The Liverpool creative arts institute founded by Sir Paul McCartney was deemed to be “institutionally racist” amid a complaint raised by a visiting lecturer.
Papers released following an employment tribunal involving the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts (LIPA) last month have revealed how an externally investigated complaint made by a visiting member of staff led to the world famous institute being found as “institutionally racist.” According to documents made available on the UK Government’s online service, a female black visiting lecturer was employed at LIPA from September 2019 to April 2021.
Having raised “concerns and complaints” in November 2019, the employment tribunal papers said the lecturer was placed on a performance enhancement plan in December 2020 before instigating a grievance against LIPA. The documents said this was investigated by Kerstie Skeaping, partner at law firm Hill Dickinson LLP.
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Ms Skeaping found LIPA to be “institutionally racist” and upheld many of the claimant’s grievance allegations, which included allegations that she had been discriminated against because of her race and sex. Attempts were made to resolve the issue, with the lecturer submitting a list of her desired outcomes which were not acknowledged with a substantive response for almost three months in December 2021.
As a result, the lecturer put forward a claim for an employment tribunal claiming she had experienced unlawful deduction from wages, direct sex and race discrimination as well as harassment and victimisation because of her race and sex. It is understood an independent report was commissioned by LIPA following complaints made in 2020.
The report of the employment tribunal and its findings were first reported in trade publication Arts Professional. A final hearing to resolve the tribunal is to be heard next month.
Based on the site of the Liverpool Institute for Boys on Mount Street, LIPA opened its doors to its first intake of students in 1996. Sir Paul had been aware the building, which had been his own school, was falling into disrepair and sought to give it a new lease of life alongside Mark Featherstone-Witty, who helped set up The Brit School.
Mr Featherstone-Witty, who stepped down as principal and chief executive in 2021, was criticised for his response to the Black Lives Matter campaign in the United States in 2020. The former principal said “every life matters” in a statement published on social media by LIPA in the aftermath of the killing of George Floyd.
Mr Featherstone-Witty said he deeply regretted the remarks which were swiftly deleted. A new leadership team was installed at LIPA following the former chief executive’s planned retirement two years ago, alongside the adoption of a new people strategy focusing on changing cultures.
A spokesperson for LIPA said: “While we cannot comment on any individual details, we take our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion extremely seriously. As has been identified, LIPA instructed an external, independent expert to fully investigate a range of allegations made by a former employee in 2020.
“Since the report was completed in 2021, significant improvements have been made across the organisation. Our focus continues to be driving a shift in culture to ensure that our staff and students share a vision of an inclusive and empowering learning environment that delivers equal opportunities for all.”
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