1 Athena SWAN Bronze university award application Name of university: University of the Highlands and Islands Date of application: November 2016 Contact for application: Dr Mary Doherty Email: [email protected]Telephone: 01463 279 545 An Athena SWAN Bronze university award recognises that the university overall has a solid foundation (the policies, practices, systems and arrangements) for eliminating gender bias and developing an inclusive culture that values all staff. At Bronze university level the focus is on: x The action already taken and planned which demonstrates the university’s commitment at a senior level to the six Athena SWAN principles x The journey to which the university has committed itself in order to achieve a significant improvement in women’s representation and career progression in STEMM, with: o An identified starting point o The resources needed o People to lead and support o The means to monitor its progress (e.g. the action plan) Sections to be included At the end of each section state the number of words used. Click here for additional guidance on completing the template. 1. Letter of endorsement from viceͲchancellor: maximum 500 words An accompanying letter of endorsement from the viceͲchancellor (or equivalent) should explain how the university’s SWAN action plan and activities in SET contribute to the overall university strategy and academic mission. The letter is an opportunity for the viceͲchancellor to confirm their support for the application and to endorse and commend any women and STEMM initiatives that have made a significant contribution to the achievement of the university mission.
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Athena SWAN Bronze university award application
Name of university: University of the Highlands and Islands
An Athena SWAN Bronze university award recognises that the university overall has a solidfoundation (the policies, practices, systems and arrangements) for eliminating gender bias anddeveloping an inclusive culture that values all staff.At Bronze university level the focus is on:
The action already taken and planned which demonstrates the university’s commitment ata senior level to the six Athena SWAN principlesThe journey to which the university has committed itself in order to achieve a significantimprovement in women’s representation and career progression in STEMM, with:
o An identified starting pointo The resources neededo People to lead and supporto The means to monitor its progress (e.g. the action plan)
Sections to be includedAt the end of each section state the number of words used. Click here for additional guidance oncompleting the template.
1. Letter of endorsement from vice chancellor: maximum 500 wordsAn accompanying letter of endorsement from the vice chancellor (or equivalent) should explainhow the university’s SWAN action plan and activities in SET contribute to the overall universitystrategy and academic mission.The letter is an opportunity for the vice chancellor to confirm their support for the application andto endorse and commend any women and STEMM initiatives that have made a significantcontribution to the achievement of the university mission.
I am pleased to wholeheartedly endorse the application for institutional bronze accreditation by theUniversity of the Highlands and Islands. The University itself was formed to ensure access to furtherand higher education in a region long seen to be peripheral in the UK. Effective career progressionavailable to women in particular, has been a challenge in communities dominated by highly“traditional” employment sectors and attitudes. The university has, therefore, a regional, as well asinstitutional, responsibility towards ensuring and developing effective gender equality and equalityof opportunity.
Our largest research cluster, Marine and Environmental Science and Engineering, is led by SheilaHeymans, supported by two co conveners, Beth Mouat and Mark Taggart. This cluster, togetherwith the Health and Wellbeing Cluster led by Ian Megson, consists of the STEMM researchenvironments central to our Athena Swan actions. Both clusters implement a range of internalprocesses to support colleagues in their academic development. This includes trainingopportunities, seminars, and discipline based mentoring, as well as merit based identification ofstaff for the award of senior academic titles. These complement the University’s corporate schemesand processes.
The institutional SAT team, led by Mary Doherty and Ian Bryden, has involved a diverse communityof academics, HR professionals and other representative staff from across the STEMM communityand those departments which serve them. They have observed that gender equality is not optimalacross the institution and that there are legacy issues from past practices, which are now in theprocess of being removed, especially in terms of career progression and work load policies. Ensuringappropriate opportunity for staff to develop careers is a priority for the university, if the gains ofrecent years are to be maintained.
Senior management recognises the ethical and practical case for full implementation of the AthenaSwan Charter and will work across the university to ensure that development is positive andembedded in the philosophy of the institution. This will involve direct support of activity itemised inthe “Action Plan”, which represents an ambitious agenda for change. Although radical, the planacknowledges the existing environment. Action point 6, for example involves ensuring widespreadavailability of guidance and policy material designed to promote the aims and intention of genderequality, including staff promotion.
In my previous position as Deputy Vice Chancellor at the University of South Wales, I chaired theAthena Swan working group, which steered the University to its successful application forinstitutional bronze accreditation. I fully believe in the principles of Athena Swan accreditation forthree profound reasons: the arbitrary exclusion and hindrance of career development on the basis
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of gender and other protected characteristics is ethically and morally unacceptable; it is not in theinterests of society, or a University, to hinder the development of talent on the arbitrary basis ofgender, or any other protected characteristic and finally, the creation of a demonstrably levelplaying field for the development of ambitious people is a positive step for staff morale andinterpersonal professional engagement.
Yours sincerely
Professor Clive MulhollandPrincipal and Vice Chancellor
495 Words
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Note: On the day before submission of this document, Professor Ian Bryden, Vice Principal ofResearch at the University of the Highlands and Islands who has been a major proponent of AthenaSwan and its guiding principles sadly and unexpectedly passed away. We thank the ECU for allowingus extra time to amend the document and would like to assure the panel that the work Ian startedin addressing many of the issues outlined in this submission will be carried forward. We would liketo acknowledge Ian’s work on equality in STEM not only at the University of the Highlands andIslands but in his previous institutions, where he championed women in engineering.
