Athena Swan Action Plan
Contents
I. Governance and communication
II. Increasing the number of female students
III. Improving student experience and attainment
IV. Increasing the number of female academics
V. Improving staff experience and career progression
I. Governance and communication
| Action point reference | Planned action / objective | Rationale (i.e. what is the evidence that prompted this action / objective) | Timeframe | Person responsible (job title) | Success criteria and outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Action 3.1 | Redevelop the successful SharePoint site into an AS website accessible to all DCS staff/students in order to keep AS activities at the forefront of minds, and to enable staff/students to actively keep up to date with AS activities and give them opportunities for continued input into AS matters. | This is core communications infrastructure: people need to know where to look for ED&I-related information. The website will also be valuable in helping to recruit more female staff and students. | December 2019 for initial implementation; Ongoing maintenance and expansion | HoA, ED&I Lead | The AS website is visible and accessible from other Departmental pages, in particular Recruitment and Admissions. |
| Action 3.2 | The ED&IC (formerly the SAT) will meet at least once termly ahead of the Departmental Staff Meeting and will report progress to Steering Committee and Staff Meeting. | The Athena SWAN principles are driven by a group of committed individuals. This presents a risk of losing good practice if those people leave. The ED&I Committee will ensure that gender equality and inclusivity are sustained after AS submission, and monitor implementation of the AP. | January 2020: Terms of Reference and membership agreed | HoD, ED&I Lead | All relevant data is monitored and reported termly. |
| February 2020: First meeting held | Minutes of all department committees show evidence of consideration of ED&I aspirations. | ||||
| By October 2022: ToR for other committees, policy and practice documents revised | ED&I aspirations are explicitly referenced in all policy and practice documents, and all committee Terms of Reference. | ||||
| Action 3.3 | Establish principles for membership of the ED&IC, to include some permanent members (key posts, recognising that post-holders may also change, and some rotational to maximise opportunities for engagement and to bring in specialist expertise as needed). | The ED&IC will oversee the implementation of the AP and in order to do it effectively, it needs to balance broad engagement and well-focused responsibility. | January 2020. | ED&I Lead, HoA | All AP workstreams have clearly assigned and committed leadership whose roles are listed as permanent members of the ED&IC, and all staff are welcome to contribute as volunteers or when their specific expertise is in demand. |
| Action 3.4 | Repeat the AS staff survey biennially, in those years when the UoW Pulse survey does not run. | The AS staff survey provided rich qualitative information about colleagues’ experience of working in DCS. Continuing this will allow us to monitor the outcomes of implementing the AS principles and make any adjustments to our AP if necessary. | Biennially from spring 2021 | HoA | The Athena SWAN staff survey runs biennially, with results reported to ED&I Committee for further dissemination, including communication to staff and students. |
| Action 5.6.1 | ED&I to become a standing item for Academic Studies Committee, Postgraduate Research Committee, and Research Strategy Committee. Steering is an agile committee, the agenda of which varies according to current need, and it will consider ED&I issues as they arise. | ED&I issues as expressed in the AS Principles and through UoW policies need to become firmly embedded in the DCS culture and processes. ED&I and AS have already been a standing item at DCS Staff Meetings but this must be extended to other influential committees at DCS. | January 2020. | HoA | ED&I is a standing item for the Academic Studies Committee, Postgraduate Research Committee, and Research Strategy Committee. |
II. Increasing the number of female students
| Action point reference | Planned action / objective | Rationale (i.e. what is the evidence that prompted this action / objective) | Timeframe | Person responsible (job title) | Success criteria and outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Action 4.1.1 | Hold externally facilitated focus group to understand why women are more attracted to studying on some DCS programmes than others. | Some degrees at DCS attract fewer women than others. For example, our Admissions data show that women are less likely than men to enrol in MEng degrees, opting for BSc versions instead. Understanding this and other anomalies better will help us identify and remove barriers to recruiting female students to Computer Science programmes. | Sep-21 | Admissions Tutor | Focus groups have taken place, results have been analysed, and new actions have been proposed by September 2021. |
