Your accountLog in Basket Search
English Folk Dance & Song Society
Cecil Sharp House
Vaughan Williams Memorial Library
National Youth Folk Ensemble
  • Cecil Sharp House
  • Vaughan Williams Memorial Library
  • National Youth Folk Ensemble
  • What’s on
    • How to book
      • Travel to Cecil Sharp House
      • Access at Cecil Sharp House
    • Gigs
    • Classes & Courses
    • Conferences & Talks
    • CPD
    • Dances
      • The Folk Dance Calendar
  • Learning
    • Young People
      • National Youth Folk Ensemble
      • Young Folk Club
      • Dance
      • London Youth Folk Ensemble
      • Holiday courses
      • Disabled Young People
    • Adults
      • Cecil Sharp House Choir
      • Saturday Folk Music Workshops
      • Dance Classes
      • Lectures and Talks
      • Monday Folk Singers
      • FAQs
    • Families
      • Family Barn Dances
      • May in a Day
      • Family Friendly
    • Practitioners
      • Professional Development
      • Dance Development
      • Folk Education Network
    • Resources
      • Beginners’ GuidesBeginners’ Guides
      • GlossaryGlossary
      • A-ZA-Z
      • Resource Search
    • Schools & Colleges
      • Artsmark
  • Artist Development
    • Seperator Test
    • Artists
      • Showcases
      • Commissions
      • Bursaries
      • Micro Grants
      • Musicians in Museums
      • Other Opportunities
    • Partners
      • Associate Company
      • Associate Artists
      • English Folk Expo
    • At Cecil Sharp House
      • Programming
      • Exhibitions
  • Support us
    • Donate now
      • General donation
      • Regular donations
      • Leave a Legacy
    • Support a project
      • Library
      • Dance Development
      • National Youth Folk Ensemble
      • Children and Young People
      • Artist Development
    • Membership
      • Starter Membership
      • Individuals
      • Groups
      • Libraries and Institutions
      • Insurance
      • Member Dance Clubs
    • Folk Shop
      • CDs
      • Publications
      • Book and CD Sets
      • Merchandise
    • Gift vouchers
  • About us
    • What we do
      • News
      • Advocacy
      • Equity and Diversity
      • Press and Media
      • Library
      • Partner Organisations
    • Who we are
      • Staff
      • President
      • Board
      • Annual reviews
    • Our history
      • Past projects
      • Gold Badge Awards
    • Publications
      • Folk Music Journal
      • English Dance and Song
    • Folk Player
      • In the Archive With...
      • Listen: Classic Folk
      • Folk Folk
      • Old Songs Podcast
      • Young Folk Club Playlists
    • Work for us
      • Vacancies
      • Work Experience
      • Volunteer
  • Venue Hire
    • Seperator Test (3)
    • Seperator Test (4)
    • Seperator Test (5)
    • Hire our Venue
    • Seperator Test
    • Seperator Test (2)
    • Seperator Test (3)
  • Members’ area

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

At the English Folk Dance and Song Society we are fully committed to leading by example and to calling out all forms of discrimination – wherever, whenever and however they take place. 

We make determined efforts to act fairly and prevent discrimination on the grounds of:

  • age
  • disability
  • gender reassignment
  • marriage and civil partnership
  • pregnancy and maternity
  • race
  • religion or belief
  • sex
  • sexual orientation
  • socio-economic status and class

Striving for equity and diversity in the folk arts is central to our vision and mission. We are continuously developing, challenging and expanding thinking and practice in this area.


Our current and recent developments comprise:

Education and Learning

Increasing the diversity of the artists and tutors we engage to lead on our youth projects such as for London Youth Folk Ensemble.

Folk Education Network Development Days focussing on diversifying folk education in relation to disability, decolonisation and more, and diversifying speakers and presenters.

Working with arts and education organisations to reach and engage a greater diversity of young people in our activities including Ark Academy Music and Baby People

Commissioning artists of colour to produce Black Singers and Folk Ballads, and Black Sailors and Sea Shanties online resources.

Inclusive Folk Programme, improving access to folk music and dance education for people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities – and creating learning resources for educators working in SEND settings eg Songs of London Life, Songs of Rural Life and A Song and a Dance.

Exploring cross-cultural collaboration in folk, eg our learning resource Tunes and Groove in Folk and Bhangra.

Artists’ Development

Supporting a diverse range of artists and projects through our Alan James Creative Bursary Programme including projects and artists focussing on LGBTQIA+, disability and ethnicity in folk music and dance.

Showcasing a diversity of artists through our Cecil Sharp House programme and festival partnerships – gender, LGBTQIA+, disability and ethnicity, and developing programming  partnerships with Queer Folk and Thank Folk For Feminism.