University of the Highlands and Islands Athena Swan Self Assessment Team
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2. The self assessment process: maximum 1000 wordsDescribe the self assessment process. This should include:
a) A description of the self assessment team: members’ roles (both within the university andas part of the team) and their experiences of work life balance.
The SAT (Table 1) is drawn from academic, teaching, human resource and support staff and thesenior management team across the Academic Partnership and Executive Office. Consideration wasgiven to both the gender balance and range of grades and experience of the SAT. The SAT is chairedby Dr Mary Doherty, Senior Lecturer in the Division of Health Research and Head of PGRDevelopment.
Table 1: SAT Biographies
SAT Member Position Gender SAT Role FT/PT Experience relevant toSAT process
MaryDoherty
Senior Lecturerand Head of PGRDevelopment
F Chair FT Two pre schoolchildren; recentexperience ofpromotion; dualresearch andmanagement position.
Ian Bryden Vice PrincipalResearch
M Action planworking group
FT Previous experience ofAthena Swan at otherinstitution.
RoxaneAndersen
Research Fellow F UHI initiativesworking group
FT Early career researcherwith recent experienceof promotion.
Ros Bryce Research Fellow F Policy andpractice workinggroup
FT Early career researcherwith one child.
ElizabethCook
Senior Lecturer F UHI initiativesworking group
PT Runs an AURORAinitiative; works parttime (60% FTE) and hastwo sons, both atprimary school.
HelenDuncan
Equality OutcomesManager
F Policy andpractice workinggroup
FT Seconded to the parttime roles of Equalityand Diversity Adviser in2012 and UHI EqualityOutcomes Adviser in2014.
Su Engstrand Lecturer, SubjectNetwork Leader,Sustainable,Environment andRural ResourceManagement
F UHI initiativesworking group
FT Experience ofmaternity leave(previous institution)and promotion at UHI;completed theLeadershipFoundation’s AuroraProgramme in 2014 15.Institutional
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representative forCygnets.
Beth Mouat Joint Head ofMarine Scienceand Technology
F Action planworking group
PT Job shares with a fellowresearcher andmother,both working part timewhile bringing upyoung families.
FT Two children atuniversity, crossacademic partnershipposition.
Keith Smyth Professor ofPedagogy
M Data collectionworking group
FT Previous experience ofAthena Swan at otherinstitution; youngfamily.
Eric Verspoor Professor andDirector, Riversand Lochs Institute
M UHI initiativesworking group
FT Senior academic inSTEMM subject area,crossing teaching andresearch
Chris Sellers
MichelleHausrath
Joe Wright
HR PractitionersGroup
M
F
M
Data collectionworking group
FT
PT
FT
All three occupy therole of Head of HR intheir respectivepartner organisations;they have a broadspectrum of HR andLearning andDevelopmentexperience in a varietyof organisations andindustry sectors. Allthree have youngfamilies and work fulltime and part time.
b) An account of the self assessment process: details of the self assessment team meetings,including any consultation with staff or individuals outside of the university, and how thesehave fed into the submission.
Membership of the Athena Swan Charter was disseminated to all staff through the AcademicPartnership e newsletter and through relevant committees. All employees were invited to expressan interest in joining the process for our Institutional Bronze application. The self assessment team(SAT) was formed from this initial request and met formally for the first time in May 2015. Meetingshave been held on a monthly basis, with additional ad hocmeetings of sub teams to discuss specificactivities and actions. All meetings included the ability to join by video conferencing, minimising the
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need for staff travel and maximising the ability of all SAT members to participate alongside theirexisting commitments. UHI are part of the Athena Swan Scotland network and SAT membersroutinely attended meetings of the network. SAT members were also encouraged to participate inAthena Swan Panel Meetings to gain an understanding of the processes and necessary levels ofattainment.
Figure 1. SAT working group roles and responsibilities The UHI SAT was split into four workinggroups that each led on specific areas of the process, data / information collection, and policy. Theworking groups fed into the main SAT on a monthly basis.
The SAT also worked on specific areas of the self assessment process in small working groups (Figure1). These maximised the strengths of the SAT and provided reflection and experience across thepartnership. The working groups reported to the main SAT regularly and provided a coherent voicefor the development of both the application and Action Plan. The SAT reported to both ResearchDegrees Committee and Research Committee. Upward reporting was then to Academic Council andUniversity Court, with the HR Practitioners Group kept informed of all discussions and developments(Figure 2). The University and Academic Partnership provided resource to the SAT through staffrelease (e.g. the Chair was seconded for 10% FTE per annum), travel budget and financial supportfor Partnership wide meetings and consultation. The approximate budget was £10,000 pa.
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Figure 2. SAT Reporting Mechanism. The SAT reported both to Research Degrees Committee andResearch Committee. Reports were then submitted to Academic Council and University Court asstanding items on the agenda.
Ongoing Engagement with staff on the development and progression of this application includedarticles in our university newsletter, a pan Partnership staff information day held in February 2016,and social media. Athena Swan, and our application, is also discussed at University wide staffmeetings with questions to the Chair of the SAT and Vice Principal Research encouraged. Theseactivities ensure that the topic has remained current and allowed staff to continue to contribute tothe work of the SAT.
External consultation: The UHI SAT and Senior Management have engaged with the EqualityChallenge Unit (ECU) team to discuss the unique nature of UHI in relation to the Athena Swanprogramme. In addition, the VP Research, the Chair of the SAT, and the Dean of Research haveattended the Scottish Athena Swan Network meetings. The university is also supported by threesponsor universities in Scotland, The universities of Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Strathclyde. Thisapplication has been reviewed by senior academic colleagues with experience of Athena Swan inthese universities.
c) Plans for the future of the self assessment team, such as how often the team will continueto meet, any reporting mechanisms, and how the team will engage with SET departments toencourage them to apply for awards.