| The proportions of women applying for each MEng course and the corresponding BSc course are the same, by 2022/23. | |||||
| Action 4.1.2 | Explore ways in which the inherent flexibility of the block-based and distance-learning delivery of Degree Apprenticeships can be utilised in order to increase accessibility, especially for part-time students. | Our existing UG programmes are not designed to be suitable for part-time study. This may represent a barrier to those with caring responsibilities. The Degree Apprenticeship and the associated new bespoke methods of delivery will provide alternative pathways to study. | Jan-23 | Director of UG Studies, Director of Degree Apprenticeships | A DCS degree that facilitates part-time UG studies has received institutional approval. |
| Action 4.1.3 | Investigate reasons for the volatility in conversion rate and the loss of women at this point in the pipeline, and formulate further actions to maximise conversion. | The conversion rate of female applicants has been volatile and often lower than that of male applicants. | Oct-20 | Admissions Tutor | The gender balance at conversion, which has been volatile in recent years, stabilises.. |
| The proportion of female offer-holders firmly accepting our offers has increased to 20% by 2022/23. | |||||
| Action 4.1.4 | Monitor our admissions data continuously, to identify and mitigate any unintended consequences of recent changes to admissions criteria. | Internal DCS research shows that female applicants tend to have a slightly different profile of A-level achievement than males | Initial Equality Impact Analysis was carried out in September 2019. | Admissions Tutor | DCS monitoring shows that any changes in admissions criteria are not resulting in a lower proportion of women receiving offers. |
| Ongoing monitoring of admissions data in each cycle. | |||||
| Action 4.1.5 | Review DCS marketing materials to ensure that the benefits of gaining qualifications and becoming independent are given appropriate prominence. | Data from our central Marketing team shows that female applicants, more than male ones, are motivated to study Computer Science in order to gain qualifications and become independent. | Jan-20 | Communications and Events Administrator, Admissions Tutor | Positive feedback is received from women via surveys at open days and offer-holder open days. |
| The proportion of applications from women reaches or exceeds 20% by 2021/22. | |||||
| Action 4.1.6 | Create at least 5 scholarships for female students per year. | There are cultural perceptions that view Computer Science degrees are being mainly for men. Scholarships attached to a package of academic and careers support and positive messaging would be a powerful way of countering this. | October 2020, for entry in 2021/22 | ED&I Lead | Women’s scholarships have been awarded. Recipients are benefiting from departmental mentoring and peer support, and they are contributing to DCS as role models and ambassadors for the Department. |
| Action 4.1.7 | Support and promote the work of our student bloggers (currently both female). | Our bloggers write about issues such as the gender balance in DCS, for offer-holders, and provide a route to conversion activity. We will work with the bloggers to find the most effective way of supporting their work. | Ongoing from January 2020 | Director of Student Experience, Communications and Events Administrator | DCS student blogs are easily accessible from our web pages and feature prominently in our admissions communications and at open days. |
| Action 4.1.8 | Ensure that our curriculum review gives appropriate emphasis to a range of topics and learning styles, including those that female students are particularly attracted to. | International evidence shows that higher numbers of women are associated with topics having links to social purpose and applications, both as students and researchers. Recognising this in the curriculum has been associated with an increased recruitment and retention of a diverse range of students (e.g. at Carnegie Mellon University). | Oct-22 | Director of UG Studies | The proportion of women enrolling to UG courses at DCS has reached 20% by 2023/24. |
| Action 4.1.13 | HoD will engage via the UoW SAT to improve the availability of ED&I-related data. | UoW has significantly improved its provision of ED&I data in the last five years, but some gaps remain and improvements are possible. Our active engagements will help the University improve its data collection practice. | Sep-21 | HoD | A full dataset to support ED&I work, including gender breakdown of PG students, by course, is available. |
