The SEED EDI team are as follows:

• EDI Director: Laura Winter
• Disability equity leads: Rachel Challinor and Heather Cockayne
• Gender and sexual orientation equity lead: Catherine Atkinson-Ross
• Race equity lead: Marcellus (Marc) Mbah
• Postgraduate research students (PGR) equity lead: Abi Stone
• Taught students equity lead: Laura Goodfellow

In December 2023, the School was granted the Athena Swan Silver Award as part of the Athena Swan Charter mark. 

With this award comes an action plan the School is currently implementing; this is being embedded in the core activities of the departments and across the functional areas of Teaching and Learning, Research, PGR and Social Responsibility.

The School was previously granted the Athena Swan Bronze Award in April 2018.

• SEED Athena SWAN Silver Submission September 2023
• SEED Athena SWAN Bronze Submission November 2017
• SEED Athena SWAN Action plan May 2018
• SEED Athena SWAN Audit Report 2017
• University Charter Marks

1. Belonging, influence and respect

We will work to ensure that all members of the SEED community feel they belong, feel valued, feel heard and respected in SEED.

• Active bystander training is now a mandatory course for our SLT and PSLT, and we have set a goal of a minimum 30 completions each year in SEED. To find out when the next planned session is please contact seedschooloffice@manchester.ac.uk This training goes beyond the existing mandatory training package for all University staff which includes several core EDI units. Active bystander training includes a ‘live’ training element as well as some preparatory work. The essential training package provided by the University is solely online training.
• Trans inclusion: introduced in 2022 we deliver regular trans awareness sessions for staff in SEED, facilitated by Kit Heyam. This is a mandatory course for our SLT and PSLT, and we have set a goal of a minimum of 250 of SEED staff to have completed it by 2027. For details of upcoming sessions please contact Catherine Atkinson-Ross. We encourage staff to share pronouns if they feel comfortable to do so and provide pronoun badges which you can collect from the School Operations team in EWB A1.22 and HBS1.17 if you wish. View details on how to add pronouns to email signatures.
• Meeting conduct: As a result of our projects on intersectional experiences of staff, and our Influence and Respect project in 2025, we have communicated further a new SEED Inclusive Meeting Guidance document. We have also committed to providing guidance and/or training to all forum chairs in 2025/26.
• Disability inclusion: Several of our projects have spoken to the need to develop disability inclusion more fully and tackle ableism in the school. As a result of this we have providing regular advice and support for disabled colleagues, colleagues with long term health conditions or their line managers. Information circulated can be found online. We also signpost colleagues to the Disabled Staff Network, the Let’s Talk conversation series and the Sunflower Lanyard Scheme (lanyards are available to collect from the School Operations in EWB A1.22 and HBS1.17) 
• Supporting racially minoritised women: We ran an intersectionality project in 2025 speaking with racially minoritised women and/or who identify as under the trans umbrella working in the school to find out more about their experiences. The report is now available online. As a result of this SLT committed to providing written feedback to candidates applying for school level leadership roles, continue work on meeting conduct as noted above, and do EDI focused analyses of workload model data.
• Transparency on school leadership roles: We have developed transparent information about all school leadership roles, including job descriptions and when the current term will end and therefore the role will be advertised again.
• Racially minoritised staff: introduced in 2024 we hold regular supportive community meetings/spaces for racially minoritised staff working in SEED. For details of upcoming sessions please contact Marc Mbah.
• SEED EDI Pulse Surveys are regularly conducted with our staff and PGRs, allowing us to check in about all things EDI and to plan future activities to improve things for everyone, informed by what people share with us.
• Support for those experiencing peri-menopausal or menopausal symptoms at work: The central university information on support available can be found on StaffNet. Within the school we have trialled providing staff with small, discreet portable fans for use in meetings or at events. Please contact Rebecca Phillips or Laura Winter for more information.
• Intersectionality: We ran an intersectionality project in 2025 speaking with racially minoritised women and/or who identify as under the trans umbrella working in the school to find out more about their experiences. The report is now available online, having been presented to SLT, and the responding actions are being formed. 
• We are currently conducting a piece of exploratory work looking at the experiences of colleagues on ‘non-standard’ contracts in the school, including those on fixed-term, part time and senior tutor contracts. The report and resulting actions will be updated in due course.

