Diversity is critical for world leading teaching and research. Working alongside people with different experiences and perspectives encourages innovation and creativity, prompting us to develop new ideas and consider decisions from multiple points of view.
We are committed to embedding equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) within the culture of the Department of Chemistry. Our vision is to maintain a fair and inclusive environment for all staff and students, so that everyone the support and opportunities they need to achieve their full potential.
What we are doing
The Department EDI Committee oversees all activities and feeds into the Faculty EDI Committee. We continually monitor our progress within the department through yearly surveys and respond with decisive action plans as and when necessary.
We are proud of the achievements we’ve made in just over 10 years since reopening in 2012. Notably, our gender parity among academic, research and teaching staff, and the proportion of female students on undergraduate courses have been above the national benchmarks since 2015, and this is something we continually monitor.
Our Committee works to improve the following areas:
- Proactive and inclusive recruitment - We take steps to make sure our job adverts are gender neutral in language and actively seek diverse candidates for these positions.
- Promoting career progression at all levels - We have established support and mentoring structures for postgraduates, postdoctoral and early career researchers. In addition, our committee has strong representation from colleagues at all stages of their career to enable inclusive decision making.
- Nurturing collegial communities - We encourage and promote the creation of networks to foster cohesive communities, including the postdoc community, People Of Colour networks, and active involvement in the King’s parents and carers network.
- Inclusive working environment - We promote a healthy work-life balance in our department with flexible working options, core hours of 1000 – 1600 for meetings and seminars, protected lunch breaks, and meeting-free Fridays.