| Action 4.1.14 | Review lessons learned from Urban Science CDT in relation to gender equality, and how we can build on this experience to increase the diversity of our Computer Science PGR cohorts. | An interdisciplinary CDT in Urban Science has help DCS to significantly increase the number of female PGR students. A better understanding of this success story could help the department develop strategies to maintain or further increase the share of female PGR students. | Oct-20 | Director of PG Research | The number and (above average) proportion of our female PGR students is sustained or further increased. |
| Action 4.1.15 | Establish a system for tracking and monitoring relevant data relating to our “pipeline” students, and formulate further actions to support diversity in the progression to PGR study on the basis of this. | A relatively small number of our UG or PGT students progress to PGR study at DCS and most of them are men. | Oct-21 | Director of Student Experience, Director of PG Research | A well-motivated set of actions exists, justified by objective evidence, to increase the supply of female PGR students to the sector. |
| Action 5.6.9 | Continue to work with colleagues within Widening Participation at the UoW to deliver a stream within the Warwick Sutton Trust Summer School and other activities as appropriate. | As a result of diverse and sustained outreach activities, DCS has developed valuable resources for attracting more women and students from underprivileged backgrounds to Computer Science. Specialised teams at UoW will help use those resources strategically to target most under-represented groups of students. | Jul-20 | Director of Outreach | 20 students attend our Warwick Sutton Trust Summer School in summer 2020 and in the following years. At least 8 of them are women. |
| Action 5.6.10 | The Isaac CS project is a free online platform for students and teachers. They also provide free teacher Continuing Professional Development events and student workshops. Working as a HE partner, DCS will deliver a program of events over the next three years, to include one Discovery event (attracting young students to computer science), one Masterclass event (for extending existing knowledge), and one Continuing Professional Development event for teachers per year. | It is a challenge for secondary school Computing teachers to stay up to date with advances in the field in order to deliver the curriculum effectively. We will support them to do so using the Isaac CS platform. | Jul-20 | Director of Outreach | 150 students attend the Discovery events. |
| 50 students attend the Masterclass events. | |||||
| At least 40% of students attending are female. | |||||
| 20 teachers benefit from in-depth Continuing Professional Development events. | |||||
| Action 5.6.11 | Formalise the existing recording process for outreach activity, including monitoring the proportion of male and female participants more systematically. | The existing recording process is ad hoc and the participation data is not systematically considered by the wider DCS community and influential committees. | May-20 | Director of Outreach | Director of Outreach will present data on the range of outreach activities and the gender diversity of their participants to the ED&IC annually. |
III. Improving student experience and attainment
| Action point reference | Planned action / objective | Rationale (i.e. what is the evidence that prompted this action / objective) | Timeframe | Person responsible (job title) | Success criteria and outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Action 4.1.9 | Systematically record the reasons for male and female students withdrawing and analyse the data for any trends. Consider the use of exit interviews with a Senior Tutor if appropriate. | Individual student files contain information about the reasons for withdrawal, but this is not recorded in an easily accessible format, with the student’s gender. | Retrospectively, from academic year 2018/19 | Programmes Administrator | Data is available in a convenient format. |
| Analysis of trends is reported annually to the Academic Studies Committee, who will make recommendations for remedial action. | |||||
| Action 4.1.10 | Improve the academic experience of all students, by reviewing and enhancing our “fast track” coding classes and mathematics support. | Internal DCS research shows that female students tend to achieve lower marks in their first year exams than male students with the same A-level grades. | Oct-20 | Director of UG Studies | The achievement gap between male and female students in first year exams has been eliminated by 2022/23; improvements evident in 2019/20 |
