#News: Raising The Roof – Showcasing #Accessibility in Creative Spaces and celebrating #Inclusion: St George’s Hall, November 1, 2018

Liverpool, September 2018. Raising The Roof, the international concert held in support of The International Council for Caring Communities (ICCC) International Student Design Competition Fellowships, returns to the iconic St George’s Hall in Liverpool on November 1, 2018 with another star-studded line-up celebrating accessibility to life’s opportunities.

The first time Raising The Roof was held in October 2017, it was a resounding success. The glittering fund-raising celebration honoured the winners of the ICCC International Student Design Competition and supported the Fellows and architectural leaders of the future. It had a spectacular line-up of musical and dance talent, which took to the stage in the sumptuous Concert Room at the grade I listed landmark – St George’s Hall in Liverpool.

This year Universal Inclusion, hosts and organisers of Raising The Roof, have extended the concept of accessible spaces and inclusion to present a ground-breaking and interactive afternoon seminar, bringing together global thought-leaders, artists, architects, entrepreneurs and key decision makers in all things art and culture.

The seminar will showcase and discuss essential concepts on accessibility to life’s opportunities and opening up the creative space, culminating in a global call-to-action. Panel speakers include Ayesha Gavin, James Holt, Grant Logan, Dan White Jacqueline Winstanley Bsc Hons, Professor Dianne Davis, Christine Gong, the ICCC Competition Winner Fellows and Master of Ceremonies, Robert Winstanley

This will be followed by a VIP reception where guests will have the opportunity to mix with the amazing international talent, speakers, dignitaries and guests before settling down for another stunning Raising The Roof concert, which will bring these concepts to life.

The spectacular evening features awards and star performances of music and singing from internationally renowned entertainers: Asa Murphy, Matthew Wadsworth, James Holt, Napua Davoy, and the Chinese Pagoda Youth Orchestra. It will also celebrate this year’s ICCC Award winners for the Caring Citizen of the Humanities, recognising the contributions they have done and continue to make. Master of Ceremonies is Dan White.

The day’s events are being hosted and organised by Universal Inclusion, led by Seminar and Concert Executive Producer Jacqueline Winstanley, Founder and CEO of Universal Inclusion. The Concert Musical Director is John Kiehl, co-founder of Soundtrack Recording Studios while Ellen Kerr from Merseyside Woman of the Year (MWOTY) is the Stage Manager.

As Jacqueline explained, “All that I do through Universal Inclusion and my other initiatives is in line with my deeply-rooted conviction to do what is possible to increase the equality of access to life’s opportunities for everyone.

“Both the Seminar Opening Up the Creative Space and the concert Raising The Roof continue to honour this conviction: the concert celebrates accessibility across spaces – seen in the physical space created through the winning works of the Council for Caring Communities (ICCC) International Student Design Competition Fellowships – and the creative space which is brought to life through music. Music has always been an art that can transcend boundaries and bring people together, and once again, the performers will represent a spectrum of geographic origins, musical styles, and ages.”

Jacqueline continued, “The concert supports the ICCC International Student Design Competition Fellowship, and their work highlights the importance of creating inclusive cities. As we strive to create the paradigm shift across all spaces, it is imperative that the built environment reflects the requirements of our increasingly diverse and ageing population.”

This year’s Raising The Roof production is in partnership with the ICCC* and Liverpool City Council, and supported by Courage and Sparkle, Disability Today, Evermore Wellbeing, Gooseberry Pink, Jigsaw Medical, LMA Liverpool, Merseyside Woman of the Year (MWOTY), Pink Shoe Club and St George’s Hall. The organising committee includes Mike Cash; Noreen Cesareo, Market Accents; Professor Dianne Davis, ICCC Founder; Julie Fernandez; Christine Gong, Co-Founder, Chinese Cultural and Art International Organization; Christoff Karla; Ellen Kerr; Professor Gisela Loehlein, ICCC Vice President for Student Design Competition; Peter Mathius; Emanuel ‘Manny’ Perlman, Alan Smith and Tony Thompson.

*The ICCC acts as a bridge, linking government, civil society organizations, the private sector, universities and the United Nations in enhancing new ways of viewing an integrated society for all ages. These events are also aligned to and supporting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. They foster the ICCC program: “Imagining the Possible”.

Tickets are available from https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/raising-the-roof-2018-tickets-49054092110

Further details on the event as well as speakers’ and performers’ bios can be found at here.

Twitter: @univinclusion

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/universal-inclusion/

#RTR2018 #raisingtheroof2018 #ICCC #diversity #inclusion #culture #disability #art #citizenoftheworld #Liverpool #StGeorgesHall

#Proud2support: #FQ3 International Forum at The Shard 26/10/16

#FQ3 Forum To Discuss The Growth of UK Women Owned Businesses

October 2016, London UK. Pink Shoe, together with the Enterprise Research Centre (ERC), is organising the third International Female Quotient (#FQ) Forum at The Shard in central London on Wednesday 26 October, 2016. This forum will advance the discussion for opportunities for women-owned businesses in a complex and post-Brexit economy with representatives from the City, corporate, public sector and professional industries.

This third forum is a milestone in a 5-year programme that will see the development of the first-ever UK Economic Blueprint (UK EB) for women-owned businesses (WBs). It follows on from last year’s successful #FQ2 forum, also held at The Shard, which marked the launch of the Economic Blueprint and the Ten Point Plan underpinning its delivery. Since then, Team EB with seven supporting work streams has defined the vision, mission and scope of the overall programme, as well as the individual work stream plans which will bring this innovative and unique platform to fruition.

#FQ3 takes the conversation surrounding the growth of UK women-owned businesses to industry representatives, corporates and public sector, discussing the positive impact these businesses have on the economy and the emerging opportunities for global collaboration, especially in the light of a post-Brexit economy. The programme includes keynote speeches, presentations and panel discussions on various topics, including the development of the UK Economic Blueprint for Women, the impact of gender parity on economic growth, the Brexit effect for women-owned business and the global picture for female enterprise, showcasing international case studies.

Confirmed delegates include industry leaders and representatives from the City and public sector, as well as international corporates, business owners and organisations that represent women business owners, influencers and policy makers.

As Jill Pay, Chairman of Pink Shoe Senate, remarked, “#FQ3 is an important milestone in our overall strategy and plans. Last year’s conference, #FQ2, was Day One in Year One. We are now in Day One of Year Two, and all the seven work streams are steaming ahead to define the requirements and bring to life the technology and collaborative platforms that will underpin the Economic Blueprint. We are now working with corporates, business owners and national organisations to reach the largest possible number of women-owned businesses.”

Helene Martin Gee, Founder and President of Pink Shoe, continued, “Today, the UK Economic Blueprint is more than just a concept. In the last year, we have defined and developed the project framework that will deliver the Economic Blueprint and digital platform. The seven work streams are all engaged in developing plans to bring it to fruition. The Blueprint has strong support from Ministers, MPs and Peers and via the All Party Parliamentary Group for Women and Enterprise and leading other All Party groups. We are also forming strong partnerships with corporates and national organisations. We will continue to use advocacy and influence to seek policy and economic solutions to improve opportunities for women-owned businesses and with the assistance of our international and UK partners and supporters, we are confident that we can achieve our goals.”

http://www.thepinkshoeclub.co.uk/about/economic-blueprint