The SAT will continue to meet on a quarterly basis to further the aims of the Action Plan and to actas a point of contact for SMT and UHI Partners working towards Departmental awards. We will
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continue to feed into the UHI committee structure and University Court, and will maintain our rolein disseminating Athena Swan related information to the wider community, particularly as we workwith the post 2015 Charter. Whilst the logistical and demographical challenges of managing oursubmission and ongoing commitment to Athena Swan are somewhat different to other institutions,the standard mode of working at the University has served us well. Indeed, the flexibility affordedby our video conferencing network, allows us to have an inclusive SAT, with full time and part timestaff based as far apart as Perth, Shetland and Oban. Attendance at all meetings is possible by videoconference and Cisco software permits linking from home PC or phone if circumstances dictate. Wewill continue to explore novel ways of integrating SAT business within our tertiary structure. We areengagingwith Cygents andwith the Scottish group as this goes forward. One obstacle that has arisenis greater involvement with Athena Swan panel assessments due to the travel and financialcommitments. We will continue to work with the ECU to permit greater engagement.
726 words
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3. Description of the university: maximum 1000 wordsa) Provide a summary of the university, including information on its teaching, and its research
focus, the number of students and staff (academic and support staff separately), associationwith university mission groups (e.g. 1994 group, Russell Group, Million+), the size of the SETdepartments (academic and support staff separately), and any other relevant contextualinformation.(i) List of SET departments(ii) Total number of university departments(iii) Percentage of SET departments as a proportion of all university departments
The University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) is the only university based in the Highlands andIslands of Scotland (Figure 3). Our partnership of 13 independent colleges and research institutionsis accountable for all formal education beyond school in our region and provides access to study atfurther and higher education level as well as research opportunities. The University is associatedwith the Million+ group. Some partners are large colleges in urban centres. Others are smallerinstitutions, including some whose primary focus is on research. Our partnership also provides anetwork of more than 70 learning centres throughout the region.
Figure 3. The University of the Highlands and Islands Academic Partnership the UHI Partnershipranges from Perth and Argyll in the South, to Lewis and Shetland in the North. As well as the mainAP campuses, there are over 70 learning centres throughout the region.
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Senior management
The Principal and senior staff (Figure 4) are responsible for the overall operations of the University,as well as relationships with our academic partners. Each academic partner has its own Principalwith responsibilities to their board of management. There is a commitment from the UHI AcademicPartnership to work together towards Athena Swan accreditation.
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Figure 4. The University of the Highlands and Islands and the Academic Partnership. The Universityof the Highlands and Islands is composed of thirteen Academic Partners (AP) and Research Institutes.Each AP has its own internal management system and governance structures. The APs report to the‘Triumvirate’, which is composed of the Principal and Vice Chancellor and the Associate Principalsfor Further Education and Specialist and Research Partners. The Associate Principals also assume thecorresponding Vice Principal Role in the University. The Triumvirate is the main conduit to UniversityCourt.
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STEMM HE activities are undertaken in NAFC Marine Centre (NAFC), Environmental ResearchInstitute (ERI), Scottish Association for Marine Science (SAMS), and the Division of Health Research(Figure 5). Employees at Academic Partners (AP) are not directly employed by the University but bythe AP and are governed by the APs HR policies. There is a UHI wide HR Practitioners Group (HRPG),which ensures the sharing of good practice. Executive Office UHI functions as the university'sadministrative organisation and provides the executive and professional services that co ordinateand support higher education teaching and research carried out by AP’s.
Figure 5. STEMMEducation and Research at UHI. STEMMactivity is delivered primarily by four mainunits. SAMS UHI delivers teaching and research related to marine science with ERI UHI focussed onenvironmental science and sustainability. Training, education and research in the field of maritimescience is provided by NAFC UHI. Health based teaching and research is delivered by the Division ofHealth Research, hosted by Executive Office.
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TeachingEvery course belongs to one of our two Faculties (Figure 6): Arts, Humanities and Business, orScience, Health and Engineering, which are further split into subject networks.
University of the Highlands and IslandsFaculties Arts, Humanities and Business Science, Health and EngineeringSubjectNetworks
Business,Managementand Leisure
CreativeandCulturalIndustries
Humanities,Educationand Gaelic
Energy andthe BuiltEnvironment
AppliedLifeStudies
Science,Technologyand theEnvironment
Figure 6. UHI Faculties and Subject Networks:Our faculties bridge all colleges and research centres,and our curricula are developed and managed within subject networks, which also cross the wholeof the network.
The number of students in the University has increased over the last three years from 7978 to 8593(Figure 7A, Table 2). The gender split across all students and all modes of attendance are 56 57%female compared to 43 44% male students. This is similar to data from HESA (2013 15 data show a55/45% female to male split). When mode of attendance is considered (Figure 7B), we can see thatthe gender split is again broadly similar in the FT student population at 53 55% female but that thePT student demographic is skewed more to female students (60 62% female) at the University.These data are also comparable to the HESA datasets.