| Action 4.1.11 | Provide financial and logistical support for the development of a wider range of social activities, led by students including women. | Social activities at DCS play an important role in creating a community, publicizing development opportunities, and providing informal peer support and mentorship. We want to make sure that despite an existing gender imbalance, women and other minority students are an integral part of the DCS community and benefit fully from the available activities. | Oct-20 | Director of Student Experience | A wider range of social activities exist, which address the needs expressed by students. Positive feedback is received from the relevant SSLCs and other student engagement fora. |
| Action 4.1.12 | Encourage and support students to establish a student society of Women in Computer Science. Support them (if they wish) to become a chapter of IEEE Women in Engineering / BCS or similar | Feedback from other institutions, and the experience of a member of the SAT, suggests that these groups can act as an important forum for peer support. Applying to become a chapter of a professional society gives access to external funding and broader institutional recognition. | Mar-21 | Director of Student Experience | A student society of women in Computer Science exists, actively supported by DCS |
| Action 5.3.1 | Offer Mental Health First Aid training to student-facing staff members at DCS. | DCS AS staff survey in 2019 has revealed a need for training on the mental health needs of our students. | Dec-19 | HoA | At least 12 Mental Health First Aiders have been trained in DCS. |
| Action 5.3.6 | Actively promote the URSS scheme to female UG students. | URSS can be seen as the first step for UoW undergraduate students considering an academic career. | Ongoing from December 2019 | Director of Student Experience | The number of participants in the URSS has doubled to 8 per year, with 2-3 being female, by 2022/23. |
| Action 5.3.7 | Solicit annual feedback from PhD students on the research environment in the department with a view to customising the support offered. | The biennial PRES survey in 2017/18 about research culture in the Department revealed some dissatisfaction with opportunities to attend relevant seminars and discuss work with colleagues in a meaningful way. | Annually, from April 2020 | Director of PG Research | Positive feedback received from PhD students via the Postgraduate Research Experience Survey. |
| Action 5.3.8 | Organise Collaborative Incubator workshops where Early Career Researchers and established academics can interact on current research. | We have been successful in winning £15k under the EPSRC Inclusion Matters scheme, which aims to improve ED&I within the Engineering and Physical Sciences. We will use this award to contribute to the development of best practice at DCS and nationally/ | Apr-20 | ED&I Lead | Academic workshop is organised with high-quality outputs, attended by 15-20 PGR students, 5-10 postdocs, 5-10 established academics at different seniorities, and a range of genders. DCS will have contributed to guidelines on how to support career progression for junior academics through such events. |
IV. Increasing the number of female academics
| Action point reference | Planned action / objective | Rationale (i.e. what is the evidence that prompted this action / objective) | Timeframe | Person responsible (job title) | Success criteria and outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Action 4.2.2 | Participate in the ongoing development of FA6 R&T-focussed role description and evaluate how such posts would fit within DCS. | So far these jobs have only existed on a very limited scale at UoW, however they could provide a new pipeline which could lead to more women becoming academic staff in DCS. | Oct-23 | HoD, HoA | The number of women in junior (FA6 or FA7) R&T roles has increased from 1 to at least 3 by October 2023. |
| Action 5.1.1 | HoD/HoA to ensure that all members of shortlisting panels and interview panels complete the required training, in particular, on Unconscious Bias, and to strongly encourage completion by other colleagues. | Take-up of Unconscious Bias training has been low at DCS, in particular among men. | Apr-20 | HoD | 100% of members of shortlisting and interview panels have completed the recommended training by April 2020. |
| 50% of all DCS staff have undertaken the training by June 2021. | |||||
| Action 5.1.2 | Wherever possible, for example when advertising for multiple academic positions, where larger numbers of candidates are likely to apply and be shortlisted, interview at least two women at a time. | Evidence from the Gender Pay Gap Service on GOV.UK suggests that shortlists with only one woman do not increase the chance of a woman being selected (see https://gender-pay-gap.service.gov.uk/actions-to-close-the-gap/effective-actions) | Ongoing from January 2020 | HoD | More than half of shortlists for academic posts will have at least 2 women. |
| Whenever less than 2 women are shortlisted, the shortlisting panel will propose actions to increase the number shortlisted women next time, to be discussed by the ED&IC and the Research Strategy Committee. | |||||
