Welcome

1. Welcome

2. Overview of equality issues in higher education:‘A HEFCE Perspective’ ECU Conference 4-5 November 2008 David Eastwood Chief Executive Higher Education Funding Council for England

3. “Education must be a force for opportunity and social justice, not for the entrenchment of privilege. We must make certain that the opportunities that higher education brings are available to all those who have the potential to benefit from them, regardless of their background. This is not just about preventing active discrimination; it is about working actively to make sure that potential is recognised and fostered wherever it is found.” The Future of Higher Education White paper, 2004

4. Legislation including new positive duties for gender, race & disability ECU established in 2001 HEI race equality policy evaluation 2002 HEFCE single equality scheme 2006 Where we were

5. Where we are now: Our strengths • Widening participation: between 2003/4 and 2006/7 student numbers have risen by 11.5% • Ethnic minorities now have high levels of representation in higher education, making up 15% of all students, compared with 6% of the working age population. • Huge gains in equal pay across the sector following the introduction of job evaluations • Disabled students now account for 6.9% of the student population, a rise of 67.7% since the year 2000-2001 • In 2006, 42% of senior management posts in UK universities were held by women, compared to 28% in 2003. • The percentage of female professors has almost doubled from 9% in 1995 to 17.5% in 2006. • Enrolment of international students in the UK is 14% of the total. The UK remains the second most popular destination country. US takes 20% of the market, we take 11%.

6. Data tells us the story and offers up the questions: What is the problem? How might we solve it? Does this solution work? The story in numbers

7. 12 year growth of BME academic staff (1995/96- 2006/07)

8. 12 year growth of female academic staff by grade (1995/96- 2006/7)

9. 12 year growth of permanent academic staff declared disabled (1995/96-2006/07)

10. Degree attainment differentials: both in terms of gender and race Outcomes and not just results 14% of UK vice-chancellors – only 19 at present - are women We know almost nothing about the experiences of lesbian, gay and bisexual students and staff in HE Gender segregation in the sciences White working class boys are now the least likely group of people to go to university. Remaining challenges

11. HE sector well positioned for the new duty: already protect staff as well as students Many institutions already engage with students from different faith groups and age groups and promoting good campus relations is integral to their work already Where the duty is likely to have impact is in requiring a more systematic and evidence based approach to all the equality areas (particularly sexual orientation and religion and belief) The Single Equality Bill

12. What impact will this have on HE? Additional positive duties to promote: age, sexual orientation and religion or belief Procurement: According to the report, 30 per cent of British companies are contracted by the public sector. Positive Action: Selecting between two equally qualified candidates. Equal Pay:Institutions will be expected to conduct equal pay job evaluations and audits and publish the difference between pay of men and women.

13. Equality issues are, for the first time for ALL Boys and girls: are we achieving real equality if boys are being left out of the equation? Dealing with and accommodating different styles of working (i.e. work life balance) Taking positive action and will this address the real issues; it is not about selection but rather, widening our pool of applicants The real equality issues

14. Funding the Equality Challenge Unit BME race forum ATHENA SWAN charter scheme Detailed study on the experiences of LGBT staff and students in HE Religious dialogue groups What is HEFCE doing to support this work?

15. ECU expanded remit since 2006 Disability Equality Partnership since 2006 AIM higher programmes encouraging boys participation Degree attainment project Annual monitoring of equality progress through HEIs' Annual Monitoring Statements (will include disability & gender from 2008) Supporting Students

16. To date, the LGM Fund has supported E&D related projects totalling over £750K For example: Developing mentoring programme for senior managers - Univ ofWolverhampton Flexible employment options - Univ of Staffordshire Regional Network of Staff advisory Groups for 6 strands- LJMU Position of EO Officer within HEIs - HEEON ‘Same but Different’ DVD & workbook - Univ of Coventry Most recently: Best Practice for Age Diversity - Oxford Brookes HEFCE's Leadership, Governance, and Management Fund- Sector led key driver of change

17. Strategic Plan 2006-11 “To support the continuing development of people, and of an organisational culture in HEIs, that is representative of society as a whole and delivers high quality provision now and in the future” Key Performance Target “By 2010-11 the HE workforce at a sector level will have increased proportions of female staff, disabled staff, and staff from black and minority ethnic groups in senior positions, taken from a baseline established in 2003-04” HEFCE’S Vision

18. Embedding the new equality and human rights agenda; in particular, sexual orientation, religion & Belief, and Age equality Looking at issues of ‘multiple identities’ Need for improved EO data on national level Flexible retirement Accommodating religious needs in secular institutions Developing benchmarks to measure progress and improved outcomes for equality data in HE Making our single equality scheme more strategic Harnessing the research power of higher education How best to support HEIs? Need your input. Future Challenges for HE