With the second year of the project under our belt and a third year about to get under way we sadly said goodbye to our project co-ordinator Jeff who will now be working with us on a freelance basis screening the films up and down the county.

Jeff took over the project in June 2011 after a very successful first year which saw The Rural Media Company liaising with some 50 local organisations and involving over 200 individuals in filmmaking activities to create 18 short personal testimonies.

The project was launched at the Borderlines Festival to a packed out audience with Jesse Norman MP for Hereford and South Herefordshire, announcing: “These films are little gems! I’d like to see them shown at cinemas up and down the country.”

The second year saw a further five films being created, over 40 screenings of the films and the completion of a facilitator’s guide to the Equality Act 2010 and an accompanying booklet. It was rounded up with a very successful conference with over 90 delegates attending from the public, private and voluntary sector to discuss ideas on how to make Herefordshire a more inclusive county.

So far the five new films have been very well received though it wasn’t all plain sailing. Finding participants, as Jeff explains, was more difficult than we had anticipated.

“For the topics on pregnancy and maternity and marriage and civil partnership we hit a few stumbling blocks,” said Jeff. “People were happy to talk to me about the issues affecting them but not on camera. It was then I realised that the films, and their wide distribution, were really needed to encourage more people to speak out.”

Rather than keep the DVD training pack with facilitator’s notes confined to just Herefordshire, we are now making them available to everyone and are currently distributing the resource nationally.

If you’d like a copy or would be interested in a screening please contact Francesca Sandwell on francescas@ruralmedia.co.uk or 01432 344 039

When Alexandra Shulman, the Editor of British Vogue for the last 20 years, made this comment in the Observer Newspaper last weekend (Sunday 1st April) it sparked debate.

“The reality is, if you take time out and have children, it does damage your trajectory in some way,” she said. “You can’t pretend it doesn’t.”

And she may be right. A recent survey by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation found that thousands of mothers, who need part time work to fit around having family, face a difficult choice either having to trade down on their skills and experiences and accept a role beneath their level of worth, or not to work at all.

This lack of quality part time jobs has a particular impact on lower skilled mothers who face intense competition from higher skilled women competing for the same jobs. Career progression is virtually non-existent and although parents of children younger than 6, or 18 in the case of disabled children, have the right to apply for flexible working this may not always be possible.

Over the past few years mothers have successfully claimed that a refusal to allow flexibility indirectly discriminates against them on the basis that a requirement to work full time, for example, is likely to impact on their role as the primary carer of dependants.

This issue we felt was worthy of inclusion on the Same But Different DVD. However, when it came to finding people who were happy to share their experiences we found that very few were willing to come forward and talk on camera.

Many of those we approached were wary of being seen as complaining about their situation while others were concerned the impact the films would have on their children if they watched them in later life and felt responsible for impacting on their mother’s career.

Eventually we came across Jayne and Mike who were willing to tell their story. After the birth of their two children Jane went back to work part time and was offered a ‘once in a lifetime’ promotion. She knew that this opportunity wouldn’t along again and so the couple decided that Jane would take the job and Mike would work part-time and look after the children.

In their story it was Mike who faced problems trying to find a part time job in the building trade that he could work around the school run. Nevertheless, it raises the question of what employees can do to create better working conditions and more opportunities for those people who have children.

To watch all of Jayne and Mike’s interview click here: https://vimeo.com/38569702

Diversity and acceptance in rural communities was the topic of the day when more than 90 delegates from the voluntary, private and public sectors met to discuss how Herefordshire can become a more inclusive county.

The conference, organised by The Rural Media Company as part of the Same But Different film project, featured a diverse panel of speakers including British actor and equal rights activist Bette Bourne, Traveller journalist and Travellers’ Times magazine editor Damian le Bas, director of the Centre for Remote and Rural Studies Dr Philomena De Lima, Hereford Times editor Fiona Phillips and Equality and Diversity Manager at Herefordshire Council, Carol Trachonitis.

Elonka Soros, Head of Diversity at the BBC, chaired a Question Time style debate with delegates and panellists discussing the impact of government cuts on local services and ways in which communities could respond positively.

Following a screening of a selection of the Same But Different films many delegates felt that the powerful video testimonies could be used across the county to inform people about what it’s like to be a minority in a rural area. There was a call for more resources for use with children and young people, and for schools to continue to foster a strong sense of equality and diversity at all levels of education.

Nic Millington CEO of Rural Media said: “We were delighted at the interest in this conference, which demonstrated that there is a real interest among minority groups and communities to have their voices heard so that they can play their part in shaping the future of our county.”

