley, composer (self-employed)
Sandy Thomson, Artistic Director, Poorboy
James Dillon, composer, Professor Emeritus, University of Minnesota
Jake Stewart, The Rogue Curator
James Saunders, composer and Professor of Music, Bath Spa University
Joanne Masding, artist
Marina Perryman, Resonate Creative CIC
Charlotte Almond, Brighton Counselling Collective
Uriel Orlow, visual artist and lecturer
Rachel Briscoe, Creative Director, Fast Familiar
Christiane Monarchi, Founder, Photomonitor
David Farrier, University of Edinburgh
Robyn Jancovich-Brown, Freelance Producer & Arts Project Manager
Alex Menzies, Music
Jo White, Freelance Musician in Healthcare and Programme Manager
Rachel Baynton, Lecturer - CEP, University of Lincoln & Co-Artistic Director, Proto-type Theater
Jemima Levick, Artistic Director and CEO, Stellar Quines Theatre Company
Sarah Brown - Freelance Lighting Programmer
Lewis Bush - photographer, course leader documentary photography, University of the Arts London
Kathy Hinde - Freeland Artist & Composer / Cryptic Artist / BEEF Artist
Dr Liz Dilnot Johnson - Composer and Director
Miriam Gamble, Lecturer in Creative Writing, University of Edinburgh
Anna Dolphin, Arts Educator, Music in Healthcare Practitioner
Liselle Terret, Senior Lecturer in Socially Engaged Performance at University of East London
Andrew Westerside, Associate Professor of Theatre, University of Lincoln & Co-Artistic Director, Proto-type Theater
Owen McCafferty, Playwright
Prince Laryea, Executive Producer, Avant Garde Dance
Tony Adigun, Artistic Director, Avant Garde Dance
Christopher O’Gorman, Classical tenor, York Minster/Freelance
Paul Burger - SohoArtists / Hipgnosis Songs Fund Ltd
Andy Edwards, Playwright & Dramaturg, Freelance
Naomi Pinnock, Composer
David Stone, Freelance Lighting Technician
Martin Collins, Executive Director & Producer, Russell Maliphant Dance Company
Judith Walsh, General Manager, Starcatchers
Dr Rachelle Viader Knowles, Head of International, Arts and Humanities, Manchester Met Uni
Len Dolphin, Private Piano Tutor, Member of Incorporated Society of Musicians
Sam Waddington, Freelance Lighting Designer
Ben Jacobs, Freelance Lighting Designer
Sabine LemaÎtre - Freelance Costume Design Supervisor
Daniel Easton - Freelance Actor
Bex Anson Director MHz Scenography
Faye Wilkinson, Content Producer
Maisie Chan, Children’s Author
Andre Fry - Freelance Musician / Tutor
Stephanie Pogson, Artist, Freelance Producer & Arts Project Manager
Noriko Kawai, pianist
Cherry Smyth, poet and art writer
Peter Mackay, Writer and Lecturer in Literature, University of St Andrews
Matthew Somerville, Freelance Lighting and Video Engineer / Programmer
Sam Haddow, Lecturer in drama, University of St Andrews
Heidi Talbot, musician
Marcas Mac an Tuairneir, Writer, Singer and Broadcaster
Professor Pete Stollery, Composer, Chair of sound
Fiona Robertson, Director of Sound Scotland
Lynda Radley, Playwright
Martel Ollerenshaw, Creative Producer, Arts & Parts
Louise Oliver, Actress and Creative Producer
Andrew Burke, Chief Executive & Artistic Director, London Sinfonietta
Zinnie Harris, Playwright and Director
Velenzia Spearpoint, Artistic Director, Bread & Roses Theatre
Katja Armknecht, General Manager, Red Note Ensemble
Lola de la Mata, Freelance Composer, Artist, Curator
Beatrice Banionyte, Freelance Production electrician
Alasdair Campbell, Director, AC Projects, Artistic Director, Counterflows Festival
David Papp, radio producer
Patricia ONeill, Make Up Artist & Consultant
Alex Ramsden, Freelance Video & Lighting Engineer
Lily Markiewicz, Freelance Film Editor and Filmmaker
Caroline Trevor, Freelance singer
Aaron Holloway-Nahum, Artistic Director, The Riot Ensemble