Table 2. Student DataHeadcount Percentage Gender
parity(F%M%)Female Male Total Female Male
2013/2014
All Students FT 2495 2238 4733 53% 47% 5%All Students PT 2009 1236 3245 62% 38% 24%Total 4504 3474 7978 56% 44% 13%STEMM FT 406 1133 1539 26% 74% 47%STEMM PT 305 537 842 36% 64% 28%Total 711 1670 2381 30% 70% 40%
2014/2015
All Students FT 2825 2352 5177 55% 45% 9%All Students PT 1950 1213 3163 62% 38% 23%Total 4775 3565 8340 57% 43% 15%STEMM FT 473 1221 1694 28% 72% 44%STEMM PT 309 524 833 37% 63% 26%Total 782 1745 2527 31% 69% 38%
2015/2016
All Students FT 2891 2451 5342 54% 46% 8%All Students PT 1966 1285 3251 60% 40% 21%Total 4857 3736 8593 57% 43% 13%STEMM FT 496 1219 1715 29% 71% 42%STEMM PT 278 583 861 32% 68% 35%Total 774 1802 2576 30% 70% 40%
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A
B
Figure 7. Gender breakdown of student demographic for all subject areas. Complete student dataas defined by gender. Data includes all undergraduate and postgraduate taught students as well aspost graduate research students. Absolute numbers and percentage provided as text. Panel A showsall students with Panel B indicating the FT/PT split.
0%
50%
100%
All Students All Students All Students
Female Male
3474 3565 3736
4504 4775 4857
0
2500
5000
All Students FT All Students PT All Students FT All Students PT All Students FT All Students PT
2013/2014 2014/2015 2015/2016
Female Male
223847%
235245%
245146%
249553%
282555%
289154%
123638%
121338%
128540%
200962%
195062%
196660%
2013/14 2014/15 2015/16
16
A
B
Figure 8. Gender breakdown of student demographic for STEMM subject areas. STEMM studentdata as defined by gender. Data includes all undergraduate and postgraduate taught students aswell as post graduate research students. Absolute numbers and percentage provided as text. PanelA shows all students with Panel B indicating the FT/PT split.
0%
50%
100%
All STEMM Students All STEMM Students All STEMM Students
Female Male
167070%
174569%
180270%
71130%
78231%
77430%
0
1000
2000
STEMM FT STEMM PT STEMM FT STEMM PT STEMM FT STEMM PT
Female Male
113374%
122172%
121971%
40626%
47328%
49629%
53764%
52463%
58371%
30536%
30937%
27832%
2013/14 2014/15 2015/16
2013/14 2014/15 2015/16
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Our STEMM student data shows a 30/70% female/male split (Table 2, Figure 8). This is in contrastto statistics from HESA (~ 50%/50% across full time and part time students). Our data show a trendtowards the national statistics in terms of part time students, however, there is still a considerabledifference. The Science, Technology and the Environment area has a gender split of 41% female to59% male but there is a greater difference in engineering subjects (mostly male) and Applied LifeStudies (mostly female). We are targeting this through a range of initiatives: more extensiveresearch teaching linkages, promotion of specific courses through media (e.g. BBC Alba series onfemale gamekeepers) and a two year project– Attracting Diversity: equality in student recruitmentin Scottish HEIs in partnership with the ECU. Reflecting on the student data, the SAT felt that onearea for action was the lack of visible role models for students. This will be tackled using Action Point1. Our PGR student demographic in STEMM is more favourable to female students with a splitranging from 54 61% compared to 46% across the UK as a whole.
Action Point 1: Using the ‘Academic Women Now’ publication as a model, develop a range ofpromotional material to encourage engagement in non traditional career routes for use inrecruitment and ongoing career development.
ResearchResearch is delivered through APs and specialist research centres. There are four research clusters(Figure 9). The aim of the clusters is to enhance research teaching linkages from FE provisionthrough to Post Graduate research degree delivery.
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Figure
9.Re
search
Clustersat
UHI
Allacademicstaffa
reassig
nedto
oneof
thefour
research
clusters,w
hich
bringtogether
ECRan
dsenior
staffina
supp
ortivean
dcollabo
rativeenvironm
ent.Theclusters
coverMarine,
Environm
entalS
ciencean
dEngineering,
Socie
tyan
dLand
scap
e,He
alth
and
Wellbeing
andHu
man
ities
andArt.
Research
Clusters
Health
and
Wellbeing
Human
ities
andArt
Societyan
dLand
scap
e
Marine,
Environm
ental
Sciencean
dEn
gine
ering
Physical
Oceanograph
y
Techno
logy
Terrestrial
Science
Marine
Ecology
Socialand
Ecological
RuralH
ealth
and
Wellbeing
Sociology
Geograph
y
Econ
omics
Tourism
Diabetes
and
Cardiovascular
Science
Nursin
gGa
elic
Language
History
Nordic
Stud
ies
Theo
logy
Fine
Art
andMusic
Archaeology
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b) Provide data for the past three years (where possible with clearly labelled graphicalillustrations) on the following with commentary on trends and significant issues, in particularanything relating to gender equality.
The complex nature of our tertiary institution and historical grading of staff as FE, HE, and research,has added significant complexity to the data collection. Nonetheless, the SAT, supported by theHRPG, has worked to provide a coherent and realistic view of the staff profile. A priority movingforward will be to standardise reporting in accordance with Athena Swan. To maintain anonymity,we have not presented data by academic partner but have taken this into account during the SATreflection and areas of difference will be highlighted in the text.
Action Point 2: Standardisation of data collection in line with the principles of the Athena SwanCharter across Executive Office and Academic Partners. Publication of these data on theuniversity website and in external material.
(i) Female:male ratio of academic staff and research staff – researcher, lecturer, seniorlecturer, reader, professor (or equivalent) – across the whole university and in SETdepartments. Comment on the main areas of concern on gender balance and plansto address them. For example, is there evidence that women and men areappropriately represented at all levels of the workforce? Are there differences in SETdepartments?
