Athena Swan Silver Award

The Charter is a framework that is used across the globe to support and transform gender equality within higher education and research. We’ve held an Institutional Silver award since 2017 and are pleased that we will continue to be recognised for our commitment to supporting gender equality in higher education. Our renewed Silver Award was submitted to the Transformed Athena Swan Charter, which includes a greater recognition of the role of intersectional inequalities such as ethnicity, age and disability in shaping the experiences and achievements of all staff in their working lives.

Some of the highlights of progress in delivering our previous action plan include:

• A fair representation of women and men across leadership positions and grades across the School
• That gender is not a detriment to achieving successful outcomes on our teaching programmes
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion are embedded in key School processes and practices with Equality, Diversity and Inclusion committee membership recognised in workload allocations and a dedicated Director of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion sitting on the School Management Committee
• Consideration of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion being key to all new School policies

While we are proud of the improvements we’ve been making, we know there is still a long way to go. The self-assessment process has highlighted areas we’ll prioritise in our plans, including: 

• Addressing the fact that women, and especially those with caring responsibilities, are more likely to report lower wellbeing at work
• Increasing mentorship opportunities and career support, especially for part-time staff and those with caring roles

We remain committed to progressing equality, diversity and inclusion in all its forms. Our action plan takes into account the specific needs and responsibilities of women, non-binary and gender-diverse people, and the intersection of gender and other protected characteristics.

I was delighted to hear that our application for a renewal of our 2017 Athena Swan Silver Award had been approved. This means that the School of Health in Social Science will continue to be recognised for its commitment to supporting gender equality in higher education

Amy Chandler