This document was put together thanks to guidance from other festivals and individuals, including Take One Action Film Festivals, and Alchemy Film & Arts. We thank them for their generosity.
Download a pdf version of this policy here.
ABOUT SQIFF
SQIFF (Scottish Queer International Film Festival) was formed with the aim of adding to the exciting and growing amount of queer film stuff happening around Scotland. Since 2015, we have held an annual Festival in Glasgow alongside providing year round events across various locations. SQIFF aims to build community through queer films. Our goal is to get people watching, talking about, and making more queer films. We want to screen movies that people might not otherwise get a chance to see and create inspiring and informative events across Scotland. Moreover, we want to support marginalised groups within the LGBTQIA+ community by providing a networking system for queer filmmakers, as well as filmmaking workshops for audiences wanting to start on the medium. We want to challenge inequalities and barriers to accessing the arts.
This Volunteer Policy outlines SQIFF’s commitment to fair and equitable opportunities for volunteers.
This Volunteer Policy includes information on:
- Policy Statement
- Purpose
- Principles
- SQIFF’s commitment to ensuring safe environments for Trans, Non-Binary and/or Gender Diverse People, and people of the Global Majority
POLICY STATEMENT
Scottish Queer International Film Festival (SQIFF) is an organisation committed to providing meaningful, ethical and safe volunteering opportunities across areas of its activity.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this policy is to outline SQIFF’s approach to working with and supporting volunteering, and its commitments to providing meaningful, ethical and safe volunteering opportunities. This policy makes SQIFF responsible to the public for acting on those commitments.
PRINCIPLES
This Volunteer Policy is built upon principles regarding the following areas:
- Volunteer Experience
- Safeguarding
- Transport
- Accessibility
- Our commitment to ensuring safe environments for Trans, Non-Binary and/or Gender Diverse People, and people of the Global Majority
Volunteer experience
At SQIFF we work with volunteers throughout our public events programme, providing opportunities for work experience, social activity and skills development in a supported environment.
We take time to speak to all prospective volunteers, to ensure understanding of what SQIFF is and stands for and what each volunteer hopes to gain from the experience.
Safeguarding
At SQIFF we work to:
- Integrate safeguarding training into the volunteer induction session.
- Ensure that all volunteers are familiar with our Code of Conduct, our Trans, Non-Binary and/or Gender Diverse Statement and our Anti-Racism policy.(see below).
- Encourage volunteers to know they can walk away from any situation in which they feel uncomfortable and to talk through any concerns with the allocated SQIFF team member responsible for safeguarding.
- Provide clear channels through which volunteers can raise concerns and / or ask questions.
Transport
- SQIFF will cover transport costs for every volunteer within a determined radius of each of our events. We will provide a portion of travel costs to volunteers external to this.
Accessibility
- SQIFF is sensitive to volunteers’ accessibility requirements and will provide access support upon request. Please refer to SQIFF’s Accessibility Policy to see our full statement and measures.
- We will ensure that volunteers have access to food and water supplies. When a volunteer’s shift exceeds four hours, SQIFF will provide a meal.
COMMITMENT TO TRANS, NON-BINARY AND/OR GENDER DIVERSE PEOPLE AND PEOPLE OF THE GLOBAL MAJORITY
We are committed to providing an environment that is welcoming, accessible and inclusive for all attendees, staff, guests and volunteers, in person and online. In particular, SQIFF works to provide the safest environment for Trans, Non-Binary and/or Gender Diverse People and people of the Global Majority.
Please refer to SQIFF’s Trans, Non-Binary and/or Gender Diverse People Statement and Anti-Racism Policy to see our full statement and measures.
We welcome any comments and suggestions that can help us to develop our Volunteer Policy: [email protected].