Gender distribution across the university is 52% 53% female and 47% 48% male (Figure 10A, Table3). This is reflective of HESA data over the same period (54% female / 46% male). There is a greaterrepresentation of female staff in part time positions (ranging between 48 58% over the censusperiod) compared to full time (47 48% female, Figure 10B,C). This difference is more evident (Figure11, Table 4) when data is split into academic and research (32 35% of FT staff are female, 43 53% ofPT staff are female) and support (53% of FT staff are female, 76 82% of PT staff are female). Lookingat the data in a different way, we see that 33% of female staff work part time (38% of academic /research staff; 32% of support staff) compared to 15% of male staff (20% academic /research staff;13% support staff). These data are largely the result of legacy prior to the formation of theuniversity, and is being considered for further investigation by the SAT. There are some differencesacross the university in terms of gender representation. At ERI, 27 33% of academic staff over thecensus period are female, with 33 35% of staff at SAMS, 30% of health staff and 46 58% of staff atNAFC female. Support staff in all STEMM areas are between 56 62% female.
Action Point 3: Academic Partners and Executive Office to review employee related gender balancetrends annually and take action to address issues through the institution’s equalitymainstreamplan.
Academic and Research PT 16 18 34 47% 53% 6%Support PT 18 67 85 21% 79% 58%Total PT 34 85 119 29% 71% 43%Academic and Research FT 63 29 92 68% 32% 37%Support FT 125 140 265 47% 53% 6%Total FT 188 169 357 53% 47% 5%Academic and Research All 79 47 126 63% 37% 25%Support All 143 207 350 41% 59% 18%Total 222 254 476 47% 53% 7%
2014/2015
Academic and Research PT 15 13 28 54% 46% 7%Support PT 18 57 75 24% 76% 52%Total PT 33 70 103 32% 68% 36%Academic and Research FT 66 35 101 65% 35% 31%Support FT 122 137 259 47% 53% 6%Total FT 188 172 360 52% 48% 4%Academic and Research All 81 48 129 63% 37% 26%Support All 140 194 334 42% 58% 16%Total 221 242 463 48% 52% 5%
2015/2016
Academic and Research PT 16 12 28 57% 43% 14%Support PT 13 61 74 18% 82% 65%Total PT 29 73 102 28% 72% 43%Academic and Research FT 73 38 111 66% 34% 32%Support FT 113 130 243 47% 53% 7%Total FT 186 168 354 53% 47% 5%Academic and Research All 89 50 139 64% 36% 28%Support All 126 191 317 40% 60% 21%Total 215 241 456 47% 53% 6%
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A
B
0
50
100
150
200
250
300
350
Academic andResearch All
Support All Academic andResearch All
Support All Academic andResearch All
Support All
Female Male
7963%
8163%
8964%
4837%
14341%
14042%
12539%
20759% 194
58%19261%
4737%
0
50
100
150
200
250
Academic andResearch FT
Support FT Academic andResearch FT
Support FT Academic andResearch FT
Support FT
Female Male
6368%
6665%
7366%
3535%
12547%
12247%
11347%
14053%
13753%
13053%29, 32%
3834%
2013/14 2014/15 2015/16
2013/14 2014/15 2015/16
22
C
Figure 10. Gender breakdown of part time staff demographic for the institution. Staff data as definedby gender. Data includes all academic, research and support staff. Absolute numbers and percentageprovided as text. Panel A shows all staff with Panel B indicating the FT staff and Panel C the PT staffbreakdown.
STEMM staff (Table 4, Figure 11), are 35 38% female compared to the sector average of 41%. Only22% of academic STEMM staff are female compared to 46 48% of research staff. When staff,particularly STEMM staff, are considered by role, there is a clear differential in the female/malebreakdown (Tables 5, 6 ).
0
50
100
Academic andResearch PT
Support PT Academic andResearch PT
Support PT Academic andResearch PT
Support PT
Female Male
1647% 13
46%1243%
1554%
1821% 18
24%1318%
6779%
5776%
6182%18
53% 1657%
2013/14 2014/15 2015/16
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Table 4. STEMM staff by GenderSTEMM Percentage Gender
Academic All Research All Academic All Research All Academic All Research All
Female Male
3678%
3678%
3578%
1022%
3054%
3352%
3953%
2646%
3148%
3547%
1022%
1022%
0
25
50
75
Academic FT Research FT Academic FT Research FT Academic FT Research FT
Female Male
2880%
2779%
2578%
12, 24% 7, 22%
2659%
3155%
3656%
1841%
2545%
2844%
7, 20%
2013/14 2014/15 2015/16
2013/14 2014/15 2015/16
25
C
Figure 11. Gender breakdown of STEMM staff demographic for the institution. All STEMM staffdata as defined by gender. Data includes all academic and research staff. Absolute numbers andpercentage provided as text. Panel A shows all staff with Panel B indicating the FT staff and Panel Cthe PT staff breakdown.
