Creative careers academy playbook: Sharing practice and learning on tackling under-representation in the creative sector workforce

All of us in the arts have been a part of the sector debating and trying to address under representation in its workforce for years. As initiatives come and go there’s been a growing sense of frustration and discomfort that the pace of change is all too slow. The discussions usually focus on why it’s important and perhaps not enough on the “how do we make change?” Taking part in these discussions two themes kept recurring. Firstly there is a huge desire to tackle this. Secondly that the sector has traditionally been quite precarious, with ad hoc entry and progression routes resulting in the talent pipeline being too white and support functions like recruitment being under-resourced. This means that the ability of individuals or small organisations to deal with a problem that is systemic and that starts in the education system is limited