Sarah Gabriel, Singer, Writer, Actor
Nicola Jefferies, Assistant Producer in Television
Mim Spencer. Freelance Production Electrician
Josh Alward, filmmaker, writer and actor
Eilidh McCormick, Actor, Director and Teacher
Philip Thomas, Pianist, Professor of Performance, University of Huddersfield
Ivo Neame, Composer, Professor of Jazz Piano, Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Ella Finer, writer/researcher
Georgia Tatò, Writer, Director, Freelancer
Heather Pearson, Writer & Editor
Sonali Joshi, Founder & Curator, Day for Night Film & Visual Arts Ltd
Natasha Jenkins, Freelance Designer for Theatre, Film and Television
Nate Gibson, Freelance Designer for Opera and Theatre
Jessica Denning, Admin and Studios Manager, Artsadmin
Margareta Kern, Artist, Lecturer
Luke Perry, Public Artist
Lori Blackburn, Teacher
Katherine Leedale, Photographer, artist and workshop facilitator
Jessica Regan, Actor
Carole Edrich, Founder of DanceGRiST and photodramaturg
Emily Hall, Composer
Marc Dunleavy, Freelance Creative Producer & Project Manager
NIck Moran, Senior Lecturer in Performance Design, Royal Central School of Speech & Drama
Polly Frame, Performer
Carrie Quinlan, Actor & writer
Elin Morgan, PR Director, Mobius Industries
Eleanor Ward, Freelance Creative Producer
Alex MacLaren, Director, the Spontaneity Shop
Lou Barnell- Composer/ Artist/ Director Spitalfields Music
Dr Martin Welton, Reader in Theatre and Performance, Queen Mary University of London
Mary Farbrother, Cinematographer
Natalie Melton, Creative Director, Crafts Council
Josephine Burton, Artistic Director, Dash Arts
Joe Douglas, Artistic Director, Live Theatre
Kate Lane, Artist & Senior Lecturer, Central Saint Martins
Sarah Blanc, Performer, Choreographer and Artistic Director Moxie Brawl
Richard Williams, Theatre and Opera director
John Dorney, Writer and Actor
Catrin Aaron, Actor
Anna Harding, Chief Executive, SPACE
Deborah Robinson, Head of Exhibitions, The New Art Gallery Walsall
Erin McGee, Writer and Administrator for Stellar Quines Theatre Company
Monique Ricketts, Consultancy Projects Manager, The Audience Agency
Zoe Caldwell, Freelance General Manager/Company Manager
Deborah Robinson, Head of Exhibitions, The New Art Gallery Walsall
Nandita Lovage, Creative Producer / Educator
Molly Taylor, Playwright
Fiona Long, Artist and Studio Manager at Tannery Arts
katie Boag dance artist
Hannah Edie, teacher
Emma Meehan, Assistant Professor in Dance, Coventry University
Rachel Hendry, Project Coordinator, Cryptic
Kate Bulpitt, writer
Yvonne Murphy, Freelance Theatre Director, Producer & Founder of Omidaze Productions
Carolyn Saunders, Freelance writer/director
Josh Anio Grigg, Artist and Sound Designer
Ella Mesma, Freelance Choreographer and artist,
Sandra Chalmers, Senior Agent, Shepherd Management
Archie Bell, Artist, Lecturer and Exhibition project manager at Sam Forster
Catherine Dyson, Writer and Performer
Róise Goan, Artistic Director and Deborah Chadbourn, Executive Director, Artsadmin.
Nick Paton, Artist
Professor Carole-Anne Upton, PVC/Executive Dean of Arts and Creative Industries, Middlesex University
Ana Teles, Artist and Researcher, University of the Arts London
Sarah Ford, Freelance Acting Teacher, Actress, Voice Actress
Jo Royce, Executive Director, Candoco Dance Company
Caroline Goodall, Actress, Writer, Producer
Mafalda Dâmaso, Lecturer, King’s College London
Dr Pamela Barnes, Programme Leader BA Acting, University of Chester
Charlene Sandy, Artist and Programme Manager, Adults and Community, Cubitt
Eleanor Bedlow, Artist
Vickie Fear, Curator/Programme Manager, Aspex
Shelagh McLeod. Actor/ Writer/ Director
Luke Turner, writer & co-founder, The Quietus
Erica Love, CEO Culture Central.
