Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Culture Review

On World Day of Social Justice 2024, Queen Margaret University publishes its Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Culture Review Report.

As part of our commitment to social justice, QMU is on a long and deep journey to advance equality, diversity and inclusion – within and beyond our institution. In 2021, we established the University’s Race Equality Steering Group with a remit to advance the institution’s commitment to race equality. This steering group commissioned an extensive and broad Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Culture Review, which was carried out in 2022-23, led by Professor Paul Miller and visiting fellows Dr Leroi Henry and Dr Kenisha Linton-Williams.

In doing so, QMU is the first university in the UK to undertake such a broad review into EDI issues affecting both staff and students. This review was not commissioned as a response to any particular negative incident, but rather from a recognition that racism exists in society and that therefore our institution is not immune to it.

The work undertaken as part of this Review has included the completion of a series of facilitated consultations with staff and students across the University. Supporting the outcomes of the facilitated conversations, a detailed analysis of quantitative and qualitative data has been conducted. This has included analysing gender and minority ethnicity pay gap data and staff equality monitoring data, reviewing a sample of university policies, and developing and deploying a survey to students. Since its establishment, the Race Equality Steering Group has been consulted on the findings through quarterly meetings and has played an active and crucial role in the project.

The findings from this review have been set out in the final report, which can be accessed via the link below.

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Culture Review Report

The findings within the report have informed an EDI and Anti-Racism Strategy, alongside a 5-year Action Plan, which we have already begun to implement across the University.

EDI Strategy for 2023-2028

5-Year Action Plan

We find encouragement in the report’s findings that staff and students generally consider the University to be an inclusive environment. That being said, this granular review into our culture has identified a number of areas in which we can make improvements.

Covering a five-year span, the accompanying action plan, set out in the sections below, offers us a route to delivering meaningful, impactful actions to advance our current work on equality, diversity and inclusion, drawing on best practice, and building on actions that we have already implemented.

Section 1: EDI Governance and Leadership

Step 1.1

Action: Establish clear EDI / Anti-racism priorities and commitments for the senior leadership team, and members of University Court, including in areas of visibility, commitment and accountability.

Responsibility: SLT

Timescale: At launch

Specific Actions for Implementation

Create an ‘EDI Pledge Tree’ (Initiative by Dr Sian Jones), invite members of SLT and Court to make commitments on the tree, as well as all staff/students.
Publish that Court members, as directors of the company, are accountable for the University’s performance of its duties under the Public Sector Equality Duties, and how demonstrate this commitment e.g. through training e.g. Advance HE; diversity of membership commitment; engagement and approval of the University Mainstreaming Report and Equality Outcomes.

Section 2: Culture, Community and Support

Step 2.1

Action: Outline process for setting up staff and student led networks (e.g. disability network); communicate this to staff and students.

Responsibility: Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Adviser / Student Union (SU)

Timescale: 2023/24

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Set up website with guidelines.
Give current networks greater visibility through Diversity, Inclusion and Wellbeing communications.
Consider resources for network activity.

Step 2.2

Action: Provides more user-friendly desks for wheelchair users in seminar rooms.

Responsibility: Campus Services / Facilities / Student Services

Timescale: Assessment conducted in 2023/24

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Conduct an assessment of how many desks we have and how many more are required.

Step 2.3

Action: Update and revise policies reviewed as part of the EDI Culture Review; review other student and staff facing policies; involve staff and students in policy review.

Responsibility: HR /Governance and Quality Enhancement (GQE)

Timescale: 2024/25

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Policies included in the EDI Culture Report to be revised in 24/25.
Identify priority policy areas and produce a schedule of policy reviews which seeks to review and revise 5 policies per year on an annual basis.

Step 2.4

Action: Simplify and improve arrangements and processes for obtaining leave, in particular bereavement/compassionate leave, and for changing names for those wishing to do so.

Responsibility: HR / Student Records / IT

Timescale: 2023/24 - Leave Arrangements

2024/25 - Name changing processes

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Leave Arrangements updated and communicated to staff in 2023 following the findings from this report.
Conduct a review of systems based on feedback. Where possible, introduce informed changes which streamline processes.
Create a webpage which explains processes for name-changing for staff and students, provide information on where the university may be restricted in its processes (e.g. due to HESA & HMRC requirements).

