Striving for more Inclusive Recruitment

CG's Inclusion Journey Series

Blog Summary

  • CG is trying to be a welcoming, inclusive organisation

  • We have adjusted our recruitment processes to offer multiple ways to find out more and to apply for opportunities

 

Our principles:

There are people whose background and experience is under-represented in the creative industries, both in Gloucestershire and nationally. This includes women, people who experience racism, people with disabilities, people who are D/deaf and neurodiverse, and because of gender, sexuality, age, religion, marital status, socio-economic background.

We believe that discrimination or exclusion based on these, or any other characteristics or circumstances, represents a huge waste of talent and potential.  We know that our work will be stronger with a diverse team, and we particularly welcome applications from people who belong to these under-represented groups.

Create Gloucestershire is continually looking at ways we can be a more inclusive employer.

Over the past couple of years we have made lots of significant changes to our recruitment process to make it as flexible and accessible as possible.

We’ve put this blog together to share our learning about what we did. And at the bottom of the page you’ll find a checklist that we hope you’ll find useful.

We’d also love to hear any recommendations from you so please get in touch if you have suggestions to add on connect@creategloucestershire.co.uk

Our current recruitment process:

  • Different application options: We offer lots of different routes to apply for any of the roles we advertise. You can send a video or audio application, fill in a form or write us an email or letter.

  • Potential, not experience: Wherever possible, we ask for people to apply if they think they could do the job but haven’t had the opportunity to gain the experience to show they can. We believe that discrimination or exclusion represents a waste of talent and potential. Experience can be gained on the job but positive energy can’t!

  • Connection builds confidence: We offer informal phone calls or meetings so people can be comforted by our normal humanness before they apply (we are not just interviewers - we are also people that get up early or oversleep, do the school run, care for others or are addicted to tea). But we also care deeply about culture, community, equality, the planet and making positive changes in Gloucestershire. And you can find out all this when you speak to us.

  • Giving information in different ways: We plan a captioned open online gathering for anyone interested in applying for a role so they can meet us (virtually at least), find out more about the role and ask any questions before they apply. We record this event for anyone that can’t attend.

  • Where we advertise: We promote our roles in new ways and in new places - outside of the arts and cultural sector ‘usual places’ - to reach people that we’ve not reached before. We’ve tried advertising roles with organisations like Evenbreak who want to connect disabled candidates with inclusive companies, and Time Wise who promote flexible working. We’ve also revived non-digital routes like printing a poster and pinning it on a real life noticeboard. See here 👉

  • Removing gender bias: We check our language for gender bias using a tool like the Gender Bias Decoder from Totaljobs to make sure we are not putting people off making an application.

  • Striving to be Jargon Free!: We continue to work hard to simplify the language we use. We know we fall back on long sentences and arts sector language which is niche, and excluding. We’ve learned valuable lessons with the help of local organisations such as Inclusion Glos and their team of experts by experience. One of our team, Kazz, went along to their Easy Read training and wrote about what she found out. She shared her tips in this blog ‘How can we make things easier to read and understand?.

Checklist:

Job Pack

  • The Job Pack includes clear information about the role, the time expectations, the fee & rate basis, location & travel expectations

  • Job Pack is checked by external non-arts partners to ensure we are using jargon free plain English

  • Job Pack is checked for gender bias using a tool such as this one: Gender Bias Decoder

  • Our equality and inclusion principles are clearly stated

  • A member of the team is named in the job pack, along with contact details, for candidates to contact with any access requirements or questions

  • The job pack includes key dates, including an online open event, closing date and interview date.

  • Gender neutral “they/them” is used throughout

Advert

  • The advert restates equality and inclusion principles

  • Contact details for a team member are used in the advert for candidates to contact with any access requirements or questions

  • The Advert is shared widely using the following, as appropriate to the role:

An open online event is held

  • No less than 1 weeks before the closing date - to meet the team, to hear more about the role and context, and ask any questions. 

  • The session is recorded and sent to anyone that couldn’t attend.

A long lead in time from advert to closing date

  • To allow for time to process the information about the role;

  • To allow time for potential candidates to request and receive information in a different format if required, with time in hand to make the application;

  • To have time to ask any questions for clarification;

  • To attend an open event or view a recording of the open event.

Shortlisting

  • The shortlisting panel is made up of team members, Board and external partners. This is a different team to the interview panel, also made up of team, Board and external partners.

  • Shortlisting team have criteria against which to score applications. 

  • All applications are anonymised prior to being shared with the shortlisting panel to remove bias.

  • Shortlisting team are required to declare if they think they may know a candidate.

  • Balancing criteria is included at shortlisting to increase the score of candidates that show potential but may not have the experience to evidence it in an application.  “CG recognises that not everyone has the same access to opportunities and experiences. We are keen to identify those who may not have experience to evidence meeting the criteria, but have the potential to shine within our organisation if given the right support. In this box, please reflect on whether this candidate should have a balancing score given for Potential.”

  • Consensus decisions are made about who to put forward for interview after setting the interview bar score (the minimum requirement for interview) and rigorous discussion. 

  • There is a minimum of 3 people for the shortlisting team to enable a casting vote for a decision if a consensus cannot be reached. 

  • Candidates are invited to interview by email and requested to advise of any access requirements so that the team can make necessary adjustments.

Interview

  • Interview questions are sent to all candidates in advance so they can prepare and give of their best in an interview.

  • Options are included to enable the candidate to show their suitability in many ways: e.g. having a conversation with a team member, undertaking a task relevant to the role.

  • Accessible venues are used: near to public transport routes, with parking and access features such as lifts, wide doors, airy spaces, welcoming environment.

  • The option of holding online interviews is offered in case someone is not able to attend in person.

  • A member of the team is available to welcome candidates on arrival and put them at ease and answer any last minute questions.

  • Necessary access adjustments are made whenever possible to ensure that every candidate has equal access to the interview process.

  • The interview includes ample time for candidates to ask questions of CG.

  • Candidates are told when a decision will be made and receive a personal phone call with the decision. 

  • Feedback is offered to unsuccessful candidates if they would like it.

Working towards accreditation

Another step has been to apply for CG to be part of the Government Disability Confident Scheme.  We've been accepted at Level 1 which will help us recruit and retain great people and tangibly show that we welcome disabled people as part of our team. All future recruitment rounds will guarantee an interview to any disabled or under-represented person who meets the minimum criteria for the role.

We have also been working with Inclusivity Works at GEM Gloucestershire to use our work on embedding learning and improving our recruitment as evidence to apply for an Inclusive Employer award. And it happened! In October 22 we were delighted to receive the award.

 
 

These 'quality marks' are only one small part of the wider journey of learning, being curious and open to change in order to welcome disabled people and other under- represented people as part of our team. 

By sharing our commitment in this way we hope we will encourage others, too, to move outside of our collective comfort zone and make the changes needed to fully represent the diversity and talent of our Gloucestershire community.

If you would like more information about anything mentioned, or if you have any views, thoughts or feedback we would be happy to hear from you. Please email connect@creategloucestershire.co.uk.

Create Talent, Transforming Leadership, Equality&InclusionCaroline FedashInclusion, disability confident, Equity&Inclusion, Anti-racist