0
5
10
15
Academic PT Research PT Academic PT Research PT Academic PT Research PT
Female Male
873%
975%
1077%
325%
433%
225%
330%
867%
675%
770%
327%
323%
2013/14 2014/15 2015/16
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Table5.Ac
adem
ican
dRe
search
StaffR
oleby
Gend
er–Who
leInstitu
tion
Graduate
Researcher
Grade4
Post
Doctoral
Grade5and6
Lecturer
Grade7
Senior
Lecturer
Grade8
Reader
Grade8
Professor
Grade9
Total
2013
/201
4
MaleFullTime
021
138
214
58FemaleFullTime
117
06
01
25To
talFulltim
e1
3813
142
1583
MalePartTime
12
01
35
12FemalePartTime
35
03
01
12To
talParttim
e4
70
43
624
TotalM
ale
123
139
519
70To
talFem
ale
422
09
02
37To
talstaff
545
1318
521
107
2014
/201
5
MaleFullTime
028
1114
412
69FemaleFullTime
123
16
01
32To
talFulltim
e6
5112
204
1310
6MalePartTime
12
01
35
12FemalePartTime
14
03
01
9To
talParttim
e2
60
43
621
TotalM
ale
130
1115
717
81To
talFem
ale
227
19
02
41To
talstaff
357
1224
719
122
2015
/201
6
MaleFullTime
127
69
615
64FemaleFullTime
124
16
01
33To
talFulltim
e2
517
156
1697
MalePartTime
04
12
35
15FemalePartTime
15
03
10
10To
talParttim
e1
91
54
525
TotalM
ale
131
711
920
79To
talFem
ale
229
19
11
43To
talstaff
360
820
1021
122
27
Table6.Ac
adem
ican
dRe
search
STEM
MRo
leby
Gend
erGraduate
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4
MaleFullTime
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talFulltim
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50FemaleFullTime
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MalePartTime
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6
MaleFullTime
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53FemaleFullTime
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28
Figure
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istributionof
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29
Figure
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30
Assessment of the career trajectory of female staff shows a peak at the roles of graduate researcher,postdoctoral researcher and senior lecturer across the University (Table 5, Figure 12). However, thefigures indicate significantly less females as lecturers compared to male staff, which is carriedthrough to both Reader and Professorial level. This has resulted from a number of female staff beingpromoted to Senior Lecturer over the census period, but also indicates only modest employment ofnew female academic staff through transition from postdoctoral to lecturer.
11% of Professorial staff were female, compared to a national average of almost 18%. These dataare also reflected in STEMM (Table 6, Figure 13). Although this shows that there is no differencebetween STEMM and non STEMM it is an area of concern and one that the University is activelyaddressing through open discussion with female staff at the mid career level along with mentoringfrom senior staff.
Further analysis of the data by AP indicates a positive gender balance for academic roles at NAFC.However, the lack of formal promotion policy and procedures, has had an impact on progression.As such we undertake to perform a revision of the policies across the institution to ensure parity ofopportunity for all staff. The SAT also felt that, as with the student body, there is a lack of visiblerole models for staff looking to progress. We will address this with action point 1.
Action Point 4: Perform a review of academic titles and descriptors in use across the University andseek to implement a standardisation of roles.
Action Point 5: Raise awareness of Academic Titles Review Board process across the partnershipand proactively encourage applications from female staff.
Action Point 6: Prepare and make widely available a suite of ‘best practice’ guidance and policydocuments to help promote the aims and intentions of gender equality across the University, whichincludes ‘promotion’. Thereafter undertake routine updating and publicising of the resources andadvice that is available.
31
(ii) Female:male academic staff turnover rates by grade – across the whole universityand in SET departments and any differences between them. What are the issues forthe university and how is it planned to address them? For example, are women andmen equally likely to leave the university (distinguish between those leaving at theend of a fixed term contract and any other leavers)? Are the reasons for leavingpicked up in exit interviews?
Academic leavers (Table 7) at the institution level are predominated by male staff (62% 80%,compared to 20% 38% female). When pro rated, turnover rate for male staff is between 5 and 16%pa compared to 2 17% for female staff. The values are comparable to the UK sector data (male 16%,female 18% in 2015 dataset). Similar data are observed for STEMM staff (Table 8) withapproximately 30% of leavers being female, but pro rated data showing 4 15% for male staff and 714% for female staff. There was a difference observed at different APs. All staff leaving SAMS andERI were male. This fell to a near equitable split in Health and 40% female leavers at NAFC. Withrelatively low numbers, it is difficult to interpret whether there is a trend in these data but thereappear to be no overall gender differences in turnover rates and gender equality has not been raisedas an issue in exit interviews.
(iii) Female:male ratio of academic and research staff on fixed term contracts vs. openended (permanent) contracts – across the whole university and in SET departments.Comment on the implications of the gender balance for the university and forwomen’s career development. For example, is there evidence that women areoverrepresented on fixed term contracts? Are there differences in SET departments?
Over the three year period, 61 70% of female staff were employed on open ended contracts comparedto 65 75% of male staff (Table 9). Our data are slightly better than the national average (61% femaleand 67% male). There is still a gender split with more male staff employed on these more stablecontracts. The total number of staff on open ended academic contracts (lecturer level and above) hasremained constant at 78%/79% for men and 21%/22% for women. Within the researcher roles
32
(graduate and post doctoral researchers) the percentage of contracts issued have also remainedconstant at 43% 45% for men and 55% 57% for women. This is reflective of the number of females inthese type of roles as discussed above.
Table 9. Contract Status – Whole InstitutionFemale Male TotalNo. %* %^ No. %* %^ No. %
*within a gender, the percentage of staff in a contract type^ within a mode and contract type, the percentage of staff who are female/male (compare horizontally)
The gender differential for fixed term contracts is modest. Fixed term contracts are utilised more in theresearcher roles as we are funded heavily by Europe, which are generally shorter term projects.However, there is a strong trend for staff to be retained beyond the initial funding period, althoughtheir initial contracts are often ‘fixed term’. Despite these factors, our data for female staff iscomparable with that for the sector as a whole (61% open ended contracts, 42% pro rated, in 2015dataset).