Step 2.5

Action: Convene a Working Group to better understand the experiences of Asian and International Students; work with the International Office and the PALS team to address concerns identified.

Responsibility: Student Services / Recruitment and International Liaison Office (RILO)

Timescale: From 2024/25

Specific Actions for Implementation: Create a Short-life working group including representation of Asian students, International Liaison office, Student Services, facilitated by SU.

Section 3: EDI Communication

Step 3.1

Action: Celebrate EDI achievements internally and externally (e.g. the work and achievements of the RESG, etc); communicate where progress may be slower.

Responsibility: EDI Adviser / Marketing / Equality and Diversity Committee (EDC)

Timescale: 2024/25

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Extend the existing DIW calendar monthly communications to include spotlight section highlighting EDI Activity/success across the university; Equality and Diversity Committee members to provide material from their areas for these communications.
Create internal EDI Communications and Engagement calendar to keep track of relevant EDI-related upcoming achievements which could be marketed internally and externally (e.g. Athena SWAN awards).

Step 3.2

Action: Provide staff (professional services and academic), and students with ‘space’ and opportunities to talk about EDI concerns and opportunities within and across teams to promote more and deeper connection among people at the University beyond their day-to-day roles.

Responsibility: Race Equality Steering Group (RESG)

Timescale: 2024/25 (Year following the launch)

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Create a webpage dedicated to the EDI Culture Review, provide annual updates.
Host regular Facilitated Conversation Sessions with staff and students, the first to fall a year after report publication, to provide staff and students opportunities to talk about EDI concerns.
Continue to host a variety of equality-related events (e.g. Black History Month lecture).

Section 4: EDI Training and Development

Step 4.1

Action: Embed EDI as a target in PER objectives and annual review for all staff at all levels.

Responsibility: HR

Timescale: Introduce in 2026/27

Embed in process by 2027/28

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Create guidance around setting an objective for EDI for managers.
Update PER process and forms to include EDI-related objectives in PER objectives.
Communicate changes to process to encourage staff to participate in setting an EDI objective.

Step 4.2

Action: Generate a training plan which considers the need for provision of EDI/Anti-Racism training and/or coaching to both students and staff.

Responsibility: HR & University Secretary

Timescale:

Training plan devised in 2024/25

Rollout of training by 2025/26

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Generate training plan which considers and prioritises all groups of staff. Identify what type of EDI training is required and where should this training be mandatory, recommended, optional.
Require anyone involved in shortlisting, interviewing and recruitment, performance appraisal and promotions panels, grievance panels, disciplinary panels, Fitness to Practice panels, to undertake training in ‘Unconscious Bias’ ‘safer recruitment’ and an updated training log is kept.
Ensure all managers, programme leaders, Personal Academic Tutors, and anyone with a formal responsibility role, to undertake bystander training to enable them to recognise and prevent power-based abuse and to create a safe and inclusive culture.
Provide students with compulsory training in EDI via dedicated EDI modules undertaken by all students.

Step 4.3

Action: Introduce a voluntary mentoring scheme, delivered at school and division levels, where senior and more experiences employees act as mentors for newly or recently appointed, and/or minoritized employees in areas appropriate to the mentees

Responsibility: Research and Knowledge Exchange Development Unit (RKEDU) / HR / Learning Enhancement and Academic Development (LEAD)

Timescale: 2027/28

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Develop plans for mentoring scheme, consider a cross-institutional approach.

Section 5: Curriculum and Learning

Step 5.1

Action: Continue to involve students in work on decolonising the curriculum (e.g. Inclusive Learning and Teaching Student champions); ensure appropriate support and/or training is available for staff and students engaging in decolonising work.

Responsibility: LEAD / Student Services

Timescale: Working group established 2024/25

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Set up Decolonising Working Group ensuring student representation (reporting into Student Experience Committee)
Use established Decolonising SharePoint to share resources/support.
Promote and raise awareness of the work of the Decolonising Now Group

Step 5.2

Action: Work with students to co-create an inclusive language guide; seeks input from the Students Union for this activity.

