The Women Leaders South West (WLSW) project is run by a group of eight arts organisations in the region, including Bournemouth based, Pavilion Dance South West and Southampton Business School. The project also involves the WOW Foundation, which is a global movement to celebrate women and girls and take a frank look at the obstacles they face. An Arts Council England Transforming Leadership grant is funding the project.
Women are under-represented at a leadership level across all art forms in theatres, festivals, galleries, and museums. Racism, ableism, transphobia, homophobia, economic constraints and caring responsibilities also create barriers to career development. The WLSW programme has been designed to understand these barriers and help participants develop tools to tackle them.
The application process has just re-opened, having paused during lockdown, and WLSW are inviting 16 women associates to take part in a 10-month leadership programme that includes work placements, mentoring and training with Southampton Business School.
The support programme will be bespoke for each participant and can include: a training bursary of £12,000 to cover the months of training; a work-based placement with one of the arts organisations; mentoring; additional support to meet individual needs across the whole programme, for example, childcare; BSL interpretation; and travel costs.
This is a unique programme for participants to create positive change, for a more equitable future, for both participants and their wider communities.