Mr Millington went on to say: ”These short films are not all bad news stories. On the contrary, many people from minority groups speak positively about life in Herefordshire. There is much to build upon; the trick is to keep up the momentum of working towards a fully inclusive county.”

The conference marks The Rural Media Company’s on-going commitment to diversity and saw the national launch of their rural equality and diversity video resource. The DVD pack, which is free to Herefordshire organisations, includes 23 personal testimonies from local people with accompanying facilitator’s notes and an accessible guide to the Equality Act 2010.

Contact Francesca Sandwell francescas@ruralmedia.co.uk or 01432 344039 for a copy.

What has been interesting about this project is that far from highlighting Hereford as a place full of prejudice and discrimination the stories that most of the participants have recounted have been ones of acceptance and tolerance. For many minority groups, it seems, Herefordshire is a wonderful place to live.

Emma’s story is one of the five latest short testimonies that we’ve just created. She is an 18-year-old Traveller who has lived in Herefordshire all her life but her film is very different form the majority of the others featured on the DVD.

Eight years ago Emma and her family were evicted from the site where her grandparents had lived for the last 47 years when her father became too ill to work on the farm. When the family relocated to a nearby village they faced much opposition from other residents who started a petition to prevent them from living there. After much difficulty the family were finally allowed to move in.

But unfortunately the prejudice and discrimination didn’t stop there.

“When I was at school I faced quite a lot of problems because I was a Traveller,” Emma says. “I experienced a lot of racism and bullying.”

Her experiences of been called a ‘dirty gypsy’ and having food and money thrown at her particularly harrowing.

“When all this bullying was going on I never knew that I could have phoned the Police or I could have actually put a stop to it once and for all,” Emma explains. “All I was told is to, ‘keep writing statements…’”

These experiences made Emma ill and she dropped out of education. In the film Emma explains that it wasn’t until a new head teacher came to the school that things began to change.

“I think it’s very important to have somebody in higher education or higher authority to stick up for you because I think it sets a good example… that somebody higher than you is not looking down on you, they are helping you.”

Emma will be screening her film to a few select audiences across the county and discussing the prejudice that Gypsy and Travellers face. If you’d be interested in a copy an updated copy of Same But Different which includes Emma’s film please do get in touch.

You can watch Emma’s film here: https://vimeo.com/38624366

As part of the second year of the Same But Different project, The Rural Media Company has created a further five films to add the collection of eighteen. Now all of the protected characteristics designated by the Equality and Human Right Commission are covered on the DVD, including Pregnancy & Maternity and Marriage & Civil Partnerships.

The updated version of the DVD, with an accompanying booklet and facilitator’s notes, which explains the Equality Act 2010 in detail, will be available from March 2012. Those attending the Same But Different conference will be able to see preview the new films first and will get a copy of the updated DVD.

The new films include:

Disability:

Martin – talks openly about being Bipolar and the effect it has had on his family. He discusses changing attitudes to mental health in society and the stigma and prejudice attached to those diagnosed with a mental health problem.

Pregnancy and Maternity:

Rosie – a single mother with two young children talks about the difficulties she faces supporting her family while working part time and completing her studies. After she had a bad experience with an employer it led her to find out more about the rights to which she is entitled to.

Jayne and Mike – the couple talk frankly about their experiences when Jayne went back to work full time and the difficulties Mark faced finding a part time job in the building trade that fitted around the school run and daily child care duties.

Marriage and Civil Partnerships:

Jeff and Patrick – a gay couple who have been together for over 20 years talk about their reasons for contemplating a civil partnership.

Race:

Emma – a young Traveller discusses the prejudice she and her family faced when they moved from their long established trailer to public, permanent housing.

For anyone interested in obtaining a copy of the DVD, please contact either Francesca – francescas@ruralmedia.co.uk or Jeff – jeffn@ruralmedia.co.uk

To celebrate the end of our second year and the launch of the new DVD and training resource, the Same But Different team would like to invite you all to this event:

Same But Different Conference
Equality and Diversity in Rural England: Opportunities and Challenges
Friday 2nd March 2012 9.30am – 4.00pm
The point4, Venns Lane Hereford, HR1 1DT

As well as celebrating the rich social diversity of Herefordshire, the conference will be addressing issues of equality and fairness, and examine ways in which rural communities can become even more inclusive.

