Case study Organisation: Grimsby Institute of Further and Higher Education Type of FE provider: College Focus on: Equality and Diversity (Race)
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Reflective and Comprehensive Training Interventions Summary of activity This case study is an example of recognising the business need for effective staff training, using the combined knowledge and skill sets within the workforce to develop tailored training for staff and learners.
Background and strategic drive for activity Grimsby Institute’s mission is to be a world-class, customer-focused and dynamic provider of education and skills. Recently, the Institute has had a higher profile in the media for equality and diversity matters and it takes its position as an inclusive organisation very seriously. The North East Lincolnshire area has a very low black and minority ethnic (BME) profile (1.4 per cent of the population in the last census of 2001). In recent years, it has experienced an increase in the numbers of Chinese, Bangladeshi and Indian immigrants, as well as asylum seekers and migrants. In 2006, a report1 found that the region had a high proportion of white British nationals – 97.5 per cent compared to 87 per cent in England as a whole. North East Lincolnshire Sustainability Report, 2006 http://consult.nelincs.gov.uk/portal/localdevelopmentplans/cs/sareport? pointId=1220953280144
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The Institute has a staff population of almost 1,400, of which five per cent are from an ethnic minority. Its ultimate aim is to provide an inclusive environment which encourages people to achieve, regardless of their background. A failure to recruit and retain the best people for the job will result in a struggle to implement strategies, achieve targets and meet the needs of learners and staff.
Set-up and implementation The Institute already has a well-developed training resource in its training centre, ‘The Learning Curve’, and has an ongoing cycle of staff development and training.
To further bolster this resource, the Institute drew on the combined knowledge of its senior management team, plus representatives from diversity, staff development and human resources. Together, they devised a staff development plan to strengthen the organisation’s capability to provide the best possible learning and working environment.
engage with people from a wide variety of backgrounds, cultures and faiths, both during their time at the Institute and once they leave to go into the workplace.
A strategy was implemented to: • provide learning opportunities for staff, enabling them to develop and achieve personal and career goals • ensure that training provision was designed to meet identified learning needs and be cost-effective.
Links with other equality areas and legal requirements
The Institute recognised that investing in these important areas of staff development would reap valuable benefits in terms of staff retention and recruitment and strengthen its position as an inclusive employer.
Obstacles faced Coordinating staff timetables and teaching obligations, as well as providing necessary cover for lessons, were logistical challenges to ensuring staff could attend the training sessions. Despite this difficulty, the Institute has seen the benefits of training far outweigh the negatives.
Impact and achievements Feedback from staff showed that the training increased their confidence in encouraging learners to participate in diversity events. Staff also reported that training helped them deal with issues of discrimination. To support its staff development plan, the Institute has: • held ‘Diversity Weeks’ for staff and learners • implemented equality and diversity practices at a strategic level • developed staff and learner training resources to target equality and diversity strands • invited external speakers to talk about equality and diversity and encouraged students to work with them • hosted public debates • displayed relevant examples of student work and activities • developed management training • held drama theatre workshops based on equality and diversity strands • promoted the initiative ‘Girls into Engineering’ to encourage more female students to explore a career in all fields of engineering. Students also received equality training as part of their curriculum delivery. The objective of this training was to equip students with the knowledge and sensitivity to
As a mark of its commitment to equality and diversity, the Institute was proud to achieve the ‘Investors in Diversity’ standard in January 2009.
In order to provide a fully-rounded training programme, the Institute has adopted a holistic approach to delivering equality and diversity training, which encompasses a variety of different approaches, to engage both students and staff so they fully understand the issues. This will help in preparing for the forthcoming changes to equalities legislation through the Equality Bill. A good example of the organisation forging links with other equality areas is its role in managing the development of the North East Lincolnshire lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender forum, to deliver training and raise awareness about sexual orientation across the county.
Next steps A lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender toolkit will be developed and made available on the Institute’s virtual learning environment as a resource for staff and students.
“Recognition by senior management of the need to address equality and diversity for business reasons. Here, investing in training and staff development was seen as key to developing the Institute’s human capital. Innovative training was implemented for all staff and learners on equality and diversity, and this work contributed to the Institute’s recognition on a national level.” The Workforce Race Advisory Group
Provider contact Alex Baghurst – Diversity Development Manager Jayne Bacon – Equality and Diversity Adviser Grimsby Institute of Further and Higher Education Nuns Corner Grimsby North East Lincolnshire DN34 5BQ Find out more about the work of The Workforce Race Advisory Group: www.lluk.org/3151.htm. RW09/09/200910.027
Contact Lifelong Learning UK 5th Floor St Andrew’s House 18-20 St Andrew Street London EC4A 3AY Ref: E&D/FE/07 2009/07
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