Table 10. Contract Status STEMM StaffFemale Male TotalNo. %* %^ No. %* %^ No. %
*within a gender, the percentage of staff in a contract type^ within a mode and contract type, the percentage of staff who are female/male (compare horizontally)
Data for STEMM staff closely mirrors that of the overall institution (Table 10), which is positive. Itshould be noted that in STEMM subject areas all female academic staff are employed on open endedcontracts, compared to around 95% of male staff. For research staff, the gender balance betweenopen and fixed term contracts is fairly equal. The SAT will continue to monitor gender balance and will
33
reflect on the different contract types as the University evolves. There was no difference observed atthe different APs.
(iv) Evidence from equal pay audits/reviews. Comment on the findings from the mostrecent equal pay audit and plans to address any disparities.
Analysis of the distribution of roles against the grading structure was incorporated in our 2015 progressreport on mainstreaming equality. This showed that for those roles subject to the job evaluationprocess there was little difference in the average salary level, with the pay gap ranging between 1.8%to +3% in favour of women. However, whilst equal pay is being maintained within the grade structure,the overall gender pay gap across grades was 9%. This figure rose to 14% with the addition of thoseemployees in management grade 1. When roles for which the remuneration committee retainsresponsibility, the overall gender pay gap increased to 31%. Clearly, further analysis is required toascertain whether we have an internal structure that is giving rise to these gender pay gaps, or if thesereflect the impact of wider societal issues, including occupational segregation and the nature of ourlocation in the UK.
Action Point 7: Review of Equal Pay Audit information is part of consideration linked to any awardsconsidered at/by the University’s Remuneration Committee.
(iv) Female:male ratio of staff in the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) 2008 – acrossthe whole university and in SET departments. Comment on any implications of this. Forexample, does the gender balance of staff included in the RAE 2008 broadly reflect thegender balance across the institution? Are there any differences in SET departments?
A major focus of the UHI mainstreaming equality and diversity process was ensuring an equitableapproach to staff selection for the 2014 REF. A baseline equality assessment was carried out, using dataavailable from the submission to the 2008 RAE. The final pool of staff submitted to the REF numbered81 consisting of 33 (41%) female staff and 48 (59%) male staff (Table 11, Figure 14), representing asignificant improvement in the proportion (23%) of female staff submitted for the 2008 exercise. InSTEMM departments, 15 female staff (34%) and 29 male staff (66%) were returned. Pro rated, thisrelates to 42% of female STEMM staff compared to 44% of male staff. ‘Individual Circumstances’ werea consideration in 70% (23) of the female submissions. Comparing the data from our final submissionwith the summary data from the national REF team, 47% of our submissions benefitted from theconsideration of Individual Circumstances compared with 29% of the total REF submissions. We willcontinue to ensure that attention is paid to Equality and Diversity aspects of the next REF exercise, notleast with respect to the consideration of individual staff circumstances, in order to ensure compliancewith both the letter and the spirit of the REF guidance.
Figure 14. Gender Breakdown REF 2014 Submission A total of 81 staff were submitted to REF 2014. Datahave been segregated to STEMM and non STEMM subject areas and plotted as percentage. Headcountdata is provided as text.
Action Point 8: Continue to ensure that clear attention is paid to Equality and Diversity aspects ofthe next REF exercise, and not least with respect to the consideration of individual staffcircumstances, in order to ensure compliance with both the letter and the spirit of the REF guidance.
1998 Words1000 word extension used in this section
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90
STEMM NON STEMM TOTAL
Female Male
2966%
1951%
4859%
1534%
1849%
3341%
35
4. Supporting and advancing women’s careers: 4500 words in total
Key career transition pointsThe University commitment to promote and support equality, inclusiveness and diversity is enshrinedwithin our Strategic and Operational Plans. Each Academic Partner is an autonomous body whoseemployees are not directly employed by the university and are governed by the AP’s own HR policies.This means that changes in employment conditions and practices are arrived at by collaboration ratherthan diktat. The university’s operating plan recognises the need for greater convergence of thepartnership HR practices, which will be delivered through the partnership wide HRPG. All AcademicPartners, however, have the same key stages that support women’s careers (Figure 15).
Figure 15. Career Development and Support at UHI and Academic Partners Career developmentpathways are different at each Academic Partner and Executive Office but follow the same generalprinciples. Opportunities start at recruitment and are continued through the compulsory induction.Mandatory performance reviews are undertaken each year and from these flow training plans. Trainingtakes a number of forms, including CPD and formal training to more routine ‘on the job’ training.Opportunities for promotion are also discussed annually.
a) Provide data for the past three years (where possible with clearly labelled graphicalillustrations) on the following with commentary on trends and significant issues, inparticular anything relating to gender equality.(i) Female:male ratio of academic staff job application and appointment success rates
– across thewhole university and in SET departments. Comment on any implicationsof this and plans to address any disparities. For example, are women and menequally successful at all stages of the job application process? Are there differencesin SET departments?
Recruitment is managed locally by Academic Partners. Data from across the university indicates thatacross all job roles there is near gender parity through application, shortlisting and appointment (Table12). In 2013 14, there was a bias in favour of male appointments, despite more female applicants being
36
shortlisted. However, this appears to have shifted in the last two years to a greater percentage offemale staff appointments despite. This shift has also been observed in STEMM subjects (Table 13).Although no new guidance has been delivered to staff involved in recruitment over the period of datacollection, this may reflect a greater awareness of gender issues through discussion of initiatives suchas Athena Swan.
