Twenty years ago, a learning disabled person was more likely to be living in an institution than appearing on stage, in films or on our TV screens, but this is changing. Tim Wheeler considers what arts organisations need to do to play their part in an increasingly inclusive world.
There is a young actress at Mind the Gap, Anna-Marie Heslop, who came up through our youth theatre. Shes been in three national touring productions with us, been on Doctors, The Bill and in a one-off drama with Robson Green. Not bad credits so far. Oh yes, and she has Downs syndrome.
We are getting there, but its not yet enough. If you are non-disabled and show aptitude for the arts at school then you are more than likely to be encouraged to develop your talent through GCSEs, after-school clubs, youth theatres and then at college, drama school or university. In stark contrast, almost all learning disabled artists receive no formal training whatsoever; instead they rely on training linked to the performance work within specialist companies. This can lead to a lack of mobility within the creative sector as performers become reliant on one company, with their training being so unique that it isnt recognised or valued beyond the realm in which it has developed.
Increasing access
The picture is slowly changing. Anna, the actress mentioned above, has been through Mind the Gaps Making Theatre Programme, an entry-level accredited training course for learning disabled people. She has also been on Staging Change, a one-year course linked to the Dance and Drama Awards offered in collaboration with four drama schools: Mountview Academy, Arts Educational, Guildford Conservatoire and Oxford School of Drama.
However, one short course isnt enough and certainly doesnt ensure equal access to the profession. More mainstream training providers need to review their training offers to make them inclusive and available to aspiring learning disabled artists. This cant just be about creating specialist courses tailored to learning disabled people; we have to start making mainstream courses fully accessible.
Hand in hand with equal training provision comes the need for a shift in casting. We need more roles written that demand performances by learning disabled people, ideally with more complex characters and storylines. Casting directors should also consider actors for parts that are not specifically written for learning disabled actors. One positive action towards such change is the recent decision by Equity to look into the representation of learning disabled people within its profile of industry standard actors. Another is the slow increase in non-specialist companies who are beginning to employ learning disabled actors Theatre Centre, for example, is currently touring a piece with actress Sarah Gordy.
Equality action
The shift needs to spread to be sector wide, not just on stage, but backstage and front of house too. We are developing a supported employment scheme called Up Front that aims to support learning disabled people into front of house roles in theatres and cultural venues in Yorkshire. What better way can there be to show equality in action than for all patrons of a venue to be welcomed by a team including a learning disabled person? This fits in well with the new Public Duty.
This new addition to the Disability Discrimination Act came into force in December 2006, and now all local authorities along with public bodies such as Arts Council England, UK Film Council, the BBC and Channel Four are required to publish Disability Equality Schemes with three-year action plans to show how they will go beyond anti-discrimination measures and positively promote disability equality. It wont be long before this responsibility is passed on from funding bodies to those they fund, and then all arts and cultural sector organisations will need to think about how to demonstrate equality in action.
Specialist organisations have a real duty too to stay ahead of the game, and then share the knowledge they gain. Mind the Gap is currently developing a new £2.2m centre in Lister Mills, Bradford, which will allow people with learning disabilities to access theatre training in an environment without barriers. Most architects consider adaptations for physically and sensory disabled people, but different adjustments need to be made to provide equality to learning disabled people. Advice on this kind of access is hard to find, and we have had to develop innovative solutions in relation to welcoming and way-finding, security and safety.
We also need to improve access to information. Formats for information often include large print, Braille and audio but what about easy read information? Easy read is aimed at learning disabled people who want access to information in the same way as their non-disabled peers, and not always have to access it through a third party providing a translation. Easy read isnt hard to produce, it just needs to be planned in. Its also a great discipline and instantly stops jargon. Its a format that every organisation should consider offering.
There has been a long debate within the learning disability-related sector about the aesthetics of learning disability and its wider relation to a disability culture. You only have to attend a Heart n Soul club night to know that there is a very different aesthetic at work. But try to describe it? Mind the Gap is currently working with the University of Leeds on an Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funded collaborative PhD to help frame this debate in order to communicate it to the wider arts world.
So what do we need? The shift to include learning disabled people needs to move from the specialist companies to the whole arts sector. Companies like Mind the Gap have developed the expertise in areas such as training, employment and in understanding and utilising disability aesthetics. But to move this work on we need partners. We can ensure that addressing equality within the creative sector does not mean compromising quality. We know how to do this.
There is even an event coming up on 31 May at Croydon Clocktower that can help. Called CAST, this aims to address the issue of progression for learning disabled performers within the industry what can we do to ensure that training and employment opportunities seamlessly link? What are the roles of venues, promoters, directors and the sector as a whole? If we work together we can prove that learning disabled artists can be included within all aspects of mainstream provision. So who has the difficulty in learning?
Tim Wheeler is Artistic Director of Mind the Gap. The CAST event will be the subject of a forthcoming ArtsProfessional podcast. For details e: tim@mind-the-gap.org.uk