Useful links: 

• SEED email policy 
• SEED Induction
• SEED student change-maker role

2. Inclusive teaching, supervision and student support

We will work to ensure that our teaching and postgraduate research supervision is inclusive, and we challenge structural barriers.

• We are providing kits of sensory and fidget toys for teaching staff to use.
• Information on accessible teaching content can be found on StaffNet.
• SEED analysis of UEQ data occurs annually, looking at whether there are differences between scores in relation to gender and ethnicity of staff. This is presented to SLT with any actions discussed, agreed and followed up.
• SEED analysis of degree outcome data occurs annually, looking at parity in undergraduate degree outcomes by gender and ethnicity. This is presented to SLT with any actions discussed, agreed and followed up.
• SEED EDI-focused PGR supervisor training on supporting racially minoritised PGRs, trans inclusive PGR supervision, and supporting international PGRs, has been delivered annually. The Faculty of Humanities have recently committed to providing this to all schools in future years and so it will no longer sit at SEED level, and impact supervision across all the schools in the faculty.
• SEED Decolonisation seminar series is delivered annually - for details of upcoming sessions please contact Marcellus Mbah.

Useful links:

• The University's Inclusive Supervisor Alliance
• Humanities DA supervisor CPD website
• The University's Disability Service
• UoM inclusive teaching information webpages
• Student Union: decolonise UoM project

3. Fair leadership and progression

We will work to ensure that all staff can progress in their roles and that our leadership is inclusive.

• Promotions and progression: In 2024 we conducted some online surveys, focus groups and interviews to review EDI in promotions and progression in SEED. This was in response to the 2022 SEED Culture Survey, which highlighted concerns about fairness in academic promotions, especially among women. Read the full report. After completing this work we:
  • Introduced a system for sharing successful CVs and statements for academic promotion. This is advertised annually by the School Operations Team and happens at a set point of year. Please look out for information circulated via email.
  • Reviewed how we explain the process of ‘mitigating circumstances’ and ensured that further advice is given to prospective candidates for how to write the letters to the Chair of the School Promotions Committee to explain the impact. We have also enhanced the process through EDI Director involvement in the School Promotions Committee.
  • Ensured that our School Promotions Workshops come earlier in the process for academics and are provided in a hybrid format and come earlier in the year (June – details circulated by the school office). We have also led on initiating Faculty of Humanities targeted promotions workshops for women, racially minoritised, and disabled academics. These run in May each year and details are communicated via email.
  • Published our Guidance for Senior Colleagues on Encouraging Academic Promotions which sets out the responsibilities of various senior colleagues and includes reference to the role Performance and Development Reviews can play in supporting colleagues’ progression.
  • Committed to an annual review of School Promotions Committee outcomes in relation to EDI.
  • Shared the report with Faculty PS colleagues who are leading on Faculty level workshops on progression routes for PS colleagues.
• Academic Leadership in SEED: Dialogues on enhancing inclusive practice – we are running an event and action series in 2024/25 and 2025/26, where we focus on our academic leadership practices in SEED, to understand what leadership looks like, and how we might develop inclusivity going forward. Through this series and associated actions, we hope to encourage colleagues who are currently under-represented in areas of our leadership (such as women, racially minoritised/global majority colleagues, those with long term health conditions or disabilities) to apply for future leadership positions in SEED. We also reflect on and discuss existing leadership practices across the school, with the aim of sharing and learning together, and making suggestions for improvements and changes which might enhance inclusivity and the accessibility of our leadership roles. For details of upcoming sessions please contact Laura Winter.
  
