On March 17th, 2025, the Government published Pathways to Work: Reforming Benefits and Support to Get Britain Working. Lin Kendall, the Work and Pensions Minister described the reforms as better supporting those who can work to get back into work, whilst maintaining that those who cannot work would remain protected. The £5 billion 'savings' will be the biggest cut to disability support benefits ever on record.
Join a panel of disabled artists and activists to discuss the plans to cut PIP (Personal Independence Payments), how it will impact the arts and artists, and the wider theatre industry.
Pannelists:
Richard Burgon MP
Member of Parliament for Leeds East since 2015, Shadow Justice Secretary 2016-2020, Richard Burgon has been a leading voice in the campaign to get the Government to drop the planned cuts to disability support, repeatedly speaking up in parliament and beyond to champion the issue.
Jess Thom
Writer, artist and activist, Jess Thom co-founded Touretteshero in 2010 as a creative response to her experience of living with Tourettes Syndrome. Jess campaigns for disability rights and social justice and is on a mission to change the world ‘one tic at a time.’ A multi-award-winning BAFTA nominated performer, Jess has toured the world with sell out stage shows, stand-up comedy, keynotes speeches and public appearances. Touretteshero is a proudly disabled-led organisation with an established reputation for creativity and making change across sectors. Jess frequently contributes to academic papers, interviews, and podcasts, to remove barriers and push for greater equality.
Rachel Bagshaw
Rachel is an award-winning stage director and the current Artistic Director of Unicorn Theatre having previously been their Associate Director from 2018 to 2023. She was also an Associate at the National Theatre as a recipient of the Peter Hall Bursary for 2023/24.
Rachel made her directorial debut at the Globe Theatre in Spring 2024 directing The Duchess of Malfi on the Sam Wanamaker stage and other recent productions include: A Dead Body in Taos (Bristol Old Vic/ Wilton’s Music Hall), Augmented by Sophie Woolley (Royal Exchange/Told by an Idiot), Philip Pullman’s Grimm Tales and Greek Myths Unplugged, Let Loose (with Choreographer Arielle Smith, co-produced with English National Ballet), for Unicorn Theatre Online. Other theatre credits include Midnight Movie (Royal Court Theatre), The Bee in Me and Aesop’s Fables (Unicorn Theatre), Resonance at the Still Point of Change (Unlimited Festival, South Bank Centre), The Rhinestone Rollers and Just Me, Bell (Graeae). Her critically acclaimed work The Shape of Pain won a Fringe First at Edinburgh and was revived at Battersea Arts Centre in 2018. Film credits includes Let Loose (Unicorn Theatre Online/ENB) and Where I Go (When I Can’t be Where I Am (BBC/China Plate).
She is an Associate Artist at Wilton’s and works extensively in engagement and young people’s work.
Ciaran Stewart
Ciaran Stewart trained at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland on the BA Performance in British Sign Language and English degree programme back in 2015 and has worked in a wide range of theatre productions working with theatres such as Headlong, Paines Plough and Sheffield Theatres. Last year, he was in “Dungeons, Dragons & Quest for D***” & “The Wolves at the Door” with Play, Pie & A Pint and “Chariots of Fire” at the Sheffield Crucible. He’s toured all over the UK, performing in London, Nottingham, Birmingham to name a few.
Alongside, he has worked as a Director, BSL Consultant and Caption Consultant, working as Access Lead/Administrator for Collective Text, a collective of Disabled Artists based in Glasgow.
He on the Deaf & Disabled Committee at Equity and is standing again for it, hoping to carry on the work and fight against the PIP/ATW cuts.
Leanna Benjamin
Leanna Benjamin was born in Liverpool, raised in Leicester and is now a Leeds- based writer. She is a Graeae Theatre Write to Play alumni, former Artist for change/Writer in Residence at Leeds playhouse, a graduate of the BBC Writers' Room Northern Voices and the BBC Writers' Room Writers' Access Group. Leanna is currently under commission for Leeds Playhouse’s YouthTheatre, developing her debut full length play. Leanna is a passionate storyteller, performer and a human rights activist. She won the first prize at the 2013 Ilkley Literature Festival for her hilarious monologue, Sister Joy. She wrote and performed her piece I Smile at the West Yorkshire Playhouse. She was invited to perform ‘I smile’ the Women of the World (WOW) Festival in Bradford and at the Southbank Centre as part of the 2017 WOW London Festival.
Leanna loves to cook but HATES mushy peas.
This event will be BSL interpretation by Hahna Ahmed.
"Companies like us genuinely would not be making theatre if it was not for the ability of CPT and its team to identify artists who are worth taking a chance on."
Sh!t Theatre
