Come and work with Black Lives Matter UK to help us organise the Festival of Collective Liberation 2025!
Rate: £26000 per year, pro-rata (£100 per day)
Conditions: 6hr days including 1 hr break.
Location: Hybrid – Whitechapel, London
Contract Type: Part-Time (3 days), Temporary Freelance – Until end of July
Role Overview:
The Assistant/Trainee Programmer will support the Festival Programmer in developing and delivering the one-day summer festival. This role offers an opportunity to gain hands-on experience in programming, event planning, and stakeholder coordination while contributing to a meaningful and impactful event. Under the guidance of the Festival Programmer, the Assistant will take on delegated tasks and learn to manage various aspects of programming and event coordination.
Key Responsibilities:
1. Programme Support:
- Assist the Festival Programmer in developing a cohesive festival programme, including cultural performances, political discussions, and educational workshops.
- Support research into potential speakers, facilitators, and performers who align with the festival’s themes.
- Help coordinate content streams, ensuring alignment with the festival’s goals and narrative.
2. Administrative Support:
- Maintain and update the master spreadsheet, ensuring all bookings include full names, emails, and phone numbers.
- Track progress in the spreadsheet, reflecting updates from meetings and confirmed bookings.
- Support preparing and distributing agendas, minutes, and action points for meetings with the producer, finance lead, and steering group.
3. Meeting Coordination and Participation:
- Attend weekly meetings with the steering group and other stakeholders to provide updates and take notes.
- Assist in the organisation and facilitation of meetings chaired by the Festival Programmer.
- Follow up on action points and ensure alignment with the programming schedule.
4. Communication and Liaison:
- Act as a point of contact for contributors, gathering and organising required information such as bios, session descriptions, and technical needs.
- Ensure timely and clear communication between the Festival Programmer and other stakeholders.
- Support the programmer in liaising with speakers, performers, and workshop leaders to confirm participation.
5. Skills Development:
- Actively engage in mentorship and training provided by the Festival Programmer to develop skills for taking on programming responsibilities independently.
- Learn best practices in event curation, scheduling, and stakeholder management.
Person Specification:
- Strong interest in event programming and curation, particularly in cultural or political settings.
- Excellent organisational and communication skills, with attention to detail.
- Eagerness to learn and develop skills in programming and event coordination.
- Knowledge of or interest in anti-racist and anti-colonial principles.
- Ability to work collaboratively and follow through on assigned tasks.
Development Opportunities:
This role is designed to provide the Assistant Programmer with training and hands-on experience in event programming. The role will equip the trainee with the skills and knowledge to take on more significant responsibilities in future programming roles.
Application Process:
CVs and cover letters to be sent to [email protected] by Thursday 9th January 23:59 – Extended to Friday 10th January at midday.
Interviews will be conducted between Tuesday 14th January and Friday 17th January
The role will start no later than Monday 27th January 2025