Westminster is reflecting on and celebrating the progress made since the publication of its 15 Black Lives Matter Commitments in June 2020. The Commitments were designed to further strengthen the University’s resolve with regard to anti-racist practice.
Since publication, much has been done to deliver on actions that realise the Commitments.
In order to guide and report on implementation, a Commitments Steering Group was established. The Steering Group has collated some of the highlights of the past year.
Black History Year
Black history continues to be celebrated throughout the year at Westminster. Now in its third year, the Black History Year programme features an array of events spanning the breadth of experiences for Black people, and has provided workshops catering to the diverse needs of Black colleagues and students at the University, as well as the public who attend.
With volunteers from across the University, initiatives have been established to enhance Black students’ skills; start conversations around identity; and address growth in research by developing competencies and creating opportunities for Black researchers to excel at Westminster. Initiatives that further expand and reinforce Black History Year include BHY CREATE, a decolonised ‘career-ready’ student programme written for Black students; BHY Beyond Books, an events series for participants to discuss and highlight Black representation in arts and culture; and the BHY Researchers Network.
Challenging Racisms in Higher Education and Beyond Conference
This conference, held in May, was the second of its kind at Westminster and brought speakers and participants from different institutions and around the globe to explore and challenge various forms of racism present within academia and society as a whole, making a powerful contribution to the anti-racist work of the University. In addition to anti-Black racism, there was a focus on antisemitism, Islamophobia and casteism as racism. This was accompanied by the sixth annual DEN student conference, on the theme of sustainable development in a diverse and unequal world.
University of Westminster Colleague Networks
Westminster’s colleague networks continue to work intersectionally and positively impact upon the culture of the University, helping to ensure that Westminster is a place where inclusion and equity are core principles. Colleague networks and School EDI leads played a key role in the Annual EDI Open Forum, held in June, on the theme of breaking down silos and working together.
The Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) network, representing the interests and aspirations of BME colleagues, has regular meetings with senior institutional leaders to facilitate dialogue and progress, including on the Commitments.
Decolonising and Diversifying the Curriculum
The Pedagogies for Social Justice project continues to grow, making a key contribution to work on the Commitments.
The project hosted the Festival of Decolonial Learning in June, focused on building anti-racist and decolonial atmospheres in Higher Education learning and teaching spaces.
The decolonising toolkit is used by the University’s academic Schools in revisiting curriculum and teaching practice, and several Schools have developed their own toolkits.
Addressing Awarding Gaps
Work to reduce awarding gaps has included investment in internal research; the introduction of measures to remove barriers to success; and interventions targeted at particular groups. Ongoing internally funded research, alongside analysis of data from dashboards, suggests that authentic assessment is helping to narrow awarding gaps.
Targeted interventions are also having an impact. A new pre-enrolment programme aims to increase continuation rates among new students from under-represented groups and from courses with high withdrawal rates. The programme targets students prior to enrolment and supports transition. In September 2022, the programme targeted students across 12 courses with high withdrawal rates, and 80% of students taking part said it prepared them well for university and that they felt more confident overall.
Championing Diversity and Inclusion in Research and Doctoral Education
Westminster is committed to enabling an inclusive and diverse research culture.
The University ring-fenced ten fully funded Quintin Hogg Trust studentships for PhD researchers from under-represented BME backgrounds. It also made a commitment to support studentships ring-fenced for BME researchers in its application for Leverhulme Doctoral Scholarships under the theme of Diasporic Britain.
The Graduate School held a workshop on challenges faced by BME PhD researchers and its support for the Commitments is also evidenced through the choice of keynote speakers at the Graduate School Festivals. The Graduate School has also introduced a bespoke online programme for Researchers of Colour for the summer term from April to July 2023. The University’s Research and Knowledge Exchange Office is in the process of recruiting for three Westminster fellowships targeting early postdoctoral scholars from under-represented backgrounds. These fellowships will be crucial tools in supporting the Commitments.
Innovative colleague-led partnerships are taking place that are directly connected with challenges faced by minoritised people, with the aim of increasing public engagement. The Black Music Research Unit held an important event on Prostate Cancer in Black Musicians and opened a new series of talks with Afrobeat to Afrobeats.
Employability and Enterprise
Westminster is proud to include a diverse group of role models for students within its employability and enterprise programmes, and to prioritise inclusion.
Student enterprise is a key area of inclusion work. In November 2022, Westminster’s entrepreneurial network WeNetwork delivered the Westminster Inclusion and Diversity Festival. WeNetwork has also updated its Pioneer support programme for underrepresented founders. Further, it helped fulfil the University’s commitment to the work of the Diversity and Inclusion Research Community by collaborating with Innovate UK (IUK) on an Inclusive Innovation event, where the CEO and experts from IUK provided support to researchers from communities currently under-represented in their grant programme. WeNetwork also conducted outreach to bring employers and organisations into the classroom to highlight issues of discrimination and racism in business and broader culture, through the Live Briefs programme.
Report and Support
The Report and Support platform supports Westminster’s commitment to further develop safe ways for colleagues and students to disclose and/or report microaggressions, harassment and unwanted behaviour. The platform is promoted through internal communication channels, articles, events, colleague networks and unions to ensure and enhance engagement.
Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Training
Work is continuing to enhance the EDI Colleague Development Programme and to train colleagues in key areas including addressing and challenging microaggressions; developing true allyship; becoming an active bystander; and recognising how to confidently challenge and address inappropriate and unwanted behaviours. In addition, work has also begun this year on developing inclusive leadership practice and providing a focused programme of development for BME colleagues to develop their leadership capability and potential.
EDI Action Policy and Planning
Westminster continues to regularly monitor EDI-related principles and actions and ensure that they reflect and support the implementation of the Commitments. The annual Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Plan is a key vehicle for this and is reviewed twice yearly by the EDI Committee, to monitor progress.
Embedding the Black Lives Matter Commitments at Westminster
Westminster is committed to sharing insights from its work on the Commitments with other Higher Education partners in the UK and internationally. It is recognised that challenges remain within the University and these will continue to be addressed.
Find out more about the University’s commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.
