Huddersfield recognised for commitment to gender equality
Huddersfield pharmacy PhD researcher Dr Tsitsi Chituku
Fri, 02 Oct 2015 11:29:00 BST
“...the University is to be granted an Athena SWAN Bronze Award...”
THE University of Huddersfield’s commitment to gender equality – including the recruitment and career development of more female scientists and engineers – has been boosted by an award from the leading campaign organisation in the field.
It is announced that the University is to be granted an Athena SWAN Bronze Award, in recognition of its progress in ensuring equality of opportunity for all employees.
The Athena SWAN Charter – established in 2005 – is administered by the Equality Challenge Unit (ECU), which is backed by several leading funding organisations in the field of higher education. The aim is to encourage and recognise commitment to advancing the careers of women in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine in higher education and research.
In order to earn its new Athena SWAN Bronze Award, the University of Huddersfield drew up a 72-page submission that included a detailed action-plan. A 14-strong self-assessment group consisting of male and female academic staff was convened to draft the submission and to monitor progress. It is chaired by Dr Tracy Turner (pictured left), who is the University’s Deputy Director of Research and Enterprise.
“We are delighted that the ECU has given us the Bronze Award,” she said. “It is a testament to a lot of hard work and the progress that we have made.
“But there is no question of us resting on our laurels,” continued Dr Turner. “Our Academic Schools will be following the University by preparing and submitting their own applications for discipline-specific Bronze and potentially Silver Awards. The Institution Award is valid for three years from November and will need to be renewed through demonstration of continued progress with the action plan.”
The Bronze Award success was also hailed by the Vice-Chancellor of the University, Professor Bob Cryan. When the submission was made to the ECU, he attached a personal letter, in which he outlined the challenges in recruiting female staff in science and engineering subjects. He stated that he was delighted that the new Dean of Applied Sciences is Professor Jane Owen Lynch, whose research background includes biochemistry, physics, psychology and biology.
Nevertheless, more work was needed to address imbalances, wrote Prof Cryan, who added that: “The Athena SWAN project will facilitate change and as such it is something I value greatly. As an engineer, I want to see my own profession attract and retain the very best of talents.”
Having received the Bronze Awards, the University of Huddersfield is now entitled to display the Athena SWAN logo on its promotional material, as a way of signalling its commitment to gender equality.