Our key note speaker and panel of experts, including Philomena De Lima,  Damian le Bas, Carol Trachonitis and Bette Bourne, will kick start this important conversation, which will continue through lunch and for those that wish to stay on a series of focus groups, culminating in a ‘next steps’ plenary. While we expect there to be common ground on the desirability for inclusion, there may be less consensus on where responsibility lies for ensuring that rural diversity and inclusion thrive in the future.

We will also be launching the new SBD diversity and equality training resource, which comprises 23 ‘trigger’ films that tackle equality issues surrounding age, sex disability, race, religion & belief, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marriage & civil partnership, and pregnancy & maternity.  The pack also includes a full set of facilitator’s notes and an accessible guide to the Equality Act 2010.

The Same But Different conference will also provide an excellent opportunity for networking amongst all those individuals and agencies working towards a more inclusive countryside. The whole event is free and will include a copy of the SBD training resource.

Programme

9.30         Arrival and registration
10.00       Introduction – Rural Media CEO, Nic Millington
10.10        Welcome by The Mayor of Hereford, Councillor Julie Woodward
10.15        Programme, house-keeping – Conference Chair, Michael Hainge
10.20        Keynote speaker – Dr Philomena de Lima
10.40        Screening of selection of SBD films
11.25        tea, coffee, comfort break
11.40        Chair to introduce speakers/panel
12.30        Q&A
13.00        Feedback form completion
13.30        Lunch
14.30        Breakout discussion groups (4)
15.30        Plenary / next steps
16.00        Ends

Please note that we expecting a high level of interest for this event and spaces will be allocated on a first come first served basis so we urge you to confirm your attendance to Julie Colman either by email to juliec@ruralmedia.co.uk or by telephone 01432 344039 ASAP.

When booking, please indicate any specific dietary requirements and if you have a disability or require assistance to be able to participate fully in the conference. Please state the type of assistance required.

We’re in the process of creating a facilitators training resource which will accompany the DVD and thought it was a great opportunity to involve some of the previous participants. We invited Fiona (who features in the film on the subject of sex) into our offices for a bit of a photo shoot on Thursday 12th January.

Fiona the boiler engineer

The Same But Different team came across Fiona, a boiler engineer from Hereford, accidently when she came to fix our Over the Hill? project co-ordinator Jan Bailey’s heating system.

At first Fiona was reluctant to sit in front of the camera and tell her story, but she thought it would be good opportunity to challenge the concept of gender in the workplace and prove it it is possible for women to be accepted within such a male dominated profession.

“Being in a film is not something natural,” Fiona told us. “I haven’t even watched my own one yet!”

In the film Fiona talks about her surprise that more women don’t take up a profession like plumbing because of the flexibility it affords them. “I suppose I’m a little bit unusual in this neck of the woods in what I do,” she says. “Most of the people doing this kind of work are men. But it doesn’t seem to make any difference. I don’t have any problems. Nobody seems to have a problem with me. A lot of the customers seem to be very happy to see me… after the surprise on their face when I turn up.”

So how did Fiona end up in such a profession?

“I was stuck in an office and fed up,” she explains. “I’d always been a practical person so I enrolled on an evening plumbing course in Gloucester, travelling there twice a week for two years. I was the only woman training to be a plumber at the time but no one commented on the fact!”

Fiona has been a boiler engineer for the last four years and recently became self-employed. It’s her hope that if more women see this film they too may think about plumbing as a career.

“It does concern me that girls are not exploring these possibilities because there shouldn’t really be this divide,” she says. “Even if you wanted to have a break from this work and go and have a family and come back, you can still do that.

“If you wanted to reduce the hours that you worked, I would think that this sort of work would lend itself to that. So there isn’t really any reason why girls shouldn’t be doing this kind of work. So why aren’t they?”

Her advice for young people, particularly girls, would be don’t take no for an answer when applying for jobs and work experience. “It’s very easy to think you’ve been turned down because you’re a woman,” Fiona says. “But don’t let that deter you. When I first qualified I had to apply to the same firm twice before they took me on.”

But it’s not all boiler suits and spanners for Fiona. In the evening she teaches the Tango and looks forward to hanging up the overalls for sparkly sequin dresses and 4 inch heels!

Fiona really is the very essence of the Same But Different project!

To watch Fiona’s film please click here: http://vimeo.com/22234945

Emma Clowsley has lived in Hereford since the age of seven and previously took part in our Bleeding Poof film about homophobia in the countryside. She got involved in the SBD project after reading about it on Rural Media’s website. In the film she talks about what it is like living with her sexuality and how she often has to dodge questions about her private life, such as boyfriends, at work. “I don’t want to be tolerated,” Emma says. “I want people to leave me alone and accept me for who I am. It’s not a big ask.”