Emily Macaulay, graphic designer, bookbinder and printer
Clare Grafik, Head of Exhibitions, The Photographers’ Gallery
Curtis James, Chair, Brighton People’s Theatre
Gurvinder Bans, Project Manager, Counting What Counts
John Knell, Director, Counting What Counts
Sam Nicholls, Director, Music:Leeds and Senior Lecturer in Music Industries, Leeds Beckett University
Gemma Mcginley, Writer
Fiona Skinner, Actor
Laura Guy, Writer and curator
Lou Stoppard, Writer and Curator
Gavin Wade, Artist-Curator, Director, Eastside Projects
Annette Badland Actress
John Doran, Co-founder and Editor of The Quietus
Holly-Jane Shears, Musician and Morris dancer
Nick Mumford, Freelance Production Electrician
Rhea Lewis, Producer, Stellar Quines Theatre Company, Co-Director Project X Dance
Yael Roberts, artist
Marie McPartlin, Director of Studios and Producing, Somerset House
Anna Braithwaite - Freelance composer and performer
Diane Stewart, Playwright
Julie Tsang, Playwright
Michelle Rolfe, Producer
Matt Williams, Public Programme Curator, Camden Art Centre
Heike Roms, Professor in Theatre and Performance, University of Exeter
Charlotte Procter, Collection Manager, LUX
Paul Hamlyn, Artist
Meg Rosoff, Writer FRS
Callum Madge - Engagement Manager, Birds of Paradise Theatre Company
Amble Skuse, Composer
Ashanti Harris, Artist and Co-Director of Project X Dance CIC
Emma Jones, Lighting Designer and Production Manager
Christopher Daniel, Performance Designer & Theatre Architect, Polysemic Ltd
Catherine Manson, performing musician
Jeda Pearl Lewis, writer and Programme Manager for the Scottish BAME Writers Network
Helen Eragona, freelance theatre marketing manager
Raff Eragona, musician
Katherine Rundell, writer, Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford
Victoria Johnson, Artists and Head of Digital and Audience Engagement, Sound and Music
Timothy Hyman RA Painter and Writer
Lucy Steggals, Artist
Gregory Burke, Playwright/Screenwriter.
Eric Hoeprich, performing musician
Joanna Kavenna, writer
Panos Chavatzas, Painter
Philippa Cross, General Manager, Talking Birds Theatre Company
Hendrik Wittkopf, painter
Louise Gilmour-Wills, Producer, Catherine Wheels Theatre Company
David Henckel - Artist
Glen Luchford, Photographer
Kathryn Smith, Performer and workshop leader, Founder of Curiosa and The Embodied Voice
Crispin Hunt, Songwriter, Producer and Chair of The Ivors Academy
Graham Davies, Chief Executive, The Ivors Academy
Jeremy Avis: singer, choral director , producer @ Goal-mouth: bringing people together in song.
Dr Natasha Davis - artist, producer, lecturer
Sally Gardner, writer
David Benedict, writer
Amy Zamarripa Solis, Director, This Too Is Real
Amanda Craig, Novelist
Alec FInlay, poet & artist
Roger Tredre, course leader, Central Saint Martins
Ever Dundas, Author
Lewis Ronald, artist
Nell Leyshon, writer, Deputy Chair Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre
Graham Dunning, artist, musician, tutor
John Harries, musician and Senior Lecturer at Goldsmiths, University of London
Terence Blacker, writer
Paula Orrell, CVAN Contemporary Visual Art Network and VASW Visual Art South West
Gill Robertson, Artistic Director, Catherine Wheels Theatre Company
Rebecca DeWald, translator and Cove Park Literature Programme Producer
Matt Nightingale, producer
Rose Copsey, Freelancer & Artist
Jobina Tinnemans, composer
Amy Clamp, General Manager at Beatfreeks
Dr Nicola Singh, Artist & Teaching Fellow (Leeds University)
Conny Prantera, Freelancer & Artist
Catherine Hemelryk, Director, CCA Derry~Londonderry
Francesca Simon, writer
Benjamin Deakin, Artist
Maeve Redmond, freelance graphic designer
Fiona Sturgeon Shea, Creative Director & Chief Executive, Playwrights’ Studio, Scotland
Louise Gregory, Freelance Lighting Designer & Production Manager
Emma McKee, General Manager, Playwrights’ Studio, Scotland
Joe Scotland, Director, Studio Voltaire
Dr Jorge Crecis, freelance choreographer
Jenny Sturgeon, musician
Rosie Clarke, arts marketer
Jen McGinley, Set & Costume Designer
Paul Hobson, Director, Modern Art Oxford
Tristan Hunt, freelance music biz dev professional
Natasha Plowright, Director of Communications, The Photographers’ Gallery
Nous Vous Collective, (Nicolas Burrows, Jason Cover and William Luz) artists and educators
Laura Reid, Composer
Elizabeth Hawley-Lingham, Director, Contemporary Visual Arts Network East Midlands
Alex Merry, freelance illustrator.
Simon McBurney, Artistic Director and Polly Gifford, Executive Director, Complicité
Amanda Craig, Novelist
Laura Simpson, Director, Edinburgh Sculpture Workshop
Robert S Gale - Artistic Director, Birds of Paradise Theatre Company
Angela Bartram, artist and Professor of Contemporary Art at University of Derby
Deborah Annetts, Chief Executive, Incorporated Society of Musicians
Mariem Omari, Writer and Artistic Director, Bijli Productions
Alex Groves, Composer
Patrick Barrett, Junior Chorus Director at Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Alice McCabe, Floral Artist
Kate Adams. Artist Director & CEO Project Art Works
Sam Lee - Singer, music producer and Artistic Director of The Nest Collective
Jessica Blackstone - Executive Director, The Nest Collective
Henry Redwood - Lecturer, King’s College London
Yvonne Eddy, Freelance Singer
Frederic Wake-Walker, Artistic Director Mahogany Opera
Ally Rosser. Executive Manager, Mahogany Opera
Matt Adams, Blast Theory
Nicola Solomon - Chief Executive, Society of Authors
Appendix IV
ExcludedUK - Mission Statement
ExcludedUK is a newly formed non-profit NGO and serves as a collective platform for those entirely or largely excluded from the UK Government's Covid-19 financial support measures. ExcludedUK was established on the founding principles of inclusivity, resilience and empowerment.