| Action 5.1.3 | Identify further venues for advertisement that may be more successful in reaching female candidates for academic vacancies. Actively identify suitable female candidates and encourage them to apply, using DCS/UoW resources and possibly an external agency. | The gender balance in our applications is lower than the benchmark, and we have been advertising our academic vacancies mainly through standard channels such as jobs.ac.uk. | Mar-20 | Resources Manager | The gender balance in applications for academic posts in the next recruitment round (early 2020) has improved to 20% female. |
| Action 5.1.4 | Ensure that groups of academic colleagues who engage with applicants during recruitment process (one-to-one meetings and dinners) contain at least one woman. | While interview panels are gender-balanced, this has not always been the case for other parts of the recruitment process. This could deter successful female candidates from accepting an offer of employment | Jan-20 | Resources Manager | Every dinner / set of one-to-one meetings with interview candidates includes at least one woman. |
| Action 5.1.5 | Advertise proleptic positions to attract talented individuals at earlier stages of their academic careers. | Evidence (for example at University College London) suggests that the stability and security provided by proleptic positions is particularly important for women in establishing sustainable academic careers. | Work on identifying suitable candidates and encouraging them to apply from January 2020 | Heads of Research Themes, HoD | At least 1 woman academic in an R&T role has been hired using this mechanism by October 2022. |
V. Improving staff experience and career progression
| Action point reference | Planned action / objective | Rationale (i.e. what is the evidence that prompted this action / objective) | Timeframe | Person responsible (job title) | Success criteria and outcomes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Action 4.2.1 | Engage with the UoW Pay Action Group in order to identify ways of reducing the gender pay gap at DCS. | The gender pay gap at DCS is substantial and it is structural to a significant degree. We are committed to addressing the structural factors underlying the pay gap, and we wish to take advantage of institutional expertise in doing so. | Apr-22 | HoA, HoD | Suitable targets, constructive actions to achieve them, and a long-term DCS strategy for tackling the structural nature of the gender pay gap agreed by April 2022. |
| Action 4.2.3 | Routinely offer and encourage the take-up of exit interviews when staff leave, in order to address any retention issues and identify opportunities to improve the environment for all our staff, including for intersectional groups of colleagues | Top-level information about the reason for staff leaving is captured as part of the leaving paperwork, but more nuanced information, where staff are willing to share it, may help improve the environment for all colleagues. | Jan-20 | Resources Manager | An exit interview has been added to the leavers’ process. |
| Action 5.1.6 | Develop DCS induction for R-focussed colleagues. | Departmental induction exists for T&R and T-focussed staff and administrative staff, but not for research-focussed staff | Jan-20 | DCS Secretary | A suitable induction programme has been introduced. |
| Action 5.1.7 | Given the international and multi-ethnic make up of our community, we will signpost intercultural training provided by the Centre for Applied Linguistics, in order to address the intersectional challenges faced by new colleagues. | Many of our academic staff are recruited from overseas and may face additional intersectional challenges as a result | Jan-20 | DCS Secretary | Intercultural training is signposted as part of induction programme. |
| Action 5.1.8 | Implement mechanisms for monitoring the uptake and effectiveness of the revised staff induction process, initially via a feedback form. After a year, a focus group will be held of new staff, to recommend further enhancements to the process. | The staff induction process has recently been overhauled and suitable monitoring and feedback processes are not yet in operation. | Jan-20 | 100% uptake of induction is achieved during 2019/20 | |
| Action 5.1.9 | The Promotions Committee will proactively seek out candidates for promotion by (1) requesting CVs annually, (2) encouraging suitable candidates to put themselves forward, and (3) providing constructive feedback to people who do not yet meet the criteria. | Women may be less likely than men to put themselves forward for promotion if they are not completely sure they can meet all the criteria (ref). | Feb-20 | Promotions Committee | Increased satisfaction of non-professorial staff members with the departmental promotions process is reported. |
| At least three women have been promoted by 2020/21 (results will be known by February 2020). | |||||
