Awards and Charters

Race Equality Charter

The University is a member of Advance HE’s Race Equality Charter (REC). The REC provides a framework for universities to improve the representation, progression and success of minority ethnic staff and students within higher education. It provides a comprehensive framework that organisations can use to identify and self-reflect on institutional and cultural barriers standing in the way of minority staff and students.

The University achieved the Race Equality Charter Bronze Award in March 2024, in recognition of the progress made in advancing race equality and commitment to progressing equality within the organisation.

Living Wage Foundation

The University is a member of the Living Wage Foundation and firmly believes that all our employees deserve a wage that meets everyday needs. Introduced in 2011, the University was one of the first organisations to sign up to the agreement.

Investing in Ethnicity

The Investing in Ethnicity Maturity Matrix provides organisations with a framework and strategy based on levels of Maturity, which is aligned to the Race at Work Charter. This enables us to work towards positive improvements and narrowing inequalities surrounding race and ethnicity at the University.

The University was awarded the ‘Investing in Ethnicity – Advanced Employer’ award of the Maturity Matrix in 2022, which highlights that we have formalised, implemented and communicated our race equality work at the University, taking effect in areas such as recruitment, strategy and data collection.

Race at Work Charter

The University became a member of the Race at Work Charter in March 2020, in doing so the University has signed up to the following five commitments:

  1. Appoint an Executive Sponsor for race
  2. Capture ethnicity data and publicise progress
  3. Commit at board level to zero tolerance of harassment and bullying
  4. Make clear that supporting equality in the workplace is the responsibility of all leaders and managers
  5. Take action that supports minority ethnic career progression

Disability Confident

The University has been accredited as a Disability Confident Employer.

To achieve Disability Confident Employer status, the University has signed up to the following commitments:

  • Actively looking to attract and recruit disabled people
  • Providing a fully inclusive and accessible recruitment process
  • Offer an interview to disabled people who meet the minimum criteria for the job
  • Be flexible when assessing people so disabled job applicants have the best opportunity to demonstrate that they can do the job
  • Proactively offer and make reasonable adjustments as required
  • Encourage our suppliers and partner firms to be Disability Confident
  • Ensure employees have appropriate disability equality awareness
  • Promote a culture of being Disability Confident
  • Support employees to manage their disabilities or health conditions
  • Ensure there are no barriers to the development and progression of disabled staff
  • Ensure managers are aware of how they can support staff who are sick or absent from work
  • Value and listen to feedback from disabled staff
  • Review our Disability Confident self-assessment regularly

Athena SWAN

The University has been a member of the Athena SWAN Charter since 1st October 2015 and in 2020 renewed its Bronze Award for Gender Equality.

The School of Applied Sciences has held a departmental Athena SWAN Silver Award since 2018 and all the other Schools hold departmental Athena SWAN Bronze Awards.

As a member of the Athena SWAN Charter for gender equality, the University of Huddersfield determines its priorities and interventions, by committing to:

  1. adopting robust, transparent and accountable processes for gender equality work, including:
    • embedding diversity, equity and inclusion in our culture, decision-making and partnerships, and holding ourselves and others in our institution/institute/department accountable
    • undertaking evidence-based, transparent self-assessment processes to direct our priorities and interventions for gender equality, and evaluating our progress to inform our continuous development
    • ensuring that gender equality work is distributed appropriately, is recognised and properly rewarded
  2. addressing structural inequalities and social injustices that manifest as differential experiences and outcomes for staff and students
  3. tackling behaviours and cultures that detract from the safety and collegiality of our work and study environments for people of all genders, including not tolerating gender-based violence, discrimination, bullying, harassment or exploitation
  4. understanding and addressing intersectional inequalities
  5. fostering collective understanding that individuals have the right to determine their own gender identity, and tackling the specific issues faced by trans and non-binary people because of their identity
  6. examining gendered occupational segregation, and elevating the status, voice and career opportunities of any identified under-valued and at-risk groups
  7. mitigating the gendered impact of caring responsibilities and career breaks, and supporting flexibility and the maintenance of a healthy ‘whole life balance’
  8. mitigating the gendered impact of short-term and casual contracts for staff seeking sustainable careers.

Stonewall

The University of Huddersfield has been consistently strong in the Stonewall Workplace Equality Index over a number of years, in recognition of its ongoing commitment to driving forward LGBTQI+ inclusion. Progressing from a Silver Award in 2023, to achieve a Stonewall Gold Award in 2024, as a Top 100 Employer in the UK, acknowledges the culmination of inclusive practices which have been developed in partnership with our LGBTQI+ Staff Network.

The Gold Award demonstrates the University’s dedication to providing an inclusive, welcoming environment where LGBTQI+ staff and students have the freedom to bring their whole selves to work. Stonewall’s Top 100 Employers List 2024 is the UK’s leading ranking of employers from public, private and third sectors on how inclusive their workplaces are. 

Mindful Employer Charter

Having signed the ‘Charter for Employers Positive about Mental Health’, we are committed to creating a supportive and open culture, where colleagues feel able to talk about mental health confidently, and aspire to appropriately support the mental wellbeing of all staff.