Gender Equality and Diversity
Central as an institution is committed to gender equality and diversity. Although not required, it has released a gender pay gap statement in response to the Equality Act 2010 (Gender Pay Information) Regulations 2017.
Central has been working in partnership with the Central Student Union on an initiative to tackle sexual harassment and violence on campus called Central Says Enough. This came to the attention of the London Mayor’s Office and resulted in Central and the Central SU hosting the launch of the Mayor’s Office’s £44 million strategy to end violence against girls and women.
The Central Student Union team also collaborated with Tender on its Shoulder2Shoulder Sexual Harassment & Sexual Assault University Campaign, organizing and running a pilot attended by SU officers and staff from universities and conservatoires across the UK.
Central supports student projects focused on gender equality and diversity through its Leverhulme funding for Applied Theatre projects.
Several Central staff and alumni, including Director of Research Prof. Maria Delgado, have been recognized as exceptional women leaders in the University of London’s ‘Leading Women’ campaign.
There are a range of academic projects and activities focused on gender equality and diversity.
TransActing – a project led by Dr Catherine McNamara in conjunction with organization Gendered Intelligence to explore the issue of performer training for people who identify as trans and/or non-binary
Women in Screen – a project led by Amanda Brennan, Principal Lecturer and Course Leader of MA Acting for Screen, to develop and nurture women in film.
Advance – research led by Drs Gilli Bush-Bailey and Katharine Low in conjunction with Tonic Theatre around transforming gender equality into reality in leading performance companies
Ladies of the Stave – initiative led by Wendy Gadian, Principal Lecturer and Course Leader Acting – Musical Theatre, to bring about equal opportunity and pay in the musical theatre industry
Parents in Performing Arts (PIPA) – research led by Dr Tom Cornford around how to better support and enable people with carer responsibilities to work in the performing arts
PRIME Study – workshops facilitated by Dr Katharine Low focused on using music, creative writing and performance to explore HIV, ageing and being a woman, as part of the Positive tRansitions through the Menopause Study
Concrete utopias in Dharavi, India – A project led by Dr Selina Busby in collaboration with her students, a Dharavi-based NGO, and Indian Theatre artist Divya Bhatia to empower women and slum communities to be their own catalysts for change
Gender, sexuality and performance – Research, teaching and performance practice conducted by Dr Stephen Farrier and his students around gender, sexuality, identity and performance
Women in Spanish, Portuguese and Latin American Studies – Research by Prof. Maria Delgado on women in Hispanic and Lusophone contexts
The Lumberjills – production developed by Dr Tom Cornford in partnership with the Common Ground Theatre in York and The Forestry Commission exploring the work of the Women’s Timber Corps.