  Our report from the first year of this series was presented at SEED SLT in summer 2025. Outcomes from this which were agreed are that we are now investigating potential models for job-share of senior leadership roles – this will come back to SLT in 2026.
• Funding for EDI leadership programmes including Aurora, Women into leadership, 100 Black Women Professors Now, Stellar HE etc. is provided by the Faculty and SEED have supplemented this in recent years to ensure greater participation is possible.
• SEED mid-career mentoring programme: for academics who have completed HNAP and have been working for approximately 5 years as a minimum (for details please contact Linda Evans). This mentoring scheme incorporates three components: 
  
  • A mentor-mentee pairing with a senior academic (usually a professor) – you’ll benefit from regular one-to-one meetings with your assigned professorial mentor.
  • A programme of workshops and other development-focused events.
  • A mutually supportive cohort format, through which mentees network with their cohort colleagues at the events referred to above.

Useful links: 

• Training opportunities (for example, EDI leadership programmes, 100 Black Women Professors Now, Stellar HE and Aurora and other L&OD information).
• Mentoring opportunities (for example, Manchester Gold).
• Performance and development review (P&DR).

4. Supporting staff and students with caring responsibilities 

We will work to support parents and carers in our SEED community and reduce inequities that they face.

• The University has a parents and carers network which we encourage SEED colleagues to join and get involved with.
• The University now run the Academic Returners’ scheme (which can be used not only by those returning from a period of parental leave but also those who have been off for the relevant period of time for sickness etc.
• If you are a postgraduate researcher or a postgraduate research supervisor please see the information in the SEED PGR handbook.
• We've published guidance specifically for SEED line managers, for supporting colleagues before, during and after parental leave.
• SEED's conference caregiving policy allows staff and PGR students to apply for funding to subsidise childcare, or other caregiving, when required for attendance (including overnight) at a conference or training event (or similar).
• Our SEED Core hours policy supports caregivers by ensuring that core meetings and activities are scheduled between 10am and 4pm.
• In 2024, we opened the SEED Parent and Carers room in the Arthur Lewis Building on the second floor, room 2.032.

Useful links: 

• University policies and services to support parents and carers
• Academic returners’ scheme – this scheme recognises that when colleagues take extended leave it can be challenging to maintain or re-establish academic research and educational scholarship activity when they return to work, which can have a detrimental impact on career progression. It allows colleagues who have taken a career break to apply for funding to help prioritise research and educational scholarship activity (e.g. to provide short-term cover).

5. Support when things go wrong

We will support staff and students when things go wrong.

If you wish to speak to someone about a situation you have experienced or witnessed discrimination, harassment or bullying please do reach out to a member of the EDI team or your line manager.

• We regularly communicate about planned active bystander training (see above).
• Responding to discrimination, harassment, bullying, and victimisation: We provide SEED guidance on what bullying, discrimination and harassment are and how we can all respond if we experience or witness inappropriate behaviour. Please also see the really useful ‘Routes to Resolution’ document created by Hannah Rustomjee (Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Accessibility Project Officer in the Faculty of Science and Engineering).
• We signpost colleagues to the University’s Employee Relations Team who are able to provide tailored support and advice for people on resolving issues in the workplace.
• We monitor information from Report and Support on trends of issues arising in the school, and discuss these within senior leadership team meetings.
• We run confidential listening meetings twice a year with our EDI Director and a member of the central EDI team, with the purpose of signposting colleagues to relevant support structures within the University. Please contact Laura Winter for details of upcoming sessions.
• Line manager training: We periodically run training for line managers on supporting staff, for example supporting disabled colleagues, or supporting colleagues when things go wrong and there are cases of inappropriate behaviour. Please contact Laura Winter for information on upcoming sessions.