Covid-19 and the ensuing lockdown has presented the most unforeseen challenges to many individuals and businesses across the UK. While government support packages have provided much needed support for many, there remain some 3 million taxpayers, that’s 10% of the UK workforce, who find themselves left out and left behind, leaving gaping holes within these measures.
From those in between jobs or due to start new jobs after 19 March, the newly self-employed and new businesses, the self-employed with either low or +£50k net profits, those in less than 50% self-employment, those on parental leave, those on PAYE freelance short-term contracts, low investment startups, small limited company owner-directors, businesses ineligible for grants… The list goes on.
The residual effect – livelihoods are stake, businesses risk folding or may have folded already. We are part of the fabric of our communities and are being shaken to the core. Many individuals have been on extremely low to no income for the last 2 months. And while many businesses have been forced to cease operations temporarily or operate at a vastly reduced level in our fight against the pandemic, we need to be in the best shape possible to emerge from this crisis.
ExcludedUK is a rapidly growing organisation and an inclusive community, representing a broad spectrum of individuals and businesses, but all sharing one common thread: we are excluded.
We all want to play our role in helping the economy recover. However, in order to so, we all need support to reach the other side, as individuals and as businesses, and to have the opportunity to be able thrive.
As an organisation we will play a crucial role in facilitating support and assistance on multiple levels, both for now and into the future. The wider effects of the pandemic may be far-reaching and long-lasting and our efforts will continue to provide broader help and support on a multitude of levels.
Our aim is to build a stronger platform, raise awareness, lobby for support, raise funds for legal challenges and help enable the changes that are needed for those excluded. Most importantly, our hope is that our efforts can help propel affected individuals and businesses forward in the face of adversity resulting from Covid-19 and being excluded from Government support, while equally ensuring we are all able to help each other emerge from this crisis.
Background
ExcludedUK was formed in early May 2020 and registered as a Community Interest Company with three founding directors, Sonali Joshi, Anneka Hicks and Aron Padley, in response to the financial challenges faced by individuals and businesses in light of the lack of government Covid-19 support.
All three directors are small business owners affected adversely by lack of meaningful government Covid-19 financial support. Having come together through an earlier campaign, Sonali, Anneka and Aron coalesced around the idea of creating a platform that could operate as a support mechanism and a wider movement for a community of individuals and businesses entirely or largely excluded from the Government’s support packages through no fault of their own. While ExcludedUK is not positioned as a campaign as such, the aim was to become a platform that could serve to amplify the voices of a diverse range of groups campaigning for parity in support and not to be left behind at this critical time.
Sonali, Anneka and Aron were all too aware that the issues they face as small business owners are part of a far broader and starker picture, and were themselves further affected through the issues facing their freelancers and employees, some of whom also finding themselves excluded from government support. They therefore felt that an inclusive platform of this nature could add to the existing campaigns by also illustrating the interconnectedness of the issues and this broader picture.
Sonali leads on policy and communications, Anneka on marketing and technology, and Aron on community engagement and social media, while all three are involved in building a range of partnerships across industry, the charity sector and fundraising.
At its heart, ExcludedUK is a community-driven platform, while the team behind the organisation seek to drive the agenda forward by instilling positivity and enabling empowerment to reach the other side of Covid-19 and beyond for what is estimated to be 3 million, equating to 10% of the UK workforce.
In essence, ExcludedUK is positioned as an enabler and collaborator, to signpost towards resources, engage with national and regional press and media, communicate the concerns of those excluded and wider messaging around the issues they face to relevant Parliamentary bodies and MPs and maintaining dialogue with them as well as with industry bodies. ExcludedUK was also set up with the clear purpose of seeking to offer hardships grants for those most in need, further to planned fundraising activities, seeking higher level sponsorship and applying for relevant public funding and grants as a non-profit organisation in due course.
[1] http://www.day-for-night.org/blog/
[2] https://www.excludeduk.org/blog/excludeduk-respond-to-rishi-sunaks-remarks-on-the-3-million-excluded-from-support
[3] https://www.creativeindustriesfederation.com/news/press-release-cultural-catastrophe-over-400000-creative-jobs-could-be-lost-projected-economic