A research and guidance report in structuring high-quality hybrid internships in arts organisations, based on AWP Internships and emerging COVID response research
To structure and guide our AWP Hybrid Internships pilot project, in September 2020 we commissioned Dr Charlotte Webb to research existing models, barriers that could be experienced by interns and organisations, and further opportunties for this kind of work
The resulting report, An Exploratory Guide for Hybrid Internships in Small Scale Arts Organisations, acts as both research into and a guide for small-scale arts organisations looking to undertake hybrid internships.
Context of the report
The COVID-19 / coronavirus pandemic prevented our AWP Internships programme running safely in 2020. This report was published at a time when lockdown restrictions were expected to continue for months, including staggered returns to work or a series of ongoing shorter lockdowns. It was written in anticipation that worker safety might require larger structural changes to architecture and public transport which risked further limiting access to arts careers for new graduates from lower socio-economic backgrounds (a focus of AWP Internships) as well as those in clinically vulnerable groups.
The Resolution Foundation predicts that an additional 640,000 18-24- year-olds will find themselves unemployed in 2020, with a 13% lower employment rate persisting even after three years. Although challenging to deliver, internships are even more urgently required to ensure that graduates get early career support in these unprecedented circumstances. It is also essential to maintain schemes that prioritise graduates from under-represented communities, who have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Alongside graduates from lower socio-economic backgrounds, these communities include Black, Asian and other minority ethnicities, LGBTQ+ graduates and those with disabilities, including neurodiversity.
About the research
We defined a ‘hybrid internship’ as one that is delivered partly remotely, alongside physically distanced contact where possible. During remote periods, an intern works, learns and is managed through a combination of digital technologies. There was a presumption that part of the internship will be delivered in person where legal restrictions and personal / health / shielding circumstances would allow. Where circumstances or restrictions do not allow, the internship could be delivered entirely remotely.
It is an inherently flexible model that works within the changing limitations of staff health and wellbeing, the necessity for sheilding, and the UK Government’s tiered model of restrictions, while providing the equipment and digital access required for an intern to experience an excellent start in their arts career.