| At least one woman has been promoted internally to Professor by 2023. | |||||
| Action 5.1.10 | The HoD will work with female colleagues whose promotions have recently been successful to make their applications available in the Department to motivate and assist more junior colleagues in preparing theirs in the future. | Reviewing successful examples will help potential candidates for promotion gain a realistic view of the requirements. | Jun-20 | HoD | Examples are available to support conversations with candidates for promotion. |
| Action 5.1.11 | Participate in the ongoing review at University level of probation arrangements for T-focussed academic staff. | At present T-focussed staff have a much shorter probation than T&R-focussed staff and successful completion does not lead to automatic promotion, as for the T&R route. | Oct-22 | HoD | T-focussed staff enjoy equivalent probation arrangements to R&T-focussed staff. |
| Action 5.3.2 | Hold externally facilitated focus groups with female academic staff to identify the training they have found useful for career development, to learn from their experience and promote this, and similar, training further. | There is limited evidence about what training is most helpful in supporting career development, and limited insight into any differences by gender. Therefore, opportunities to support the career development of all staff may be missed. | May-21 | ED&I Lead | Increased uptake, especially by women, of training that was found to be useful for female academics in their career development; specific targets to be determined following the focus groups. |
| Action 5.3.3 | As part of PDRs, but also through other channels, consult with staff about their reasons for engaging or not engaging with training; identify any trends by gender and job role/staff group; and develop further actions to address any inequalities if necessary. | The uptake of training opportunities is patchy, and the reasons for this are not well understood. As a results, unidentified barriers to access may exist. | Jun-20 | ED&I Lead | The reasons for inequalities in the uptake of training by gender and job role/staff group are better understood, by June 2020. |
| Inequalities have reduced (precise targets and timescales to be determined following consultation). | |||||
| The uptake of PDRs (from an average of 61.1% over the last three years to at least 75.0%, by 2021. | |||||
| Action 5.3.4 | Communication from HoD to encourage uptake of PDR-related training, in order to help colleagues enhance their ability to give and receive meaningful feedback. | Feedback in the AS staff survey from May 2019 revealed concerns about how consistently reviewers are able to fulfil this role satisfactorily. | Apr-20 | HoD | At least 75% of new colleagues undertake PDR-related training as they take up their posts. |
| At least 75% of colleagues who are promoted into roles where they are eligible to become reviewers undertake the relevant training. | |||||
| Action 5.3.5 | The HoD will promote the practice of allowing observers on interview panels, in order to help junior colleagues develop skills that will enable them to progress, and to give them an insight into the requirements for appointment to more senior grades. | Shortage/lack of women in senior positions makes it difficult to ensure gender representation on interview panels. Participation in/observation of interview panels may help develop an understanding of what skills and competences are needed to advance to a higher level. | Jan-21 | HoD | Observers appointed to at least 30% of interview panels. |
| Action 5.3.9 | Hold externally facilitated focus group to obtain feedback from academics, especially junior and/or female academics on how happy they have been with support in their research themes. | Research themes are an important part of the research support infrastructure, and a major source of support for developing competitive funding applications and for re-working any that are unsuccessful. | Sep-20 | Director of Research Strategy, Deputy Director of Research Strategy | Feedback is available and can be taken into account when reviewing the structure and governance of themes (next action) |
| Action 5.3.10 | Review the structure and governance of research themes to include Terms of Reference, rotating leadership, and the introduction of deputy Heads of Theme. | Ensure effective operation of research themes as a forum for supporting those applying for research grants, ensure a range of input, provide development opportunities for more junior staff (e.g. Associate Professors). All research themes are currently led by men. Bringing in rotating leadership and deputies would be a way of increasing diversity. | Dec-21 | Director of Research Strategy | Revised structure and governance are agreed and working effectively. |
