Joe GallopIndependent Venue Week (IVW) and music charity Attitude is Everything have set up an initiative to help improve live show accessibility and inclusivity for deaf and disabled artists.
The collaboration will see both organisations work with a group of promoters on a 12-month project to ensure next year’s IVW event is as accessible as possible – an area founder Sybil Bell recently stressed when speaking to Access.
The initiative is part of Attitude is Everything’s ‘Next Stage’ campaign and follows a survey conducted in 2019 that showed 70% of artists with access needs were withholding details of their conditions through fear of it negatively affecting their career.
As a result, the charity said two in three artists have compromised their health or wellbeing to perform live.
The upcoming campaign will involve promoter workshops and resources to be released later this year and the initial group of promoters and venues include:
- The Boileroom, Guildford
- The Night Owl, Birmingham
- Ouroboros / Jazz In York, York
- We Broke Free, Bournemouth
- Scruff of the Neck, Manchester
- Communion, London
Rich Legate, artist development manager at Attitude is Everything, said, “This campaign is going to be a hugely positive and beneficial collaboration between promoters and artists, and aims to enrich our future live music landscape.”
Chloe Ward, director of UK for Independent Venue Week, said, “We are lucky to work with a fantastic network of in-house and external promoters who are going to be integral in shaping the new guidelines and resources for other promoters, ultimately resulting in a more supportive and inclusive experience for all in the live music community.”