Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
Our commitment: The FEMM Hub actively promotes a culture where the diversity of the staff involved in the Hub is positively valued and celebrated. We believe that diversity in all its forms delivers a greater impact to our research and enhances the experience of our staff, students and partners.
Our committee: The FEMM Hub Equality, Diversity and Inclusion committee was set up to maintain a fully inclusive culture that is proactive in initiating change and driving forwards best practice in equality and diversity matters. The committee is made up from a representative from each of our partners as well as the FEMM Hub Manager.
The FEMM Hub team have regular EDI courses at their quarterly meetings which have included training on White Priviledge led by Dr Vi Parker at Newcastle Unversity, Allyship & Solidarity at The University of Strathclyde and Mental Health Training at Newcastle University led by Luminate,
Our EDI policy: Available to download - FEMM Hub EDI policy (PDF, 193KB)
EDI Policies at our Partner Universities
FEMM Hub EDI Training
Our FEMM Hub members have enjoyed attending equality, diversity and inclusion training during our quarterly meetings. Our next session is taking place in December on "Mental Health Awareness".
Mental Health Training
Newcastle University
February 2024
The training covered many aspects of mental health covering .both staff, students and personal wellbeing. The course was led by Ryan from Luminate. The group discussed situations and possible solutions and also the many areas of expertise that could be approached for further help and information.
White Priviledge Training at Newcastle University
December 2022
This training introduced us to the concepts of “privilege”, “whiteness” and the intersectionality of these two constructs. The programme also discussed specifically what being white and privilege means and how it impacts on our environment and our responsibilities to challenge this to ensure under-represented members of our community can benefit from the powerful white privilege position some of us hold.
Allyship & Solidarity Training at Strathclyde University
June 2023
This session covered the basics of allyship, why it matters, and practical ways for becoming an effective ally to marginalised groups, with a particular focus on sexism and racism. Through interactive activities and group work, we built a solid foundation from which to develop our allyship.
Useful Resources and Opportunities
Women in Engineering: The Women’s Engineering Society offers free career advice for those interested in working in engineering or returning following a career break. Email hello@wes.org.uk for more information.
Empowerment Passport: The empowerment passport is an online questionnaire tool that allows individuals to communicate their adjustment needs in education or employment settings and covers transition from one place to another. A companion document for life, it is owned, created and shared by the person with a health condition or disability promoting personalisation and best practice.
The Empowerment Passport is an essential tool that supports employers and education providers avoid discrimination whilst enabling the individual to achieve their full potential. To find out more, visit the Empowerment Passport website.
Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellowships: Each year, these opportunities are offered to outstanding early-career researchers to support them to become future research leaders in engineering. The Academy welcomes applications from early-career researchers worldwide who have been awarded their PhD in the last four years.
The scheme provides funding for five years. Each application is capped at a maximum contribution from the Academy of £500,000 over the five-year period, at 80% of full economic costs. In addition, Research Fellowships must be held at a UK higher education institution or university.
More information is available on the RAEng Research Fellowships page.
Daphne Jackson Fellowships offer STEM professionals the opportunity to return to a research career after a break of two or more years for a family, health or caring reason. It is the opportunity to balance a personalised retraining programme with a challenging research project, held in a supportive UK University or research establishment.
Fellowships are flexible and part-time, usually completed over two years at 0.5 FTE, and consist of a challenging research project and at least 100 hours’ retraining per year. For more details, visit the Daphne Jackson current opportunities page.
Better Allies: Everyday actions to create inclusive and engaging workplaces. Visit the Better Allies website for more information.
Royal Academy of Engineering Industrial Fellowships: The Industrial Fellowships provide an invaluable opportunity for early to mid-career academics to undertake a collaborative research project in an industrial environment. This scheme aims to strengthen the strategic relationship between the university and the industry host by providing an opportunity to establish or enhance collaborative research between the two parties.
In addition to a six-month fellowship route, applicants will now have the option to hold the Industrial Fellowship for up to two years’ full time. Applicants are encouraged to consider collaborations with companies of any size, including SMEs and medium-sized businesses.
More information is available on the RAEng Industrial Fellowships page.
EPSRC Fellowship Framework is a single scheme that supports three career stages – postdoctoral, early career and established career. Applicants can apply for up to five years of support for Early Career and Established Career awards, or up to three years for Postdoctoral stage award.
Applicants can choose to spend anywhere between 50 and 100% FTE on their fellowship. Applicants are expected to hold a doctoral degree by the start date of the fellowship or have equivalent research experience.
There are no eligibility rules based on years of post-doctoral experience or whether the applicant holds a permanent academic position. More information is available on the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council website.
Dorothy Hodgkin Fellowship: This scheme offers a recognised first step into an independent research career for outstanding scientists and engineers at an early stage of their research career who require a flexible working pattern due to personal circumstances, such as parenting or caring responsibilities or health issues.
For more information, visit the Dorothy Hodgkin Fellowship page on the Royal Society website.
EDI Cards: The Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) cards were developed by Peter Craigon, Debra Fearnshaw, Oliver Fisher and Emma Hadfield-Hudson at the University of Nottingham. The development of the EDI cards is an ongoing research project lead by Peter Craigon. For details on the original development of the EDI cards you can view a recording of a workshop that explained the EDI cards in June 2022.
For more information, please visit: https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/edi/university-initiatives/edi-cards.aspx
Women, the Workplace and Gendered Ageism Women are living and working longer. A fact that (provided the individual wants to stay in work) should be cause for celebration. However, a rise in ageist attitudes seems to coincide with the rising age of our population, with the UK found to be the most ageist country across a study of 20 countries. [1]
Gerontologist, Jeanette Leardi observes related attitudes as stemming from an almost wholly negative perception of ageing, especially in women: “Ageing reflects a cumulative process [but] society see it as nothing but deterioration and decline.”
More information can be found here
Menopause in the workplace: Guidance for employers: Menopause is when a woman’s periods stop due to lower hormone levels. It usually happens between the ages of 45 and 55, but can also be earlier or later. It can happen for a number of reasons, including:
naturally
genetics
surgery
cancer treatments
Sometimes the reason is unknown.
Perimenopause is when a woman has symptoms of menopause, but periods have not stopped.
The menopause can cause a range of both physical and psychological symptoms. You can find more information on the range of symptoms here.
More information can be found here