Useful links: 

• Two important sources of support which colleagues can use are report and support, and Employee Relations on the UoM pages. Please note that students can also be directly to Report and Support. 
• SEED line managers are encouraged to look at the information sheets available on the ‘Managers Essentials’ pages
• Dignity at work policies

Whilst what we aim for is overall broader systemic change, we know that small actions can also make a difference. Here are some suggested actions that everyone can do to make a difference in EDI:

1. Complete the relevant EDI training courses;
2. Add gender pronouns to your email signature (see UoM guidance on email signatures) and pick up a pronoun badge from the School office;
3. Aim to avoid arranging meetings outside of core working hours (10am-4pm) and check the SEED Inclusive Meeting Guidance;
4. Use a sans serif font (for example, Verdana, Arial or Calibri) and avoid black text on white background for accessibility (see British Dyslexia Association Dyslexia friendly style guide
5. If you find it useful to email out of regular hours, consider reminding others you don’t expect the same of them. Here’s one example from an email signature: ‘Please only reply to this email when it is necessary, convenient and during what you would consider as your working day.’
6. Join a staff network group;
7. Become a mentor;
8. If you teach, ask yourself: ‘To what extent does the content of my/our syllabus/programme presume a particular profile/mindset of student and their orientation to the world?’ (from the Decolonising SOAS Learning and Teaching Toolkit, Questions for Module and Programme Convenors). Use inclusive language in your teaching and ensure that accessibility needs are considered.
9. Ask visitors, colleagues, students and guests about access needs. If someone is wearing a sunflower lanyard, this means they have a hidden disability, so they might want you to ask (please pick up a sunflower lanyard from the School office if you need one.
10. Pay attention and call out any microaggressions or inappropriate behaviour when you see it, if you are in a position to do so. Remember the 4 Ds:

Direct action 
Call out negative behaviour, tell the person to stop or ask the victim if they are okay. 
Do this as a group if you can. Be polite and don’t aggravate the situation - remain calm and state why something has offended you. Stick to exactly what has happened, don’t exaggerate. 

Distract 
Interrupt, start a conversation with the perpetrator to allow their potential target to move away or have colleagues intervene. Or come up with an idea to get the victim out of the situation – tell them they need to take a call, or you need to speak to them; any excuse to get them away to safety. Alternatively, try distracting, or redirecting the situation. 

Delegate 
If you are too embarrassed or shy to speak out, or you don’t feel safe to do so, get someone else to step in. Tell someone with the authority to deal with the situation. 

Delay
If the situation is too dangerous to challenge then and there (such as there is the threat of violence or you are outnumbered) just walk away. Wait for the situation to pass then ask the victim later if they are okay. Report it when it’s safe to do so – it’s never too late to act. 

Please do talk to a member of the EDI team about any instances of inappropriate behaviour. You can report concerns anonymously or speak to a harassment advisor via Report and Support.

University resources

The University's EDI Directorate pages provide information and resources including on equality groups for:

• Age
• Gender reassignment
• Disability
• Marriage and civil partnership
• Pregnancy and maternity
• Race
• Religion or belief
• Sex
• Sexual orientation

The University’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Calendar 2025 details all the main religious festivals and major national and international days of celebration or memorial.

The University's Equality, Diversity and Inclusion in Recruitment webpage provides information on how the University is working to ensure that equality, diversity and inclusion is a critical activity within recruitment and selection.

Menopause support for employees and line managers

EDI leadership programmes - The EDI leadership training programmes are aimed at developing a diverse pool of leaders for the future. Each programme is nationally recognised and seeks to equip leaders from diverse groups with the knowledge to succeed.

University EDI blog - a place where colleagues from across our University can share their thoughts and insights related to EDI.

Let’s talk series - a series of in conversation pieces that encourages members of our diverse University community to have an open and honest discussion about topics right across equality, diversity and inclusion.

Report and Support - If you or someone you know has experienced or witnessed any form of bullying, harassment, discrimination, gender based violence, hate or micro-aggressions, or have a safeguarding concern, you can report it anonymously or get support from a trained advisor.

Dignity at work - The University's Dignity at Work and Study Policy documents how we will ensure all members of our University community, staff, students and the wider community, are treated with respect.

Equality impact assessment information - An EIA is mandatory for all strategies, plans, functions, policies, procedures and services under the Equality Act (2010).