12 months after filming her testimony we caught up with Emma to ask about her involvement in the Same But Different project.

Why did you decided to get involved?

Growing up in Hereford, I felt I had experienced and witnessed prejudice of minority groups. I have always had a supportive family, so have been very lucky, but I know others who haven’t. This project is not only important as an educational tool but also for those in minority groups who feel alone and isolated in their situation. I feel strongly that everyone has a right to be comfortable with who they are and to be accepted within society.

Why do you think this project is important for Herefordshire?

I feel this project will educate people about the lives of those in minority groups and the stories will give people a sense of how prejudice and discrimination can affect the way they live them.  Herefordshire is a lovely and friendly place to live, but for some, it is often the lack of contact with people from minority groups that leads to ignorance about the issues they face in day to day life.

What you have got out of this experience?

I mixed with people I would not usually come into contact with and it was an eye-opening and heart-warming experience. The project taught me a lot about the way I view myself, and made me think about the way I view others.

You can view Emma’s video here: http://vimeo.com/22279036

Emma has very kindly said that she would be available to attend a screening with our project co-ordinator Jeff and answer any questions about the project. If you would like to take up this opportunity then please do get in touch.

When Fairfield School in Peterchurch, Herefordshire, invited SBD project co-ordinator, Jeff Newsome, to lead some discussions on equality as part of the school’s diversity week he came armed with his trusty copy of Same But Different.

Jeff used the five films surrounding disability to raise awareness, highlight certain issues and to get the students to talk about how the films made them feel and what actions they might take as a result.

The secondary school has always had the reputation for being friendly and successful, with a positive and progressive outlook and they have been one of the first to take up the opportunity of a free screening.

Jeff said: My three one hour sessions were rather more demanding than I’d imagined they might be. As luck would have it, as well as my work in sexual health (that would’ve supported discussion for some of the film clips), I also worked for the disability charity,  Scope , for a few years in the 1990s. So still we had plenty to discuss. The double sized group of 36 pupils was hardest to engage with, but an exercise with “post it” notes helped bring out some more sensitive questions for the latter part of the hour.

“All the pupils had an evaluation sheet to complete as part of the session. For most of the students, the most affecting film was that of the man with learning difficulties who expressed himself so well when talking about how being bullied made him feel.

“My experience at Fairfield was a very satisfying exercise, and one which I’d like to repeat.”

Over the three hour session,  80 plus students watched the DVD.

Vicki Pearce, Diversity & Inclusion Manager at Fairfield, said: “This powerful and insightful resource offered our young people the opportunity to really explore a huge range of issues whilst giving a ‘local slant’ to really bring to life the great diversity that exists within Herefordshire. It provoked some fascinating discussion and I believe has played a key role in supporting our students to challenging stereotypes and prejudices. Thank you Rural Media, another great contribution!”

As you can see from the comments below, the films really made an impact and left a lasting impression on the students.

‘The film has given me a greater understanding of people with a disability and I now feel more confident about talking to them’ – Jake

‘Don’s story had a big impact on my life because I had no idea that that sort of thing happened to people’ – Ellie

‘The film about Cameron had the biggest impact because it showed no matter what condition you have you can still achieve the same things’ - Anastazja

‘When I watched Don’s story it made me feel sad for him and it’s disgusting that he was picked on – he didn’t choose to have a disability’ – Matthew

If you think your school would benefit from a copy of the Same But Different film then please do contact either Jeff or Francesca.  It’s an ideal resource for citizenship classes or PSHE and is perfect for equality and diversity training for both students and staff.

As the project enters its second year The Rural Media Company is now making the Same But Different DVD available to groups across Herefordshire. And we want to hear from you!

We’re looking for more opportunities to screen our films and would like to hear from you if your organisation, school or community group would like to host a Same But Different screening. You can request a free copy of the DVD and accompanying notes and Rural Media can also provide equipment for the screening together with a facilitator free of charge if required. Screenings can last between 30 – 90mins depending on the needs and availability of audiences.

Already community and voluntary groups, schools and colleges, businesses and public sector services have offered to run screenings for their staff and members.   The 2-3 minute trigger films are ideal to stimulate discussion about diversity and ways in which we can become a more inclusive society.

If you do know of anyone who might like to hold a screening of SBD films, please contact either:

Jeff Newsome, SBD Co-ordinator, on 01432 344039, jeffn@ruralmedia.co.uk or

Francesca Sandwell, Marketing and Communications Co-ordinator on 01432 344039, francescas@ruralmedia.co.uk