SHEFFIELD ORATORIO CHORUS
FAIR POLICIES AND PRACTICES STATEMENT

Equal Opportunities as agreed by SOC Committee, March 2007

1. What we do:

  1. The Sheffield Oratorio Chorus (SOC) practices and performs public concerts of classical, modern secular and religious choral music. Its repertoire is drawn largely from the canon of the English and European choral tradition and it has a long association with Sheffield Cathedral.
  2. SOC recruits chorus members who have reasonable singing and sight-reading ability. Entry is via an audition and an annual membership fee is required.

2. SOC values and commitment:

  1. The SOC values the diversity of Sheffield as a multi-racial, multi-cultural and multi-faith city. It is active in the wider cultural and social life of the city, to which it aims to make a high quality contribution in the sphere of choral singing.
  2. SOC is opposed to all forms of unfair treatment on grounds of race, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion and disability. It aims to work towards fair practices and equal opportunities for its membership and audiences.

3. In pursuit of SOC values and commitment we aim to:

  1. Recruit and publicize SOC in ways that make it available and accessible to all.
  2. Ensure our concerts, rehearsals and other activities are equally accessible to all.
  3. Develop strategies for monitoring its membership needs to ensure fair treatment.
  4. Identify possible barriers to participation and enjoyment by audiences and potential audiences from diverse backgrounds.

4. What SOC will do to carry out its aims:

  1. Assess the physical access to both rehearsal and performance venues, and ensure that these accord with the provisions of the Disability Discrimination Act.
  2. Undertake occasional reviews of existing and new members to assess any needs in terms of access and barriers to participation.
  3. Continue to attempt to broaden the diversity of the membership of the chorus through its recruiting and other membership practices.
  4. Build on SOC partnership experience and seek new ways of working with musical groups, schools, etc. from differing cultural traditions in performance.
  5. As part of its regular review of ticketing and membership costs, consider pricing policy in terms of fairness and accessibility.
  6. Designate one or more members to be the point of contact for accessibility and fairness issues, and to invite potential or current members to raise issues relating to this statement and its practical implementation.
    1. to ensure that regular reviews of the equal opportunities policies are undertaken.
    2. to act as a focal point for equality issues within the Chorus.
    3. to report to the committee on action in relation to equal opportunity and accessibility issues.

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