SHOUT Festival is looking for people from a wide range of backgrounds to help shape the Festival as part of its Advisory Group.

What is SHOUT?

SHOUT is the Festival of queer arts and culture for Birmingham and the West Midlands. It aims to amplify the voices of lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and queer people and communities from across our city and region, and start new conversations and tell new stories about LGBT+ life.

What does the Advisory Group do?

It’s a group of people who get together for a couple of hours, 4-6 times a year with the SHOUT team, to talk about what we want to see in the festival and other programmes.

They review the programme plans, give feedback, make suggestions, and discuss issues of relevance to the community. They also look at the SHOUT business plan and budgets, and help make sure that SHOUT is living up to its ambitions.

They might also get involved in other ways: attending events, actively promoting SHOUT when possible, making connections and introductions when that’s helpful, and occasionally helping with recruiting new staff.

Some Advisory Group meetings are  virtual and some take place at the Birmingham LGBT Centre in the city centre.

What are we looking for?

We’re looking to assemble a group of people that can be representative of the brilliant cultural diversity of the West Midlands. We especially welcome applicants from diverse and underrepresented backgrounds

The most important personal attribute is enthusiasm, for SHOUT as a festival of queer arts and culture. Beyond that, we’re especially looking for people with a range of different life experiences, skills and knowledge. This could include:

Will this mean I become legally responsible for SHOUT?

No. SHOUT is a project of Birmingham LGBT, which means the Board of Birmingham LGBT are legally responsible for SHOUT.

Will I get paid?

The Advisory Group is a voluntary group, but we want to make sure that nobody is excluded for economic reasons. So we can pay expenses for being involved, including for travel, meals, and childcare or other care of dependents.

SHOUT will also do our utmost to ensure that there are no barriers for anyone taking part. We will cover access costs, including full support or contribution to personal assistant costs and/or interpretation if required, or if unobtainable under Access to Work or any other support mechanism.

If I am on the Advisory Group, can I still be programmed in the festival?

Yes. If you’re an artist, for instance, you can still be part of the festival and also part of the Advisory Group.

All we would ask is that if you might personally benefit from any festival programming decision, you shouldn’t be involved in discussions about that decision: and there’s a conflict of interest policy to make sure of that.

How do I apply?

If you want to be part of the Advisory Group, please email us at shoutfestival@blgbt.org, explaining a little bit about yourself, why you want to join and what you think you will bring to the group, by 13 January 2023.  We’ll then be in touch with next steps as soon as possible after that.

If you’re thinking of applying but want to have an informal discussion, please also email shoutfestival@blgbt.org and we’ll be happy to have a chat.

Key facts

–  There have been a number of confirmed cases of monkeypox in the UK. Although monkeypox can affect anyone, the majority of those cases are among gay and bisexual men.

– Monkeypox is transmitted through close contact, so is likely being passed on during sex rather than sexual transmission.

– Everyone is being asked to be aware of the monkeypox symptoms, but it’s important gay and bisexual men are alert as it’s believed to be transmitting through sexual networks.

– If you have new unexpected or unexplained spots, ulcers or blisters anywhere on your body (including the face and/or genitals) or any of the other symptoms outlined below, then contact your local sexual health service by phone – not in person – or call 111 for advice.

– Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle aches, backache, swollen glands, chills and exhaustion.

– All calls to a GP, a clinic, and to 111 about monkeypox should be treated sensitively and confidentially.

– Close contacts who have symptoms will be advised to isolate for 21 days.

– Health protection teams are getting in touch with close contacts of anyone diagnosed with monkeypox. They will advise you what to do if you do not have symptoms.

Monkeypox transmission
Monkeypox can be passed on from person to person through:

You’re extremely unlikely to have monkeypox if:

The virus enters the body through broken skin (even if not visible), the respiratory tract, or the mucous membranes (eyes, nose, or mouth). The incubation period is the duration/time between contact with the infected person and the time that the first symptoms appear. The incubation period for monkeypox is between 5 and 21 days.

Monkeypox infection is usually a self-limiting illness and most people recover within several weeks. However, severe illness can occur in some individuals.

Symptoms
The first symptoms of monkeypox include:

A rash usually appears 1 to 5 days after the first symptoms. The rash often begins on the face, then spreads to other parts of the body. This can include the genitals and anus.

The rash is sometimes confused with chickenpox. It starts as raised spots, which turn into small blisters filled with fluid. These blisters eventually form scabs which later fall off.

The symptoms usually clear up in a few weeks. An individual is contagious until all the scabs have fallen off and there is intact skin underneath.

Geographic spread
The proportion of cases resident in London was more than 75% from the start of the incident up to 20 June 2022. This proportion declined to just over 60% in early July and has stayed at around 66% of cases since then. On 18 July 2022 the total number of monkeypox cases confirmed in the UK was 2,137. Most of these were diagnosed in England (2,050) and the majority of cases were in gay and bisexual men.

Monkeypox and HIV
There is limited evidence on monkeypox in people living with HIV, and most is based on research in countries where access to HIV treatment is low, and overall health outcomes are worse than in the UK. Currently people living with HIV should follow the same advice as the general population. Should evidence emerge that people with weakened immune systems are at greater risk of monkeypox, or ill-health from catching the virus, then updated information and advice will be made available.

Monkeypox and PrEP
Monkeypox does not affect effectiveness of PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis); therefore, people who use PrEP should continue to take it.

Vaccination
A safe smallpox vaccine, called Imvanex is available and currently offered to close contacts of people diagnosed with monkeypox and healthcare professionals who are seeing potential monkeypox cases. The vaccine reduces the likelihood of symptomatic infection and severe illness.

