Jo Verrent believes that ‘different’ is delicious not divergent; that it adds vibrancy and texture within the creative sector.

Her work is about seeking to reframe the perception of diversity, through myriad events and opportunities – speaking, training, writing, curating, researching and reporting. She works across sectors at both a front line and a strategic level with individuals, teams and organisations, including national agencies such as Creative Scotland and Arts Council England.

Most recently she has: co-founded Sync – a national programme looking the interplay between disability and leadership for ACE, co-authored a series of essays on the creative case for diversity and become a Clore Fellow for 2011/12.

Jo was on the Unlimited Panel, selecting Commissions for LOCOG/ACE for the London 2012 Cultural Olympiad, and is currently an Artistic Advisor for ACE. She trains for Shape specialising in accessible events, working with Channel 4 and Artichoke’s team for Antony Gormley’s Fourth Plinth project, amongst others.

Jo has produced numerous activities - performances, programmes, festivals and tours. Her passion for the arts, belief in equality and love of all things different is tempered with wit and wisdom, and her pragmatic approach is based on her own experience of being hearing impaired since she was twelve. She has won two accolades of which she is equally proud – the national Cosmopolitan Woman of Achievement Award and her village horticultural show’s award for ‘Best Preserve in Show’, which she held for two years consecutively. In 2011, she took a further challenging role – that of grandmother.

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