| Deputy Director of Research Strategy | Increase in applications and awards to female academics, in terms of number, value, and/or prestige. | ||||
| Action 5.3.11 | Develop Research Strategy Committee as a forum for sharing good practice among different research themes. | Some themes are much more successful at bringing in external funding than others. Sharing good practice between themes may be one way of “levelling up” success rates | Apr-21 | Director of Research Strategy, Deputy Director of Research Strategy | Increase in funding particularly in research themes which have historically been less successful, taking into account the availability of funding for different topics. |
| Action 5.5.1 | Explore how to mitigate the impact of maternity and adoption leave on postdocs, for example by extending their contract beyond the end of the project, if the project is not suspended. | If a Research Fellow takes ML, typically either the grant can be extended, or an appointment can be made to cover the period of the leave. If the latter, the Fellow may be eligible for maternity pay, but they will have lost out on the opportunity to produce research outputs during this time. | Dec-20 | HoA | Mitigation strategy to form part of the DCS People Plan from December 2020 |
| Action 5.5.2 | Work with the University to harmonise the pathways and develop a Returner’s Fellowship for T-focussed academics. In the meantime, use DCS workload allocation relief to reduce the teaching and administrative duties of T-focussed academics returning from parental leave, in order to give them time for development activities. | At present, R&T-focussed colleagues are eligible to apply for a UoW “Returner’s Fellowship” equivalent to their period of maternity, shared parental or adoption leave (within certain limits) which buys them out of teaching and administration and provides space for them to get their research career back on track. DCS will introduce a similar scheme that will buy T-focussed colleagues out of administration and allow them to undertake pedagogical projects. | Mar-21 | HoD, HoA | Harmonised Returners Fellowships form part of the DCS People Plan from March 2021. |
| Action 5.5.3 | Enhance UoW conference childcare bursary by a further £150, subject to financial regulations. | The research publication culture in Computer Science is often centred on peer-reviewed conferences. Participation in conferences is critical for maintaining an international research profile and offering a more generous childcare bursary will help colleagues take full advantage of development opportunities. | Oct-20 | Resources Manager | All successful UoW conference childcare bursary applications are suitably enhanced by DCS. |
| Action 5.5.4 | Work with other Mathematical Sciences departments to provide a baby-changing station, a milk-expression room with milk-storage facilities, and explore a possibility of arranging a child-friendly workspace for short-term working/meetings. | The lack of baby-changing facilities at DCS has been mentioned by several colleagues. A room that can be used for breast-feeding and milk-expression has been provided in the UoW Social Sciences building, but no such room is available within a convenient distance from DCS. | Dec-20 | ED&I Lead | A baby-changing station has been installed in the Mathematical Sciences Building and a room for breast-feeding and milk-expression has been made available, including a refrigerator for storing milk. |
| Additional refrigerators have been made available in offices, where requested. | |||||
| Action 5.5.5 | Promote Returner’s Fellowships to all colleagues who apply for ML, PL, or SPL, and highlight the availability of the fellowships both after ML and SPL. | The uptake of SPL at DCS has been low (as is true nationally). While female colleagues applying for ML are routinely informed about the availability of Returner’s Fellowships, male applicants for PL may not have been aware that if they also apply for SPL, they will likewise become eligible for a Returner’s Fellowship. This knowledge may act as an incentive to apply for SPL. | Ongoing from December 2019 | HoA | At least 2 further Returner’s Fellowships have been awarded at DCS by 2022/23. |
| Action 5.5.6 | Enhance the UoW two-week PL on full pay by offering further two weeks of workload relief at DCS. | Feedback received through the staff survey indicate that the short duration of PL is a problem for new parents. | Apr-20 | HoD | If possible, workload relief for enhanced PL will form part of the DCS People Plan from Term 1 2022. |
| Action 5.5.7 | Ask the colleague who is arranging to work flexibly how they want it to be communicated to colleagues and students, in order to ensure that individual circumstances can be managed sensitively and appropriate confidentiality can be preserved. | Feedback received through the staff survey indicates that the benefits of flexible working, while welcome, can be undermined if the expectations of colleagues and students are not adjusted. | Ongoing from December 2019 | HoD, HoA | A communication plan is agreed with every member of staff who is working on new pattern. |