UKHSA has announced plans to make the vaccine more widely available – this will include gay and bisexual men who are more likely to be exposed to monkeypox. People are currently advised not to come forward for the vaccine until contacted.

UKHSA guidance for gay/bi/MSM:

Bards and Books a very friendly and sociable LGBTQ+ book group which meets on the first Monday of each month (apart from when this falls on a Bank Holiday in which case it moves to the second Monday). We meet from 11am to 1pm in a venue centrally located in Birmingham. There is the option to continue on to a group lunch after the meeting.

After managing, by using monthly Zooms, to keep Bards and Books going throughout the pandemic, we are now trying to return to face-to-face meetings. Some members still feel unable to meet in person and several have got new jobs. Therefore we are in the position of being able to offer new membership to anyone who would like to join us.

The group overall is in the 50+ age group although we do have younger members. There are more men than women and we would particularly welcome more women and people of colour.

Each meeting discusses a different book before broadening out to discuss wider issues of LGBTQ+ interest. Books chosen are by LGBTQ+ writers and/or contain LGBTQ+ themes. They cover a wide range of genres. The book choices are made by majority consensus from regularly updated lists compiled by members. A copy of our ongoing book choices since the group started in 2013 is available on request.

You are welcome to attend one of our meetings to see if Bards and Books is what you are looking for. Some of us have been members for nearly nine years and therefore have discussed around 100 books and are still coming back for more!

We also have a Podcasting project, and we’re looking for volunteers to assist with developing our website, so we can host our podcasts. You can hear some of our previous podcasts if you join our Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/686567058989271.

Please contact Mary Dunne at bardsandbooks@gmail.com if you are interested and would like further details.

Birmingham LGBT is looking for a design consultant to support the delivery of the LGBT Hub Legacy Plan.

Introduction

Ageing Better in Birmingham, a seven-year, £6m National Lottery Community Fund programme, started in 2015. Its aim is to reduce social isolation amongst older people in Birmingham. BVSC is the accountable body for the programme and leads the Ageing Better in Birmingham Partnership. The overall aim of Ageing Better in Birmingham is to facilitate change in the way older people are considered by and within communities; it works at a neighbourhood level, using a grassroots, asset-based approach to create a new movement for community action on ageing and isolation.

The programme facilitates active citizenship within communities to reduce isolation now and prevent it happening in the future. While Ageing Better in Birmingham operates across Birmingham, effort and resources are targeted in four priority areas:

Each of the Hubs has been asked to draw up Legacy Plans for when the programme ends in March 2022. The LGBT Hub, run by Birmingham LGBT, plans to produce a suite of resources for the LGBT community and mainstream service providers and commissioners.

Part of the Legacy Plan requires the services of a consultant to undertake the graphic design of a toolkit and other resources to support the ongoing development and sustainability of Ageing Better Networks (groups) and activities, and secure a legacy of social change. These could take the shape of packs, handouts or booklets, and we would expect to see your thoughts on this as part of your application.

Brief

The work required includes designs for the following components:

One: Briefing for service providers and commissioners

Working with the Ageing Better programme to develop a specific briefing or information document/pack on working with the LGBT community, targeting mainstream service providers and commissioners, including:

Two: Toolkit for peer-led groups

Designing and producing a toolkit for peer-led LGBT groups and activities, including:

Three: Resources for older LGBT people

Creating a ‘library’ of factsheets and research to cover issues (as relating to the older LGBT community) including:

The resources are intended, in the main, to be accessible online via the Birmingham LGBT website.

Accountability: The consultant will be accountable to the Ageing Better programme worker, specifically the Network Enabler of the LGBT Hub at Birmingham LGBT.

Skills required: Experience of working in a sensitive and culturally competent way, particularly around LGBTQ+ issues. Experience in producing materials for a range of audiences, including older people and those with additional sensory needs.

Timescales: The work will need to be completed by February 2022.

Contract value: Total amount available £2500 inclusive of VAT.

How to apply

Please respond on no more than three sides of A4 outlining how your skills, knowledge and experience equip you to meet the brief, by Friday 22 October.

Please send your completed response to mariahughes@blgbt.org

PARADE PARTICIPANTS GUIDE 2021

Hello all

We’re very excited to be back at Pride this year, and we’re looking forward to seeing you all.

Here’s the information you need in advance of the parade on Saturday. Please read the official participants guide, accessed from the link above.

 

Timings

10.30am – all members of walking group meet at LGBT Centre to complete registration paperwork and COVID-19 safety checks

11.00am – walk to Victoria Square to register for the parade

12.00pm – parade starts, Birmingham LGBT are third from the front.

Please ensure you dress appropriately for the weather – it looks like it will be warm but overcast, so remember to bring water and sunscreen.

 

COVID-19

All persons participating in the parade must sign the registration form on Saturday morning to confirm they have read the participants guide & have answered ‘no’ to the following 3 questions:

 

1) Today or in the last 10 days have you had any of the following symptoms: high temperature, a new, continuous cough or a loss of, or change to, your sense of smell or taste?

2) Today or in the last 10 days have you been self isolating having been contacted by the NHS Test & Trace services or after returning to/entering the UK?

3) Today or in the last 10 days have you or anyone in your household tested positive for Covid-19?

 

In addition to this, Birmingham LGBT has to provide a risk assessment for the group, and this includes our own COVID-19 safety procedures:

Everyone marching with Birmingham LGBT will need to provide proof of a negative Lateral Flow Test taken within 24 hours of the march. This is the same for staff, volunteers and members of the public.

If you are unable to provide proof of this on the day you will not be able to walk with the group. Mask wearing is not compulsory as we will be outside, however if you would prefer to wear a mask then we are happy for you to do so.

 

If you have any questions please email jomuskett@blgbt.org