west thames college - embedding race equality principles
DESCRIPTION
An example of combining race equality principles and communications methods to enhance college recruitment literature for professional, support and teaching staff.TRANSCRIPT
Organisation: West Thames CollegeType of FE provider: CollegeFocus on: Equality and Diversity (Race)
Embedding Race Equality Principles into Recruitment Literature
Cas
e st
udy
Information andAdvice Service Tel: 0207 936 5798Email: [email protected]
Summary of activity An example of combining race equality principlesand communications methods to enhance collegerecruitment literature for professional, supportand teaching staff.
Background and strategic drive for activityWest Thames College is a medium-sized furthereducation college situated in the London Boroughof Hounslow. The college’s 6,000-strong studentpopulation is drawn from a long-establishedmulticultural community, with around 60 per centbelonging to a black or minority ethnic group.English is a second language to more than half ofits students. The college has sites across the area,including its main campus in Isleworth and its SkillsCentre based in Feltham.
Against this demographic background, the collegewas keen to increase the number of job applicationsfrom black and minority ethnic groups to betterreflect its community and attract high-calibrecandidates from diverse backgrounds. However,the college was aware that its recruitmentliterature needed to be on a par with the qualityof information in the college prospectus. Ittherefore wanted to produce a job applicationpack that reflected the diversity of the college andpromoted its ongoing work and commitment torace equality.
Set-up and implementationThe college created a job application pack inconjunction with the college’s Community AdvisoryGroup (see ‘Working with the Community AdvisoryGroup’ case study) and marketing department. All agreed that the pack should be a positivepublication, listing the college’s activities andachievements on race equality, showing it as aneffective and confident organisation throughstatements such as the following:
“We believe that employing a more representativenumber of black teachers and managers at thecollege will have a positive impact – not only on thesuccess and achievements of our black students,but on all our students – preparing them for life in a multicultural Britain and the wider world.”
Obstacles facedThere were no major obstacles experienced inrelation to the race equality aspect of the pack, butas it needed a large print run in order to reduceproduction costs, there was a need to ‘future proof’the content to ensure its longevity.
Impact and achievementsBuilding on the college’s work on staff developmentwith other local colleges, the new job applicationpack included copies of the Learning and SkillsCouncil funded ‘Think FE’ and ‘Teach FE’ recruitmentbooklets (see the ‘Action Planning for Race Equality’case study).
The college’s personnel department also has a more streamlined process for sending outapplication packs.
Although it is still too early to see if there has beena significant increase in applications from black and minority ethnic groups, it is clear that oneachievement of this work is the clear and positivemessages the college sends both internally to staffand students and externally to the local community.
Links to legal requirements and other equality areasThe activities of the college can be modified andused to good effect in other equality areas, whichwill help to meet the forthcoming provisions ofthe Equality Bill.
Next stepsThe pack is now undergoing its third revision toreflect a change in senior management. This hasprovided an opportunity to update text and images.
Lifelong Learning UK5th FloorSt Andrew’s House18-20 St Andrew StreetLondon EC4A 3AY
RW09/09/200910.034
Information and Advice Service
020 7936 5798Email: [email protected]
This information is available in alternative formats from Lifelong Learning UK
Contact
www.lluk.org
Provider contactBilly ElliottVice Principal – Student and Services West Thames College London Road Isleworth MiddlesexTW7 [email protected]
“An excellent example of how raceequality principles can help promoteinnovative recruitment activity.” The Workforce Race Advisory Group
Find out more about the work of The WorkforceRace Advisory Group: www.lluk.org/3151.htm.