| Action 5.6.2 | Review existing social activities and participation; and introduce new social activities aiming at balanced participation of both academic staff and PSS. Consult all staff groups, with the aim of achieving a diverse and widespread participation. | 55% of the AS staff survey participants have at least some concerns regarding the informal culture of the Department, centred round gender polarisation and clustering of staff groups. | Review: May 2020 | HoA | A programme of social activities exists that attracts a more balanced mix of participants (precise targets to be determined via consultation). |
| New activities: from December 2020 onwards | Good feedback is received from participants via informal polling. | ||||
| The proportion of positive answers to the question about informal culture increases from 86% to 95% in the AS staff survey April/May 2021. | |||||
| Action 5.6.3 | Introduce regular women-only social events, for both staff and students, as a forum for informal mentoring and mutual support. | Feedback from other institutions suggests that some women appreciate and benefit from women-only social spaces, more than formal mentoring schemes | Dec-20 | ED&I Lead, Director of Student Experience | Women-only social activities exist that attract staff and students. |
| Good feedback is received from participants via informal polling. | |||||
| The proportion of positive answers to the question about the informal culture of the Department increases from 86% to 95% in the AS staff survey April/May 2021. | |||||
| Action 5.6.4 | Hold externally facilitated focus groups to develop further mechanisms for staff to provide feedback and raise issues with the management of the Department. | Both our Pulse and AS staff survey results indicate that the ability of staff to speak up and have their voice heard is an area that DCS needs to improve, relative to other areas. | Pulse survey: January 2020 | HoD, HoA | The proportion of negative answers to the relevant question in the Pulse survey reduces from 26% in 2018 to 15% in 2020 and 10% in 2022. |
| Focus groups: November 2020 | |||||
| Implementation: January 2021 | |||||
| Action 5.6.5 | Communication by the HoD to encourage further take-up of Diversity in the Workplace training, in order to raise awareness of dignity issues. | In the AS staff survey, some people indicated that they had witnessed incidences of bullying which the perpetrator may not have perceived as such, implying that a lack of awareness may be an issue. | December 2019, followed up by PDR conversations in June 2020 | HoD, Line managers | 50% of DCS staff have undertaken Diversity in the Workplace training by June 2022. |
| The proportion of people reporting at least some concerns about dignity issues in the AS staff survey is halved from 40% to 20% April/May 2021, reducing to <10% by April/May 2023. | |||||
| Action 5.6.6 | Communication from the HoD and Committee Chairs to ensure that non-members know they are always welcome to attend the meetings of the influential committees such as Academic Studies Committee, the Postgraduate Studies Committee, and of the Research Strategy Committee. | Attending the meetings of influential committees may help junior colleagues develop the expertise and the skills that will allow them to take up more senior academic administrative roles in the future. | May-20 | HoD | Meetings of the Academic Studies Committee, Postgraduate Research Committee, and the Research Strategy Committee are advertised to all colleagues. |
| Action 5.6.7 | DCS will collate existing data about participation on influential external committees, monitor for trends, and develop further actions to enhance the participation of women and minority groups. | Currently, data on participation on influential external committees is collected through PDR forms and hence is fragmented and hard to access. | Oct-21 | ED&I Lead, HoD | A record of participation of colleagues on influential external committees is updated annually and is used by the DCS leadership to inform and influence departmental strategy and policies, and individual cases for merit pay and promotion. |
| Action 5.6.8 | DCS will develop a method of monitoring gender bias in the design and operation of our workload model directly, and report annually to Staff Meeting. | The DCS workload model is currently monitored for gender bias indirectly through staff surveys and PDR. A more direct method and annual reports to Staff Meeting will add transparency to the process and speed up the feedback. | Oct-20 | HoD | HoD reports annually to Staff Meeting on steps taken to monitor and eliminate gender bias in the workload model. |