A Word From Our CEO
2022 was our first year as an officially registered charity, and what a year it was!
For our ARC team it was their first year in their full time roles, and along with our board of amazing trustees and growing bank of volunteers we hit the ground running, setting out ambitious goals across our four main strands: Impacting Leadership, Communication and Campaigning, Transforming Education and Grass Roots.
You can read more here about what these strands mean, and what it is that we do… but to put it simply: our aim is to make a tangible impact across Cumbria, working towards us becoming the UK’s first anti-racist county.
We have made big strides towards our goals, and we’re attracting attention not just locally but nationally too.
One of the questions we’re often asked is “That’s a big job, how are you received in Cumbria?”.
We won’t sugar coat it, at times it’s as challenging as it is rewarding.
Social media trolls, pushback, denial and resistance all stack up…but as we were told recently by somebody we’re inspired by…if everyone likes you, you’re not doing it right!
Through creating space for self care and introducing wellbeing seasonal events (communal healing for ARC team and volunteers), we are able to face these challenges head on and take the time to process them. Our own self-care has adapted our work too, helping us reach those who may not otherwise engage with anti-racism. It fuels us to work even harder…and we think that the results we are achieving speak for themselves:
- This year we hit a social media following of over 9000, which is double this time last year, and we had a reach of over 1 million.
- We’ve been awarded funding from Paul Hamlyn, Esmee Fairbairn, Francis Scott Foundation and ringfenced funding from Cumbria County Council. All our funding is allocated according to its purpose; whether it be full time roles, community projects or our work with Cumbrian schools.
- We engaged with over 100 young people through our grassroots youth projects.
- Our second Summit sold out, again! It was attended by 250 people in real life and almost 100 online.
- We’ve delivered our bespoke anti-racism conversation days and power hours to over 500 people across more than 30 businesses, organisations and educational settings.
Read more about what we’ve been up to this year in our timeline below.
We will continue to strive towards our ambitious goals, and we will continue to break down barriers with our work as we achieve tangible change in this beautiful county:
Because an anti-racist society is good for everyone, somewhere no one is left behind.
We. Move.
Janett Walker
CEO and Co-Founder of Anti Racist Cumbria
JANUARY
Our CIO (Charitable Incorporated Organisation) status was granted by the Charity Commission to enable Anti Racist Cumbria to achieve its Charitable Purposes, and we received funding allowing us to build a full time team of 3.
We are delighted to say that thanks to further funding grants, our team of 3 has now grown to a team of 5! Meet the team here.
FEBRUARY
Janett was appointed to the North East & Cumbria (one of 6) regional steering groups of The Phoenix Way (of which she is now co-chair), an initiative created to address the structural barriers and inequities Black communities experience so that those facing poverty, exclusion and discrimination have a say in decisions that impact their lives.
The Phoenix Way (national) has now secured funding of over £15 million pound from the Youth Endowment Fund, Chanel Foundation and Lloyds Bank Foundation. The majority of these funds will be distributed in the form of grants to grassroots organisations, with the remainder going toward the building of infrastructure for their first year. It’s a really exciting organisation and one that you’ll be hearing more about in 2023!
MARCH
Barrow AFC teamed up with Anti Racist Cumbria to host a workshop for 50 schoolchildren from across the town to learn about and discuss anti-racism. It was an incredibly impactful day for both the children and for the ARC team culminating in a large group of the children walking out onto the pitch at a Barrow AFC match the following Saturday with a banner and wearing Anti Racist Cumbria T-Shirts!
APRIL
Over 200 VIP guests joined us for an exclusive animatic screening of ‘The Fell We Climb’- an animated short film inspired by our Grass Roots youth group made up of Black and Brown young people who have shared their real life experiences of growing up in Cumbria. Guided by Plus3K animation studio, and Executive Producer TV Presenter Nigel Clarke, best known for hosting Cbeebies, they have brought to life a spell-binding and authentic character driven story to inspire future generations to become anti-racist.
We were thrilled to hit our crowdfunder target thanks to the support of several Cumbrian businesses and individuals both locally & nationally. The film has since been screened at over 50 venues across Cumbria and is now being prepared to enter the 2023 film festival circuits. It will also be provided free to every school in the county with an accompanying lesson plan. (That’s over 340 schools!)
MAY
In May we hit a social reach of over 1 million, which is 95% higher than the national average for organisations of our size! Our social media is headed up by Director of Comms Sophia Newton and supported by an incredible team of volunteers who all contribute; which makes it even more special when we receive feedback like this:
“All their social posts and articles are well – researched, balanced and they educate me on hidden stories, false narratives and implicit bias. The tone of voice is unapologetic and firm but also filled with empathy and kindness”
JUNE
Anti Racist Cumbria were part of the Diocese of Carlisle Schools conference, which welcomed headteachers, governors and leaders from a range of Cumbria’s Church of England schools.
