Mission Statement
The Foreword Festival UK C.I.C. aims to showcase ‘fringe’ authors and performers who may not usually be included in mainstream literary festivals, and to bring them together with readers, reluctant readers, and lapsed readers, who may not feel welcome or represented at mainstream literary festivals.
We aim to bring books, authors, literary activities and spoken-word performance into the community, to meet readers, reluctant readers, and lapsed readers where they are, and to encourage and support a love of reading.
We emphasise volunteering, connecting with other organisations, and providing reciprocal support to other initiatives and events. Where possible, we want our events to be free or low-cost for our participants.
We aim to work with and benefit the communities where we run our events. Our philosophy is that everyone who takes part in our events should benefit in some way from their involvement.
Code of Conduct
This Code of Conduct applies to all participants in events organised by the Foreword Festival UK C.I.C., whether participating as an author, partner, sponsor, volunteer, or attendee, as well as the Board and working teams.
The Foreword Festival UK C.I.C. acknowledges its duty of care to all in our community, and values their safety and well-being. We will act swiftly and responsibly to safeguard against any behaviour we deem to be in violation of this Code of Conduct, and reserve the right to remove anyone who we feel violates this code, both online and in person in our spaces.
We expect all participants in our events to adhere to the principles below:
- To create a safe and welcoming environment for all participants and visitors.
- To conduct all interactions associated with our events with respect, openness and courtesy.
- To respect the privacy of participants and any sensitive, personal information that may be entrusted with us, including those signed up to our mailing lists.
- To communicate, engage with, and listen to all members of the community in a respectful manner.
- To act responsibly, both on and offline, and to respect any boundaries put in place by participants.
We will not tolerate:
- Hate speech, inflammatory or discriminatory language and behaviour of any kind, both on or offline.
- Offensive comments relating to race, religion, gender, age, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, class, or any other comments made in order to denigrate or discriminate against a person’s background or lifestyle.
- Any harassment or intimidation, both on or offline, including unwelcome sexual attention, or the sharing of any sexually explicit materials.
- Any behaviour we deem to be physically, sexually, or mentally inappropriate or threatening.
We respectfully request that all participants in our events adhere to this Code of Conduct, and we reserve the right to ask persons associated with us to desist in any harmful behaviours that are brought to our attention. Failure to do so may result in expulsion from our events and/or severance of any agreement between us.
Equal Opportunities Policy
The Foreword Festival UK C.I.C. is committed to ensuring equal opportunity of involvement in all of its events regardless of age, religion, ethnicity, gender, disability, or sexual orientation. Inclusion, equality, and diversity are at the heart of our festival and associated events. The team and volunteers who work with the Foreword Festival hold kindness and respect to all as key principles in what we do, and strive always to create a safe and welcoming space for everyone who engages with us. We will do all we can to make venues accessible to all visitors and participants wherever it is within our power.
Safeguarding Policy
TBC
We are working with Keep Governance and Safeguarding to produce an effective safeguarding policy for our events.