Yermek Tursunov’s 2015 film, Stranger (Zhat), will open the Asia House, 2016 Film Festival on February 22 at the Ham Yard Hotel in London.
The film, Kazakhstan’s official submission for the Best Foreign Language Film at this year’s Oscars, is a beautifully shot outdoors epic set in 1930s Kazakhstan, and charts one man’s search for freedom set against the historical backdrop of the country’s darkest years.
Tursunov, who directed the film, will host a Q&A session following the screening along with the film’s producer, Kanat Torebay.
The full programme for the festival has also been confirmed, with this year’s theme of Breaking Boundaries reflected in a diverse programme of 19 films, including five European and six UK premieres. All of the films will be shown in London for the first time.
Now in its eighth year, the festival will run until March 5, and will include 11 feature films, three documentaries and five short films coming out of countries including Japan, China, Myanmar and Afghanistan.
Jasper Sharp
Jasper Sharp, the Festival’s Artistic Director, said:“The films selected as part of the 2016 programme represent a world in which culture, politics and economies are transcending national boundaries. There will be a number of films from countries often completely overlooked by followers of Asian cinema, giving audiences a chance to experience the lives and landscapes of such a dynamic and multi-faceted continent.”
For a full list of screenings and to book tickets, click here:
Six of the biggest construction firms in the country will be attending a careers fair, the biggest of its kind in the UK, during National Student Pride from February 5-7 as part of LGBT History Month.
Student Pride Careers Fair 2015
The fair, which will be held at the University of Westminster’s Marylebone campus on February 6, between 12-5pm, will see Arcadis, Arup, Balfour Beatty, Laing O’Rourke, Lendlease and Skanska in attendance.
In 2015 the Architects’ Journal survey showed that on average 63% of workers in the construction industry heard or witnessed homophobia, with a sharp rise to 85% for those who worked as contractors.
As the sector grappled with these high levels of homophobia described as “rife” by respondents of the survey, the industry have decided to reach out to LGBT graduates in an attempt to change the image of the trade.
John Amaechi and Peter Tatchell
Christina Riley, a trans Senior Planner at Balfour Beatty CSUK and Co Chair of their LGBT Network, said:“Having 6 of the biggest firms attending the National Student Pride Careers Fair says a lot about the positive change in the industry. There is a significant skills gap growing across the industry in all vocations and the industry is waking up to the fact that we are missing out on a whole pool of talent in the LGBT community as well as from other minority groups.”
Tom Guy, the founder of National Student Pride Tom Guy who recently started his own architects business spoke of his delight at the news, agreeing with Christina that this was a big step for what has long been a difficult industry to be out in.
Tom was ‘out’ in his previous jobs to his colleagues but didn’t have the confidence to come out on site with contractors, adding: “I am hopeful that situation will change in the near future as attitudes begin to alter.”
A move to increase the number of LGBT graduates in the construction industry will not be enough alone to change attitudes. However, it’s part of a wider move across other parts of the industry with the new year bringing in mandatory RIBA guidelines for all chartered practices to have a diversity policy in place from 2016 onwards.
Hatti Smart, Student Co-Chair of National Student Pride, said:“It was the incredible gay rights activist and politician Harvey Milk who encouraged people to come-out, because every time you realise you know someone who is LGBT, a little bit of prejudice wears away” adding “Having the construction firms at Student Pride, may only be a small step, but it’s a vote of confidence in LGBT graduates in the industry and of change.”
National Student Pride, now in its 11th year, returns once again this year to, University Of Westminster and G-A-Y venues between February 5-7 and will feature panels on Coming Out, Mental Health and discussing the impact of LGBT YouTubers, with YouTubers themselves.
On the Sunday February 7, there will be an exclusive screening of Milk including a Q&A with Harvey Milk’s nephew and global activist in his own right, Stuart Milk who will be talking about his Uncle’s story.
For full National Student Pride program and to buy tickets online, click here:
Conservatives on Brighton & Hove City Council call on Labour Administration to abandon plans to cut the number of Park Rangers employed by the City from 9 to 3 in the 2016-17 budget.
Cllr Geoffrey Theobald
Concerns about the plans have been expressed by residents, volunteers and conservationists culminating in the presentation of a deputation at today’s (January 19) Environment, Transport & Sustainability Committee meeting at Portslade Town Hall by a group of volunteers.
Cllr. Geoffrey Theobald, Leader of the Conservative Group, introduced Park Rangers to the City when he was Cabinet Member for the Environment in 2009.
He said:“These proposed cuts to the Park Ranger service are a false economy and threaten all the great work that has been achieved in recent years in terms of conservation and improving the city’s highly valued parks and green spaces. We urge the Labour Administration to seriously rethink their plans ahead of the Budget Council meeting next month.”
Cllr Tony Janio
Cllr. Tony Janio, Conservative Group Spokesman on Environment, Transport and Sustainability, added:“Without a properly staffed Park Ranger service the army of wonderful conservation volunteers that we have in the city will simply not be able to carry on with all the excellent work they currently do, particularly around protecting our internationally important chalk grassland habitat. They are one of the main reasons Brighton & Hove managed to secure the prestigious UNESCO Biosphere status and to put that at risk would be sheer folly.”
Sussex Police achieve highest position ever in Stonewall Top 100 Employers Guide, jumping 80 places from 102 in 2015 to 22 in 2016.
