Fair Work First Statement

NOCTURN Creative Limited is committed to the Scottish Government's Fair Work First criteria. This statement sets out how we meet them and where we are still developing our practice. It has been developed in conjunction with our workforce representative and is reviewed annually.

Our structure

NOCTURN is a limited company registered in England (company number 08495796) with one employee — the Artistic Director. All other delivery is by freelance collaborators engaged on contracts for services. We have no recognised trade union. This shapes how the Fair Work First criteria apply to us, and we have taken a proportionate approach rather than adopting structures designed for larger employers.

Payment of at least the real Living Wage

We pay at or above the real Living Wage — currently £13.45 per hour outside London — to everyone engaged on our work, including freelance collaborators, from the start of any funded period.

Where a fee is agreed for a defined piece of work rather than by the hour, we check the fee against the contracted days and expected hours to confirm the effective hourly rate meets or exceeds the real Living Wage. Where published sector minimums (ITC/Equity, the Musicians' Union, BECTU, a-n) exceed the real Living Wage, the sector minimum applies.

We are not accredited by the Living Wage Foundation. Accreditation and payment are different things: we meet the rate, we do not hold the accreditation. It is a step we intend to take as the organisation grows.

Appropriate channels for effective workers' voice

Our voice arrangements are individual rather than collective, as anticipated by Fair Work First guidance for organisations with fewer than 21 workers. They comprise:

• Regular one-to-one conversations with each collaborator, held separately from any review of the work itself

• A written route for raising concerns, established at onboarding

• A feedback process at the end of each project, with findings used to revise our practice

• A workforce representative appointed from among the collaborators on each funded project, for anyone who would rather raise something through a peer.

• External routes open to everyone, including ACAS regardless of union membership, the relevant sector unions for those who are members, and the Equality and Human Rights Commission

Because there is no one internally above the Artistic Director, we are explicit that concerns about the Artistic Director should be taken to one of the external routes, and we commit to engaging in good faith with any external process that arises.

Investment in workforce development

Where funding allows, we structure projects as extended engagements — residencies and sustained cohorts — rather than fragmented short bookings, so collaborators have time to develop practice rather than only to deliver. Reflective conversation and skills exchange are built into project design.

No inappropriate use of zero-hours contracts

We do not use zero-hours contracts. Every collaborator is contracted in writing before work begins, with defined scope, fee, dates of engagement and expectations on availability. We do not use unpaid internships or free labour in exchange for exposure.

Addressing workplace inequalities

We recognise that disabled people, racialised minorities, women, workers aged over 50 and LGBTQ+ workers face structural barriers in arts employment. As a micro-organisation we do not have a workforce large enough to produce meaningful pay gap data, and we are clear about that limitation rather than claiming otherwise.

Within our means, we circulate opportunities through networks reaching underrepresented artists rather than only existing contacts; budget access provision and personal access costs from the outset for team members as well as participants; offer reasonable adjustments at every stage and ask about access needs at first contact; and set fees by reference to published sector benchmarks rather than individual negotiation from an unequal starting point.

Our fuller commitments are set out in our Equal Opportunities, Diversity & Inclusion Policy.

Flexible and family friendly working from day one

We offer flexible and family friendly working from day one of employment or engagement, not on request after a qualifying period. This includes flexibility on hours and location where the work allows, and adjustment of schedules around caring responsibilities, ongoing artistic practice, health conditions and access needs.

Opposing fire and rehire

We do not use dismissal and re-engagement to alter terms, and we do not hold out the prospect of dismissal to secure agreement to changed terms. Where terms need to change, we consult and reach agreement.

Where we are still developing

We think it is more useful to be honest about this than to claim a finished position:

• We are not yet Living Wage Foundation accredited.

• Our voice arrangements are individual only. Collective voice is encouraged by the guidance even below the 21-worker threshold, and we will revisit this if the organisation grows.

• Our equalities monitoring is observational rather than systematic, because of the size of the teams involved.

Signed on behalf of NOCTURN Creative Limited:

John Darvell

Artistic Director and Founder NOCTURN Creative Limited

Date: July 2026