The theme this year was inclusivity, and Janett hosted an impactful and interactive session around the relevance of anti-racism in Cumbrian Education System.
This has been the beginning of an ongoing relationship between Anti Racist Cumbria and the Diocese of Carlisle, and we’ll be moving forward with further collaboration in 2023
JULY
Anti Racist Cumbria were invited to be part of the partners panel interviewing the new CEO of the newly formed Cumberland Authority.
We are now working closely with them and are at the beginnings of work with Westmorland and Furness authority which we will progress in the new year.
It’s incredibly important that we introduce anti-racism as a priority on the agenda for both authorities at this time of change for the county and we’re pleased with the progress that has been made so far.
AUGUST
We held our first (but certainly not our last) Summer Sticker Day. Some of our ARC volunteers were joined by members of the public who had come to volunteer with us for the day in exchange for items purchased from the @kindercumbria shop project. Our brilliant teams in Keswick, Carlisle and Windermere were tasked with visiting local businesses and asking them to show their support by putting up one of our ‘Anti Racist Cumbria Supporter’ window stickers. We were absolutely blown away by the welcome we received!
68 fantastic shops, pubs, restaurants and independent Cumbrian businesses put up our stickers without hesitation. If you’d like a sticker for your business or your car, they’re free with any purchase of ARC merch, or Just pay for postage.
SEPTEMBER
We took a group of Black girls and non binary young people to see ARC member Lekhani Chirwa in her play ‘Can I Touch Your Hair’ at Theatre by the Lake. Why? Because each and every one of them have Afro textured hair. And each and every one of them have had to go on a hair journey (and still are) just like Lekhani did. They proudly participated in a Q&A afterwards with Lekhani, each taking a turn to sit with her and Jess (one of our youth mentors who has also been on the same journey). Lekhani feels epic. She is in love with her beautiful versatile hair and she isn’t letting anyone tell her otherwise.To open up those important conversations about racism we need more plays like #CITYH in our county. Read more about Lekahni’s incredible play here.
OCTOBER
We had a very busy October! We delivered anti-racist conversations and workshops to some of our region’s key organisations; the University of Cumbria’s Institute of Health, Civil Nuclear Constabulary, Cumbria Education Early Years and Cumbria Museum Consortium.
Janett is now a key part of an EDI steering group for The University of Cumbria’s Institute of Health, and they meet regularly to ensure that their approach, policies and courses are working towards becoming genuinely equitable: with anti-racism a clear and intentional part of the institute’s ethos.
NOVEMBER
November saw the return of our Summit at Brewery Arts, Kendal. We sold out again… and with Nova Reid as our Keynote speaker it’s no surprise! It was a day of enriching, empowering and encouraging conversations, alongside talks and workshops that helped us to share the progress that we’ve made, as well as talk about the work we must all continue to do. We couldn’t be prouder: of our team of volunteers, our facilitators, our speakers, and of all the contributors working behind the scenes to make the event as impactful as it was. We’re also proud of those 250 people who attended in person, and the almost 100 people who accessed the event online via our webinar. Choosing to spend the day learning and talking about racism is not the easy choice; it’s brave, bold and it’s often uncomfortable. But as we discussed throughout the day, being a good ally is all about working to accept discomfort as well as challenging racism and inequity wherever we can.
DECEMBER
This month we’ve made time to take stock. Of the work we’ve done so far, improvements we’d like to make, the things we should celebrate, the team that we’ve built, and the impact that we’ve made. We couldn’t do what we do without our amazing volunteers, so to give our thanks to them we held not one but two festive parties! The first followed our general meeting – we partied in style with a few drinks and a lot of karaoke and laughs in Carlisle. Many people popped their karaoke cherry that night…we won’t share the videos but believe us, they’re fantastic…mostly.
The second was a wholesome festive family get-together at Low Bridge End Farm in St Johns In The Vale. It began with tea and cake (as all good gatherings should) and ended with a walk out along the valley in the beautiful frozen landscape and winter sun.
To quote one of our members:
“ARC does many things, but building community is a huge part of the process, creating spaces for people to meet and connect. The work we do is hard, and without a community to come back to, it would be impossible.”
It’s on that note that we’re going to wrap up this timeline, and this year.
We thank every single person who has helped us on our way in 2022.
We wish you all a restful festive period, and we’ll see you in 2023!
Best wishes from Janett, Soph, Kelle, Erika and Shabnam.
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