The Gay Police Association Sussex (GPA-S), the Sussex Police LGB support network, has also been recognised as a ‘Highly Commended Network Group’ within the index.
Giles York
Chief Constable Giles York, the Sussex Police lead for equality and diversity, said:“This is brilliant news. It is vital that Sussex Police has a positive, inclusive working environment. I hope this result encourages even more LGBT people to consider working with us, so we can continue to better reflect the communities we serve, as well as increasing trust and confidence to encourage more reporting of crimes that affect the LGBT community. Over the past year we have strengthened our diversity and equality initiatives; developing our Proud Allies scheme, as well as growing our staff support group, the GPA-S.”
Jane Carter, chair of GPA-S, added:“The inclusion of Sussex Police in the Stonewall top 100, at an unprecedented number 22, as well as GPA-S being recognised as a highly commended network group, is a significant achievement for the organisation. Both the inclusion and the high placement speak volumes about the efforts and initiatives that have taken place to promote and cement inclusion in the workforce. GPA-S is proud to continue to support this work and assist in any way possible to further encourage and reinforce the values promoted by Sussex Police.”
The Stonewall Top 100 Employers list, created by lesbian, gay, bi and trans (LGBT) equality charity Stonewall, is compiled from submissions to the Workplace Equality Index, a benchmarking tool used by employers to assess their achievements and progress on LGBT equality in the workplace.
MI5 topped this years list, up from seventh in 2015. In second place was Lloyds Banking Group (third 2015), closely followed by the National Assembly for Wales in third (fourth 2015).
This year more than 400 organisations took part in the Index, the highest number in its 12 year history. Each participant must demonstrate their expertise in 10 distinct areas of employment policy and practice, including networking groups, career development, training and community engagement.
Following erratic performances over the last three years Brighton & Hove City Council did not enter the Stonewall Guide this year choosing instead, the Local Government Equality Index. Political and budgetary decision.
More than 60,000 staff from across organisations that entered the Index also took part in an anonymous survey about their employers’ attitudes towards workplace culture, diversity and inclusion, making it one of the largest national employment surveys in Britain.
Responses to this survey reveal that:
♦ Only 27 per cent of lesbian, gay and bi people feel comfortable disclosing their sexual orientation to all colleagues and customers. Figures were lower for lesbians (23 per cent) than gay men (33 per cent), and considerably lower for bi individuals (12 per cent).
♦ People who are out as LGB at work experience better job satisfaction and have a higher sense of achievement, according to 67 per cent of lesbian, gay and bi people
♦ We need to see more visible LGBT role models. Just 11 per cent of respondents believe there are bi role models at work; 19 per cent see trans role models, 42 per cent see lesbian role models and 53 per cent see gay role models at work
♦ Senior leaders are showing more commitment to lesbian, gay and bi equality now (63 per cent) than in the previous year (53 per cent)
♦ Just 42 per cent of trans respondents said that senior leaders demonstrate a visible commitment to trans equality at work
Organisations from the legal and housing sectors dominate the Top 10 on the Index, and across the Top 100, local government, education and health and social care are the most featured sectors.
Outside of London, Wales and the East Midlands have the most organisations featured in this year’s Index (12 and nine respectively).
Andrew Parker, Director-General, MI5, said:“Diversity is vital for MI5, not just because it’s right that we represent the communities we serve, but because we rely on the skills of the most talented people whoever they are, and wherever they may be. This accolade from Stonewall is a great acknowledgment of the continued progress we have made over recent years in ensuring we draw on the widest possible pool of talent in our vital work.”
Ruth Hunt
Ruth Hunt, Stonewall Chief Executive, added:“MI5 have made fantastic strides in creating an inclusive workplace, and have now appeared on the Stonewall Top 100 Employers list since 2012. This is an amazing achievement and demonstrates just how seriously diversity and inclusion is taken. I’d also like to thank all of those organisations that took part in Stonewall’s 2016 Workplace Equality Index, and congratulate our Top 100 and award winners. We’re thrilled to see such a commitment to lesbian, gay, bi and trans colleagues, but we also know that there is still lots to do.
‘Those organisations that are ‘getting it right’ are not only improving the lives of lesbian, gay, bi and trans staff, stakeholders, clients and customers, but are also reaping business benefits. We know that people perform better when they can be themselves, and it’s been proven that diversity among staff leads to a more productive, positive and creative workplace environment.
“Stonewall looks forward to working with all of those organisations and others in the year ahead, to work towards a world where all lesbian, gay, bi and trans staff feel equal at work and are accepted without exception.”
For the first time in 2016, the Index asked questions specifically about policies related to trans people, as the first step towards organisations being marked and measured on their commitment to trans equality in the workplace in future years.
Information gathered from these questions will produce resources which will be released during 2016 to reflect best practice, allowing organisational change to be monitored via the 2017 Index. Organisations will be formally marked on their trans policies from 2018.
To read the full results of Stonewall’s 2016 Top 100 Employers list, click here:
Andrew Parker, Director-General, MI5, said: “Diversity is vital for MI5, not just because it’s right that we represent the communities we serve, but because we rely on the skills of the most talented people whoever they are, and wherever they may be. This accolade from Stonewall is a great acknowledgment of the continued progress we have made over recent years in ensuring we draw on the widest possible pool of talent in our vital work.”
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