Supporting our Associate Company – Folk Dance Remixed – a multi-cultural dance and music company presenting vibrant performances that mix folk and hip-hop including the commission of their 2021 show Hope.

Facilitating Round Table discussions for folk artists of colour in partnership with Black Lives in Music and English Folk Expo.  If you would like to be part of these conversations, please email Katy Spicer, CEO and Artistic Director, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 

Producing Folk Folk videos and podcasts: conversations which celebrate the diversity of today’s folk musicians and dancers and explore some of the biggest issues within England’s rich cultural landscape

Founder signatory to Sound and Music’s Fair Access Principles

Vaughan Williams Memorial Library & Archive

Presenting events including a full-day Library Conference on racial and ethnic diversity in folk and Folk Arts, Black Face and Race Library Lecture

Engaging deeply with artists and academics on issues of decolonisation in relation to our Library and Archive collections

Reviewing the content of our Library’s archives and collections to identify offensive content and making sure that we contexualise this content wherever it appears, without either condoning it or denying that it exists

Operational and Governance

Increasing the diversity of our Board of Trustees focussing on age, ethnicity, and disability.

Regular training for staff including unconscious bias training, autism awareness, and disability awareness.

Undertaking to regularly review and revise our relevant policies, and our delivery of their objectives

Not accepting business from clients who ask to hire our venue for discriminatory activities

Emphasising that everyone who organises or leads folk activities has important safeguarding responsibilities, and providing resources to support making all people feel that they belong at folk events

Supporting the important work of Esperance in increasing awareness and understanding of gender-related barriers, supporting people who experience gender-based discrimination, and facilitating conversations that lead to positive change 

Taking a highly visible public and policy stand against the practice of black face in morris dancing

Holding a series of meetings of a working group which included staff and Trustees on all issues of equality, diversity and inclusion – in relation to our organisation, our venue, and also the wider folk sector


Black Lives in Music logo
The English Folk Dance and Song Society is a member of Black Lives in Music.

We have signed Music Mark’s Talk into Action pledge – encompassing workforce development, governance, programming, and the music experiences of the young people we work with.


 
We take joy in celebrating the warm, inclusive and non-judgemental attitudes that are widely prized in the folk community. But we know that some people sometimes do not feel welcome at folk events. We are determined to change this – and, by demonstrating best practice, we want to lead the discussions that drive this change.  

We strongly encourage everyone in the folk arts to think seriously about these questions. Together we can make the difference.


 
Why do we use the word ‘equity’ rather than ‘equality’?

Both terms are about fairness. But equality advocates treating everyone the same regardless of need – while equity is about treating people differently, depending on their need. The end result is that someone who needs extra support, and receives it, will have equal opportunities compared to someone who did not need this support.


A note about Cecil Sharp and the Society’s past

When our building opened in 1930 it was named after Cecil Sharp (1859–1924), who founded the English Folk Dance Society in 1911 and was a prominent member of the Folk-Song Society (founded 1898). He held some offensive opinions, and his writings identify him to have expressed racist and misogynist views. We do not condone or excuse his views. As an organisation we are currently working with external advisors and stakeholders to examine how we talk about and engage with the sometimes unsavoury views of individuals connected to the Society in the past, including Cecil Sharp. Only by learning about and confronting the past can we become better equipped to improve our shared future.


 
See also: Actions as well as attitude

Katy Spicer, the English Folk Dance and Song Society’s Chief Executive and Artistic Director, explains why equality, diversity and inclusion are at the very top of the Society’s agenda. Published in EDS Magazine, December 2021. 

See also: Policies

Our Equal Opportunities Policy provides guidance and encouragement to all staff (including freelance staff) and volunteers.

Our Code of Conduct makes it clear that we will not tolerate aggressive, discriminatory, disruptive, harassing or offensive behaviour

 

Photo courtesy of One Dance UK / U.Dance  

×

Support us, and support the folk arts

We champion folk music and dance at the heart of cultural life, all across England.

Donations provide immediate support. But even more than that, they prove that so many people value what we do – helping us to secure funding from partner organisations.

Can you donate today? 

Donate now   Join us for only £2 a month
visa Mastercard American Express PayPal
Donate Image Logo
Contact us
Travel
Access
Folk Shop
The Folk Dance Calendar
Policies
Safeguarding
Code of Conduct
Booking T&Cs
Terms of Use & Cookies
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter
YouTube
LinkedIn
Subscribe to our newsletter

English Folk Dance and Song Society, Cecil Sharp House, 2 Regent’s Park Road, London NW1 7AY, UK.
Tel: 020 7485 2206 | Email: [email protected] | Registered charity number 305999
Cookies: The English Folk Dance and Song Society’s websites use cookies: please read our cookie policy for more information.

© 2023 EFDSS.
Supported by Arts Council England