Equality and diversity policy

Aims

Urban Elephant is a festival open to all. We aim to promote and protect Southwark’s rich and diverse cultural heritage in an atmosphere of friendship, respect, and care for each other. In particular, we aim to treat every member of the Urban Elephant team and every Southwark/ London resident equally, regardless of their age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, socio-economic background, or sexual orientation.

Accessibility

We aim to hold all our pre-festival workshops and events in venues that are accessible to wheelchair users. 

Our festival has been designed so it is all outside and easily accessible to wheelchair users. 

We are committed to ensuring any Southwark/ London resident is able to attend our activities, so we will reassess our access requirements of residents regularly.

Diversity

The Urban Elephant belongs to all Southwark/London residents and the Elephant and Castle businesses. We aim to organise a range of events and activities to suit the interests and meet the needs of a wide variety of people. This is highlighted in the pre-festival fusion workshops where 6 cultures will work together to create new music and dance by the fusion of cultures. 

The UE 24 will be open to new ideas, and particularly prioritise opportunities for residents to share their cultural heritage with one another and animate these histories and promote diverse businesses in the Elephant and Castle.

Inclusion and respect

Every member of the leadership team of the Urban Elephant should be made to feel equally welcome and included at all steering group meetings, workshops, and World forum events. 

Sexist, racist, homophobic, transphobic, or otherwise offensive and inflammatory remarks and behaviour are not acceptable. These constitute harassment and have no place at the Urban Elephant. 

Dealing with discrimination and harassment

If any team member or audience feels they have been discriminated against by UE or harassed at a UE event/ meeting they should raise this with the leadership team of John Whelan or Isabel Zentner. 

The chair (Charles Tyler) of the business forum will investigate the complaint as the UE festival is under the banner of the E&C business forum, listening to all members involved. (If the complaint is against a team member, that member will not be part of conducting the investigation).

If the complaint is against a particular individual, this person will have the opportunity to express their point of view, accompanied by a friend. The person making the complaint will also have this opportunity.

If the complaint is against E&C business Forum as a whole, the committee must work to ensure that such discrimination is not repeated in the future and must inform the members of how they propose to do this. This is also the case if discrimination comes from a business forum member towards a member of the UE leadership/ project team.

Any decision to exclude a person from the organisation due to discriminatory or harassing behaviour will be made with reference to the E&C business Forum constitution and this document for the Urban Elephant Festival. The group will support people who feel they have been harassed or discriminated against and will not victimise or treat them less well because they have raised this.