Research Councils UK (RCUK) has unveiled its new Statement of Expectations for Equality and Diversity, which is intended to drive more rapid cultural change in the management of equality and diversity in institutions receiving Research Council funding.
In line with legislation in the Equality Act 2010, higher education institutions must have policies in place to address equality and diversity issues. RCUK has developed the Statement to assess whether these policies are working in practice, embedded at all levels in institutions, and take account of the whole spectrum of equality and diversity issues.
RCUK will review the overall effectiveness of organisations’ approaches at a departmental and institutional level through its Audit and Assurance Programme. It will also discuss equality and diversity during institutional visits.
The Statement sets out RCUK’s expectations and provides suggestions for evidence that institutions may wish to use. At this time, RCUK does not require formal accreditation, such as Athena SWAN, for grant funding; however, it will be reviewing and may consider such measures if there is no evidence of improvement.
The Statement has been informed by RCUK’s work over the past year with relevant sector organisations and universities to review ways in which equality and diversity can best be supported in research.