SEED guidance

• Support for those with caring responsibilities - Includes guidance for line managers to support staff before, during and after parental leave, and detail of the SEED conference caregiving fund.
• SEED inclusive meeting guidance - To be read in conjunction with the University values as the collegiate behaviour of all colleagues is integral to a positive working environment. 
• SEED Responding to discrimination, harassment and bullying document - To sit alongside the policies and procedures laid out by the University. Our aim is to produce an accessible overview of the types of behaviours which are viewed as wholly unacceptable, and guidance for how individuals might respond when they have experienced or witnessed unacceptable behaviour.
• Guidance for Senior Colleagues on Encouraging Academic Staff Promotions - This guidance aims to outline how senior colleagues in SEED can encourage academic SEED staff who might meet the required University criteria to apply for promotion.

As part of our ongoing EDI and Athena Swan work, we have explored colleagues’ views on a range of areas in the school. The findings of the reports below have informed What We Are Working On (above).

2021/22 Pulse Survey Report

The survey highlighted the need for the school to improve equality, diversity and inclusion in the following areas:

• Continuing to ensure that staff know how to report issues of bullying, discrimination and harassment
• Further development and dissemination of the SEED Core Hours policy
• Further EDI training

View the report.

2023/24 Pulse Survey Report

The survey highlighted the need for the school to improve equality, diversity and inclusion in the following areas:

• Embedding and supporting EDI-related action
• Continuing to ensure that staff know how to report issues of bullying, discrimination and harassment. Including further development through:
  • school level active bystander training and a commitment from senior staff to take part in this
  • sessions at the School Board on the new Employee Relations Team
• Developing a SEED Disability Action Plan (led by Rachel Challinor and Heather Cockayne)
• Conversations with staff about their experiences of systems supporting progression and promotion
• Transparency about workload
• Supporting race equality in the school, and developing supportive spaces (led by Marcellus Mbah)

View the report.

2023/24 Promotions and Progression Report

The survey highlighted the need for the school to improve support for academic promotions and progression in the following areas:

• Providing routes for colleagues to access example successful CVs and statements
• Providing written feedback at all school stages of the application process
• Training for PDR reviewers
• Provision of transparent school level promotions data

View the report.

2024/25 Pulse Survey Report

The survey highlighted the need for the school to improve equality, diversity and inclusion in the following areas:

• Increasing awareness of disability and enhancing disability support. This includes further school level training sessions and communications on the sunflower lanyard scheme and having conversations on reasonable adjustments
• Gender and caring responsibilities: including the need to ensure line managers are aware of best practice to support those returning from parental leave
• Microaggressions and racial discrimination
• Ensuring we investigate EDI issues relating to nationality, age and social class as well as gender, disability and ethnicity
• Continuing to ensure that staff know how to report issues of bullying, discrimination and harassment. Including further development through:
  • training for line managers on how to support staff when reporting or raising issues
  • confidential listening meetings for staff with the SEED EDI Director and Humanities EDI Partner

View the report.

Intersectional Experiences Report

The survey highlighted the need for the school to improve support in the following areas:

• Guidance on meeting conduct and further tackling of microaggressions in the school
• EDI analysis of workload distribution in the school
• Targeted promotions workshops offering support for colleagues, and support from colleagues within departments
• Checking that all colleagues are included on staff mailing lists when the join the school
• Feedback on unsuccessful applications to school level leadership roles

View the report.

Funding is available to support SEED staff and PGRs to run projects with the aim of enhancing equality, diversity and inclusion within SEED.

Possible projects are incredibly varied, with funds covering speakers and catering for events, materials or transport for example. They should be focused on enhancing EDI within SEED for members of our community, whether that be everyone, or our academic, technical, research or PS colleagues, our taught or our research students.

Projects might focus on a particular area of inequity for example have anti-racism as their focus, or tackling ableism, or they might be more intersectional in nature.

Apply online: SEED Equality, Diversity and Inclusion - Project Funding Application

This is an open call, and applications can be up to £1000 per project (we expect though that some projects may only need a smaller amount depending on requirements).

Applications will be reviewed by SEED's Director for EDI and colleagues from the SEED EDI team. Following completion of the project, you'll be asked to report back on how the project went, and the impact achieved. 

To discuss any ideas, please email edi.seed@manchester.ac.uk