Free resources for Liverpool businesses to ensure inclusive welcome to Eurovision visitors

Businesses across Liverpool City Region are being given the opportunity to take advantage of free resources to ensure that every single visitor receives the warm, inclusive welcome that Liverpool is known for. 

Ahead of the Eurovision Song Contest, Liverpool City Council, in partnership with Liverpool Growth Platform, National Museums Liverpool, St John’s Shopping Centre and OGAE UK, has teamed up with Inclusive Employers to offer businesses in the city a free toolkit and series of webinars. 

The training has been designed to alleviate the fear of saying the wrong thing or worrying about how to communicate when there are language barriers or cultural differences. The resource pack will also help skill up front-of-house-staff to welcome Eurovision’s long-held fan base in the LGBTQ+ community and support customers with visible and non-visible disabilities. 

The webinars available are: 

Intercultural Customer Service (18th April) 

LGBT+ Inclusion in Customer Service (19th April) 

Thinking about Accessibility for an Inclusive Experience (26th April) 

Equality Law and Customer Service (28th April) 

To register for your free toolkit and book your training visit: www.inclusiveemployers.co.uk/inclusive-liverpool  

Tom Lechthaler, who manages Liverpool City Council’s Inclusivity and Accessibility programme for Eurovision, said:  

“Inclusion and diversity are at the heart of the Eurovision Song Contest, bringing countries from around the world together to celebrate unity through music. It is a massive cultural display of identity, a stage where everybody is welcome and a platform that amplifies a message of LGBTQ+ equality.  

“Our partnership with Inclusive Employers is the first of its kind for any host city of the Eurovision Song Contest. Every single one of our volunteers will undertake inclusivity training and we are extending the opportunity to businesses in the city so they can offer their customers the warmest welcome, not just during Eurovision but long after. 

“As part of our commitment to being the most inclusive host city, I am also working with Prep for Life students from Wirral Met and Learning for Life students from Hugh Baird in Sefton to give young adults with learning difficulties or disabilities the opportunity to be part of the buzz via volunteering.” 

Ariel Chapman, Senior Inclusion and Diversity Consultant and Inclusive Liverpool Project Lead with Inclusive Employers, added:  

“Inclusion really is at the heart of the Eurovision Song Contest and thousands of diverse visitors will be arriving in Liverpool in just a few short weeks. Inclusive Employers and Liverpool City Council are working hard to ensure that every single visitor gets the warm, inclusive welcome that Liverpool is known for. 

“As the UK’s leading inclusion and diversity membership organisation, we understand that local businesses are keen to get this right. Our free ‘Inclusive customer experiences’ toolkits and webinars will give businesses across Liverpool the skills they need to bring inclusive best practice into their customer service. The Eurovision Song Contest coming to Liverpool is a once in a generation opportunity and ‘Inclusive Liverpool’ will not only upskill local businesses but create a lasting legacy of inclusion across the city. 

“As a passionate inclusion and diversity expert and a huge fan of the Eurovision Song Contest, working on this project has been a dream come true for me. Bring on May!” 

Rebecca Loy, Diversity and Inclusion Partner at National Museums Liverpool, added:  

“As an organisation which operates seven visitor attractions across the Liverpool City Region and welcomes millions of visitors a year, we understand the value of a warm and inclusive welcome and are proud to support Liverpool City Council’s ambition of being the most inclusive host city.  

“Alongside our work with Inclusive Employers, we have launched a series of workshops called #ResolutionRepresent to bring like-minded businesses together to encourage conversation and share best practice with the aim of improving diversity in the region. 

“We also recognise the power of creative events such as Eurovision to inspire change, be transformative and dictate global movements. To keep the conversation going after Eurovision leaves town, we are hosting a Diversity and Inclusion Conference later in the year.”