Diversity awards
Athena Swan
The Athena Swan Charter recognises commitment to gender equality in the advancement and promotion of staff and students in higher education and research.
The University has held an Athena Swan Bronze award since 2008 and we are applying to upgrade this award status to Silver under the new criteria, recognising the impact of gender equality actions and initiatives. Individual Schools within the University also hold Athena Swan Awards; we have eight Schools that hold a Bronze Award and six Schools have been awarded at Silver level.
In accordance with the expansion of the Athena Swan Charter to include Schools in the arts, humanities, social sciences, business and law, Schools in the Faculty of Humanities are also working towards Bronze Award status.
We’re fully committed to progressing a long-term cultural change to benefit all staff.
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Stonewall
We participate in Britain’s good practice employers’ forum on sexual orientation run by Stonewall, a charity that works for equality for LGBTQ+ people everywhere.
In 2023, we were ranked 30th in their Top 100 Employers for LGBTQ+ inclusion in the workplace.
Stonewall's Diversity Champion programme provided us with access to a wide range of support and resources to ensure we are an inclusive and supportive place to work, study and visit.
Race Equality Charter
We’re one of only four higher education institutes to successfully renew its Race Equality Charter Bronze Award through AdvanceHE (formally the Equality Challenge Unit) for excellence in advancing racial equality in higher education. We are applying for Silver status in 2023.
Disability Confident
We have been awarded the Disability Confident Employer symbol by Jobcentre Plus.
This status identifies those employers who have agreed to take a set of actions around the recruitment, retention and career development of disabled people and those with health conditions.
Learn more about our commitment to the recruitment, retention and career development of disabled people.
Business Disability Forum
We are a member of the Business Disability Forum, a not-for-profit membership organisation that provides pragmatic support to help businesses become fully accessible to disabled customers and employees.
We are committed to equal opportunities across the University and it's important to us that we create an inclusive working environment that welcomes disabled applicants.
Time to Change
Time to Change is England's biggest programme to challenge mental health stigma and discrimination.
We signed the Time to Change pledge in June 2013, signalling our commitment to helping raise awareness and to tackle the stigma around mental health for our staff and students.
As part of the pledge, we have put together a 'Time to Change' action plan (PDF document, 155KB) that includes a campaign to raise awareness for staff and students, and training for line managers and frontline staff.
Universities Human Resources
The Universities Human Resources (UHR) awards recognise outstanding and innovative projects, teams, and individuals that have led transformational change in their organisations.
In 2017, we won the Equality and Diversity category prize for our 'We Get It' campaign, which promotes zero tolerance of bullying and harassment.
The Inclusive Top 50 UK Employers
In 2017, the University was named as one of the year’s Inclusive Top 50 UK Employers, a definitive list of UK-based organisations that promote inclusion across all strands of diversity, including age, disability, gender, LGBT, race, faith and religion throughout each level of employment.
The list recognises organisations that are committed to attracting and retaining a truly diverse workforce and achieving equality, diversity and inclusion throughout their staff.