[Commlist] New report: Equity, diversity and inclusion in arts governance

*Who decides the direction of our cultural life – and who is 
excluded?*That’s the question underpinning new research from a team at 
Falmouth University into diversity on the boards of creative hubs. You 
can read the report here 
<https://www.falmouth.ac.uk/research/programmes/creative-industries-futures/equity-diverstiy-and-inclusion?dm_i=6MG6,KGP8,3OFVCE,2IFMJ,1>.

The death of George Floyd and the eruption of soul-searching provoked by 
#metoo led to much artistic and cultural activity. But to what extent 
has this renewed focus on diversity and inclusion been reflected among 
the decision-makers and budget-holders? Through analysis, a survey and 
interviews, this project examines this in the Cornish and national 
context, *offering an extensive toolkit* of ideas for boards and arts 
leaders everywhere.

The *main findings* of the research – titled /Equity, Diversity & 
Inclusion on Cornwall’s Creative Hub Boards/ – were:

  * Boards of trustees are not diverse in respect of all of the
    demographic characteristics collected except for the number of
    female trustees;
  * There is a failure to value and make use of the full range of
    trustee skills, knowledge and lived experience, which limits diverse
    recruitment and potential benefits of diversity;
  * Some trustees stay in post for many years, making it hard to change
    board diversity;
  * It’s extremely difficult to find out about board vacancies and how
    to become a trustee;
  * Almost two-thirds of people we surveyed are not currently trustees
    but would consider it in future. This is heartening as research
    shows that nationally there are 1,000 unfilled charity trustee
    positions, a problem our respondents also raised;
  * The requirement to report on diversity to access funding is a major
    incentive for action;
  * Action on diversity in Cornwall in particular is held back by
    misconceptions that the county is not diverse, with diversity
    understood only to mean racial diversity, specifically people of
    colour.
The report also includes *23 detailed recommendations* for boards 
seeking to improve their representativeness, applicable to boards of all 
kinds.

The report was produced by Dr Lucy Frears, Andy Chatfield and Assoc Prof 
Abigail Wincott, and funded by Research England’s Strategic Priorities 
Fund through Falmouth University in partnership with Cornwall Council, 
alongside Ellen O’Hara, Deepa Naik and Ceri Gorton’s 2021 /Assessment of 
the Role of Creative Hubs in Rural Economies/ and an investigation into 
the role hubs might play in reinforcing or challenging unequal access to 
careers in the creative industries.

*Get in touch*

If you have comments or questions, or would like to be kept informed of 
*the planned next stages of this research*, please contact 
(lucy.frears /at/ falmouth.ac.uk) <mailto:(lucy.frears /at/ falmouth.ac.uk)> or 
(andy.chatfield /at/ falmouth.ac.uk) <mailto:(andy.chatfield /at/ falmouth.ac.uk)>.


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