Equality Impact Assessment - Wiltshire Youth Arts Partnership

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1. What is the name of the policy or service that is being assessed?

Wiltshire Youth Arts Partnership

2. What are the aims of the policy or service? Whose needs is it designed to meet? What are the current priorities?

To engage young people in youth arts opportunities

3. In what ways might this policy or service affect some groups of people differently? Might some groups find it harder to access the service? Do some groups have particular needs that are not well met by the current policy or service?

Targets 13-21 year olds living in Wiltshire who have not had access to youth arts opportunities.

Most young people who engage in WYAP opportunities have been made aware of WYAP opportunities through the secondary school notices, school taster sessions, word of mouth through friends, the local newspaper or radio station, through Youth Development Centres or youth workers.

Young people who are in employment or who do not attend the schools where projects are advertised/promoted are likely to be excluded from access. Eg disabled young people, young people who choose not to attend or who are excluded from school or attend YPSS, young people who have left school.

WYAP does not provide transport to projects for young people and most projects take place in the main towns of Wiltshire therefore young people lacking transport and living in isolated communities/villages or edge of town estates are likely to find it difficult to engage in projects.

WYAP does not provide specific projects for young women or young men, for disabled young people or any group based on their ethnicity. This could exclude some young people due to cultural or family norms, or due to young people’s feelings of confidence.

4. What evidence do you have for your judgement? Is there evidence of public concern (e.g. complaints)? Have staff raised concerns? Is there local or national research to suggest that there could be a problem

There have been not complaints or concerns raised by the public.

The WYAP steering group are aware from statistical monitoring by gender, ability and ethnicity that the numbers of BEM young people engaging in projects is very low. Also the numbers of disabled young people engaging in projects is low, although there are examples of some projects engaging disabled young people.

There is also evidence of more young women than young men engaging in most projects although this varies with the art form.

Young men, BEM young people and disabled young people are having less opportunity to benefit from the opportunities offered through WYAP projects.

5. Who have you consulted with as part of your assessment? What were the results? Have you published the results of that consultation? If so, where?

Steering/executive group.

6. If you have found that the policy or service might have an adverse impact on a particular group of people, can you justify this?

The Service is not effectively accessing young people who might have fun and gain skills through engaging in WYAP projects:- young men, BEM young people and disabled young people

7. If the impact cannot be justified, what do you intend to do about this? Are there changes that you could introduce which would make the policy or service work better for this group of people? Is further research or consultation required?

WYAP has put together a marketing plan with strategies to improve access including:

• Create a standard format of print for publicity material
• Encourage young people currently attending projects to be more committed
• Encourage young people on current projects to take part in new initiatives like the arts award.
• Improve access for BEM and young people with disabilities to current and new projects through further research and consultation.
• Write press releases according to the audience they are directed towards
• Re-design WYAP website, look at linking to Youth service Sparks website, using the similar model of design and site software
• Regular Update of Website when set up

8. How will you monitor the take-up or impact of the policy or service in future?

Continue to monitor attendances at all projects by gender, ethnicity and ability in order to be aware of who is engaging with WYAP and to improve practice in order to make WYAP accessible to all young people within the target group.

9. What actions do you plan to take as a result of this equality impact assessment? Please state any resource implications

See question 7

Research events that WYAP could attend to be more visible with target groups for example the cultural food event in the park in Trowbridge and having visibility at events put on by Mind.

Work with the Wiltshire Wildlife Trust who are going to be doing some work with an inter-faith group in Trowbridge.

Meet with the Wiltshire Music Centre, WC Music Service and WREC to explore ways of working with BEM young people through music.

Work with Salisbury playhouse and The Pound Arts Centre on a county wide drama project specifically targeting disabled young people.

Continue developing the Musicxpress project which attracts a majority of young men.

10. There is a legal requirement to publish the outcomes of Equality Impact Assessments. Please outline how / where this will happen

In the WYAP annual report 06/07 and 07/08

11. Name of person completing form

Head of Youth Development

Date assessment completed

8^th December 2006

12. Senior manager approval

Assistant Director Resources, Improvement and Young People

Date

10 October 2007

Last updated: 14 May 2009