The University of Liverpool’s Institute of Life Course and Medical Sciences (ILCAMS) has been conferred an Athena Swan Gold Award.
A Gold award recognises significant and sustained progression and achievement in promoting gender equality, a well-established record of activity coupled with data demonstrating continued impact and sustained efforts to champion and promote good practice to the wider community.
The ILCaMS Athena Swan team was praised for the range of methods and novel approaches used, particularly the consideration of Intersectionality. Using this framework, which examines how various social categories and sexual orientation can intersect and create unique experiences of discrimination, ensured that all staff and student communities informed the self-assessment. Additionally, the inclusion of the lived-experiences of staff and students was praised for enabling voices to be heard from the community.
The Athena Swan panel also commended the sector-leading gender equality practices introduced in ILCaMS, including:
- The development of a microaggressions and bystander awareness training programme
- The School of Medicine EDI curriculum toolkit
- The researcher toolkit, all of which contain components intended to support and enhance gender equality.
Professor Pete Clegg, ILCAMS Executive Dean said: “I am delighted that our efforts relating to equality, as well as our ambitious plans to develop our EDI agenda, have been recognised by this Athena Swan Gold award.”
“The application for this award has been a huge team effort by many of our academic and professional services staff. Special mention has to go to Professor Helen Wallace who led on putting the application together and to Professor Taz Goddard-Fuller as our EDI lead.”
“I am especially proud of this award as we are an Institute with many clinical academics among our workforce, and there are many specific EDI challenges relating to clinical careers, and this is one of several areas in which we have particularly focused our action plans.”
“I am delighted for the staff in the Institute who have all contributed to the positive culture which we have developed in ILCaMS, and I am excited that this award will incentivise us to make further improvements to our workplace.”
Professor Helen Wallace, Athena Swan Project lead said: “We are delighted that the Institute’s strong commitment to gender equality has been recognised with a Gold Award. I am particularly proud of the positive culture change the Institute has demonstrated since its formation in 2020, and the inclusive practices that we have initiated and have now been adopted elsewhere. The senior leadership team are committed to continuing to enhance gender equality across the Institute and beyond.”
The ILCAMS Athena Swan Gold is the latest in a series of Athena Swan successes across the Faculty.
Professor Judy Coulson, Faculty Equality, Diversion and Inclusion Lead said: “I am delighted that the outstanding gender equality work in ILCAMS has been recognised with an Athena Swan Gold Award.
“This success tops off an exciting year for the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, with new Athena Swan Silver or Gold awards going to all 4 of our Institutes as well as one of the first Bronze Awards for Professional Technical Operatives to the Faculty Management Office and Directorates.”