Responsibility: EDI Adviser / SU

Timescale:

Develop in 2024/25

In place by 2025/26

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Set up a working group to develop the guide.
Conduct annual reviews of the guide to ensure language is still relevant and guide is up-to-date.

Step 5.3

Action: Designs and promote two-way EDI learning and engagement opportunities for the local community and the University (e.g. the University could lead and/or support EDI conversations with its partners e.g. health providers).

Responsibility: RESG / EDI Adviser / SU

Timescale: From 2023/24

Specific Actions for Implementation:

In collaboration with Institute for Educational and Social Equity, host the Equity in Education & Society Scotland Conference at QMU in 2024.
Sponsor the Scottish Association of Minority Ethnic Educators Recognition and Appreciation Awards in 2024

Section 6: EDI Data

Step 6.1

Action: Where pay gaps have been identified, study gaps for (i) minority ethnic staff, (ii) female staff, and by (iii) job function, and by (iv) level, and (v) job role; publish an Equal Pay Report annually alongside an Equal Pay Action Plan.

Responsibility: EDI Adviser

Timescale: 2023/24

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Continue to publish Equal Pay Report & Action Plan published annually already.
Consider wider communications of Equal Pay Report to raise awareness of its annual publication.
Commit to conducting and publishing intersectional pay gap analysis from Equal Pay Report 2024.

Step 6.2

Action: Routinely collect EDI data on students and staff to enhance the quality of data and comprehensiveness of available data; report on data annually.

Responsibility: HR / EDI Adviser / Registry

Timescale:

Starting in 2023/24

Process / website in place by 2024/25

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Run a campaign to encourage staff and students to declare their equalities characteristics.
Create webpage to showcase how we use data for positive EDI interventions, provide GDPR assurances and explain the limitations of certain categories to staff and students (e.g. due to HESA & HMRC).
Send out communications twice per year encouraging staff to update their data twice/year - tie in with the DIW communications.

Step 6.3

Action: Create an annual high level HR report to be published to all staff, containing up-to-date information on a range of staff-related data.

Responsibility: HR

Timescale:

Develop report in 2025/26

In place 2026/27

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Develop a process for collating a high-level update of HR and staff data annually.
Produce an annual report to be published to staff and on our webpages.
Report to include high level results on exit interview and new start surveys, as well as examining and monitoring staff contract type by gender and ethnicity.

Step 6.4

Action: Study and examine how and why recruitment of UK born South Asian and Black staff is fewer than South Asian and Black staff who are migrants.

Responsibility: HR

Timescale: 2023/24

Specific Actions for Implementation:

HR to review recruitment data and report back to Race Equality Steering Group (RESG).

Section 7: Recruiting diversity

Step 7.1

Action: Via policy change, implement the Rooney rule principle – i.e. interview at least one BAME application meeting the essential of the job.

Responsibility: HR

Timescale: June 2024

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Pilot the Rooney Principle for 6 months in 2024.
Develop an ‘opt-in’ option to participating in the Rooney Principle within our recruitment application forms, include a reference to our participation in the scheme in our recruitment adverts.
Review recruitment data after 6 months to investigate if the principle has increased the number of ethnic minority applicants interviewed for posts within the time period.

Step 7.2

Action: Conduct a review of our recruitment processes from an anti-racist perspective.

Responsibility: HR

Timescale:

Review to start in 2024/25

Implementing changes by 2025/26

Specific Actions for Implementation:

HR to conduct a full review of recruitment processes from an anti-racist perspective, including reviewal of the competency-based approach currently adopted.

Step 7.3

Action: Increase the overall percentage of staff of BAME heritage, seek to increase the percentage of ethnic minority staff to be in line with Scotland's census data within 5 years.

Responsibility: RESG

Timescale:

From 2023/24 with quarterly tracking.

Census target to be reached by 2027/28

Specific Actions for Implementation:

Race Equality Steering Group to monitor data relating to the numbers and retention of ethnic minority staff quarterly; where numbers allow disaggregate ethnicity data
Review data to identify areas/grades/teams where ethnic minority staff are most underrepresented to take a targeted approach.