Equality and diversity policy

Split Second is committed to establishing a culture of equal opportunities and inclusion for all: team, artists, audiences, prospective workers and artists, and opposes all forms of unlawful or unfair discrimination.

We recognise the aim of the Equality Act 2010 is to ‘harmonise discrimination law and to strengthen the law to support progress on equality. It replaces and extends the existing equality legislation on race, disability and gender and covers a total of 9 ‘protected characteristics’.  

These are:

  • Age

  • Disability

  • Sex

  • Gender Reassignment

  • Marriage or civil partnership

  • Pregnancy and maternity

  • Race

  • Religion or belief

  • Sexual orientation

Every possible step will be taken to ensure that individuals are treated equally and fairly and that decisions on recruitment, selection, development and programming are based solely on objective criteria.

Statement of intent

Split Second takes an equitable approach to all aspects of the delivery of its artistic programme and the development of the organisation.  We take into account the complexity of difference, widen access and wherever possible provide an equal experience for audiences. In addition we seek to engage those who have previously felt excluded from contemporary art.

We recognise that the arts are both the manifestation of culture as well as the means of communication of cultural knowledge. We will encourage debate; foster an environment where questions can be asked and voices heard.

Split Second adheres to equal opportunities for staff, artists and audiences.

We recognise the importance of developing a culturally diverse portfolio of artists and also work to develop a programme of events and projects that widen access to all individuals i.e. people with disabilities, people with learning difficulties, people from low income households, people from different cultures, ethnic and linguistic back grounds.

Access Statement

When in an office, we are based at Somerset and follow their guidance on accessibility for anyone who will visit us on their premises.

When touring or producing work elsewhere, we will follow the guidelines from the partner venue or host and work actively with them to ensure our artists, team and audience can access the space.

This policy is not restrictive. We will test its elements to find out what works and what doesn’t. We will continuously research equality and diversity topics and evaluate the results of our policy.