Race Equality Charter: Bronze award
May 2022.
We’re proud to have been awarded the Race Equality Charter Bronze award, independent recognition of our commitment to working towards race equality and determination to tackle race inequality at all levels.
Kulbir Shergill, Director of Social Inclusion, commented:
“We’re proud to have achieved this important kite mark, which was gained as a result of the hard work of many Warwick people and recognises that we are moving forward with our race equality work.
“The work that we have done so far, such as increasing the proportion of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic staff in academic and administrative positions since 2017, has helped us focus our resources on critical issues that will help us to move the dial. We acknowledge the feedback from Advance HE and will incorporate that into our next steps. This Bronze Race Equality Charter award really is just the beginning.
“We continue to work together to make Warwick a place where all students and staff feel valued, safe and supported to achieve their full potential, where racial diversity and inclusion are the norm, and where racism of any kind is stamped out.”
About the REC
The award recognises the work the University has done so far to meet the standards of the REC and improve the representation, progression, and success of minority ethnic staff and students.
It is granted by Advance HE through a peer review process for a period of 5 years, to April 2027.
We spoke to Kulbir, along with Anil Awesti, Chair of Race Equality Taskforce and Mike Shipman, Chair of the REC self-assessment team, about what the award means for Warwick and what happens next.
What led up to this award, and what does it mean for Warwick?
Mike: The feedback from our previous submission to the REC was the start of a journey for us towards a deeper understanding of the causes of racial inequality for our students and staff. We heard what staff and students were telling us in our surveys and focus groups – and the feedback was really valuable in helping us to understand the issues we need to focus on.
We’re really pleased to have received this independent recognition of our work so far.
Anil: Our most recent submission outlines our progress, and the extensive work still to go. We very much appreciate the input of everyone who shared their experiences, and contributed to the submission. The process helped us to look more closely at the challenges, and importantly, identify actions we can take to address them.
What are some of the areas where we know we have more to do, and what are our next steps?
Kulbir:
- We know we need greater ethnic diversity at senior levels to bring in diversity of thought and role models for our students and staff. Reviewing our HR recruitment processes and implementing programmes such as INspire will help us to do this.
- Our focus on working with leaders, to help them develop their inclusive leadership skills and knowledge, combined with programmes such the Tackling Racial Inequality at Warwick training, will help us to further develop a culture that is anti-racist.
- The development of an Inclusive Education Model is bringing together our practice to eliminate the awarding gap. It takes a holistic approach to the student experience from the content of curriculum to the cultural experience in the classroom and on campus.
To help increase staff and student confidence in reporting incidences of racial harassment and discrimination in our community, we’ve also been running awareness campaigns about the confidential support available.
Mike: We’ll be reporting progress against our action plan to Council and Senate regularly, and we’ll continue to consult and update the Warwick community on our progress.
Read our full submission online.
Find out more about the Race Equality Charter and our work in this area.