The process of agreeing to conduct an audience development exercise and trial three Sunday Open Days at An Lanntair
An Lanntair has been made aware recently that a small number of people have made some misinformed statements on social media relating to the following:
1. An Lanntair board’s decision-making process regarding the question of its current trial of Sunday opening.
2. The consultation process with staff at An Lanntair about Sunday opening.
3. Staff working on Sundays.
4. An Lanntair board procedures.
5. An Lanntair board, management and staff relations.
In the spirit of openness with our audiences and community members, we have provided some information below to help anyone that has been concerned about any of the comments they have seen in the public domain about An Lanntair.
1. An Lanntair’s board made a decision to trial Sunday opening based on the results of a consultation undertaken in the summer and autumn 2017 with its staff, audiences and members. The consultation showed support from audiences and members for Sunday opening. It also showed that many of An Lanntair’s staff were not in favour of Sunday opening and do not want to work on Sundays, therefore the board committed to ensuring that no An Lanntair staff member will be expected to work on Sunday if they do not want to. The decision to trial three Sunday open days, to continue the consultation and audience development exercise and test audience demand for Sunday opening, was made at a properly-constituted quorate board meeting in November 2017. The decision to go ahead with the trial and research was made by the entire board without the need for a vote.
2. An Lanntair’s CEO and board consulted with all of An Lanntair’s staff about Sunday opening. All staff were invited to complete a general feedback survey in the summer of 2017, which included a question about whether they thought An Lanntair should be open on Sundays. All front of house and catering staff were then asked to complete a second survey in the autumn of 2017 about whether they would be happy to work on Sundays. Following this, open staff meetings were held between staff and the Chairman and Vice Chair of the board. All staff were also offered the chance to meet with or write to the CEO individually should they wish to discuss this issue or share their views further. All staff have had, and continue to have, the opportunity to share their opinions on this question. Staff are aware they can meet with the CEO or board members at any time to discuss this or any issue they wish. Staff feedback will be considered in detail when the board assesses the question of whether An Lanntair should open on Sundays in the future, following the trial research exercise.
3. No An Lanntair staff member will ever be expected to work on Sunday if they do not want to. All staff are aware of this commitment from the board to An Lanntair’s staff.
4. An Lanntair’s board is made up of ten individuals, six elected from its membership, and four co-opted to the board for their specific skills and experience. In all instances when the board has discussed Sunday opening (as for any board discussion), relevant declarations of interest were given at the start, and the views of all board members have been listened to and carried equal weight. The board has decided collectively on the current course of action.
5. Some recent suggestions and statements on social media imply that a collective grievance has been raised by staff at An Lanntair against the CEO and the board in relation to the Sunday opening issue. This is not the case.
Finally, it is important to be clear that An Lanntair is still in the midst of an audience development exercise researching and reviewing the question of Sunday opening – the current trial events are part of that process. No decision has yet been made on whether An Lanntair will open on Sundays in the future.