Table 12. Recruitment Data for the UniversityWhole Institution Number Percentage Gender parity
When recruitment data is considered by grade (Table 14, Figure 16 A C), there is a general genderbalance particularly around the mid level grades. Female applicants dominate at lower grades and thistrend is consistent through shortlisting and appointment. At grades 5 7 there is near gender parityacross the recruitment process, with female applications and appointments peaking again at seniorpostdoctoral level. There is however, a marked drop in applications and appointment at grade 9 and‘spot’ appointments, which relate to professorial and senior management staff. The numbers here arerelatively small (7 appointments), however the trend is concerning and requires targeted action fromsenior management and HR departments. There was insufficient data at each grade point to determinewhether there were differences between APs, however, the overall recruitment data was consistentacross the University.
37
Table 14. Recruitment Data by GradeWhole organisation
Action Point 9: All HE staff across the University to complete online Equality and Diversity training.
Action Point 10: Review of recruitment policy for senior positions. Increase in recruitment offemales to Reader and Professorial level by 10% by 2019.
38
Figure 16. Recruitment Data. Recruitment data from across the university is shown. In panel A applicationsby grade are displayed with shortlisting data in panel B and appointments in Panel C.
39
(ii) Female:male ratio of academic staff promotion rates – across the university and inSET departments. Comment on any implications of this for the university and plansto address any disparities. For example, are men and women equally likely to be putforward for promotion? Are male and female applicants for promotion equallysuccessful at all levels? Are there differences in SET departments?
There are currently no university wide policies relating to the career progression of staff. This is mainlydue to the historical nature of many of the AP colleges in the FE sector. In 2013/14 more women werepromoted compared to their male colleagues, although in 2014/2015 there was a reduction in thenumber of women successful at promotion (Table 15 Figure 17). The success rates for female stafffrom 2014 onwards are substantially lower than for male staff (although absolute numbers are small).If only academic and research staff are considered (Table 16) the numbers are more comparable, withthe caveat that male staff seem more likely to be successful.
Table 15. Promotion – All Roles Within the University
Status
Number Percentage Genderparity (F%M%)Male Female Total Male Female
An analysis of promotion by grade indicates that most applications are around mid grades (4 8) andthat similar numbers of female and male staff are being promoted although success rates are greaterfor male staff.
Table 16. Promotion by Grade
WholeOrganisation
MaleApplied
MaleSuccess
Male successrate
FemaleApplied
Femalesuccess
Femalesuccess rate
Grade 2 to 3 0 0 1 0 0%Grade 3 to 4 1 1 100% 4 2 50%Grade 4 to 5 5 4 80% 4 4 100%Grade 5 to 6 2 2 100% 4 2 50%Grade 6 to 7 3 2 67% 2 0 0%Grade 7 to 8 5 5 100% 5 4 80%Grade 8 to 9 1 1 100% 0 0
40
A
B
Figure 17. Promotion Across the University. Promotion data is shown as defined by gender. In Panel Athe absolute numbers of those applying for promotion and those successful are plotted with percentageprovided as text. In Panel B, the success rate is provided by gender.
When assessing the gender balance of STEMM employees promoted, women have had equal or lowersuccess in achieving promotion than their male colleagues (Table 17, Figure 18). In 2013/2014 a higherproportion of women in EO and SAMS were promoted to Senior Lecturer grade. This has shaped thecurrent gender profile at lecturer level (Table 5). This is being addressed by the university throughAction Points 12 14, focussing on learning and development and what ECR need to achieve to progressto Lecturer level. At SAMS UHI, a formal, merit based promotion scheme is in place (Figure 19). ERIalso has very clear strategic objectives for all researchers which enable a clear progression from postdoc to research fellow to senior research fellow. Progression can be discussed openly at appraisals andmid term appraisals every year with line managers. The Vice Principal Research is currently reviewingbest practice and proposing a University wide framework for consideration by Academic Council andCourt.
Table 17. Promotion Academic and Research STEMM
Status
Number Percentage Genderparity (F%M%)Male Female Total Male Female
Figure 18. STEMM Promotion for Academic and Research Staff. Promotion data is shown as defined bygender for STEMM Academic and Research staff. In Panel A the absolute numbers of those applying forpromotion and those successful are plotted with percentage provided as text. In Panel B, the success rateis provided by gender.
Figure 19. Progression Routes Linked to Job Families at SAMS UHI. Progression routes for staff at SAMSUHI are well defined and allow different routes to senior grade levels depending on job family.
Analysis of the number of women promoted to Professor (grade 8 9, table 16) shows a significantly lowerpercentage than the national average for STEMM areas. This has been recognised by the University andprocedures for assessing and awarding senior academic titles have been changed recently to take intoaccount broader issues of equity, which relate to the various contributions made by UHI staff in a rangeof roles. Within the ERI, NAFC and EO there are no formalised promotions policies and procedures.Developing this across the University, and recognising levels of attainment, will be part of the action plangoing forward (Actions 4,5,6).
Action Point 11: Provide and promote unconscious bias training for all staff with recruitment andselection and line management responsibilities, and monitor appropriate take up across theUniversity.
44
b) Describe the policies and activities at the university that support women’s careerprogression in SET departments in particular at key transition points – describe anyadditional support given to women at the key career transition points across the university,and in SET departments, such as support for new lecturers or routes for promotion throughteaching and learning.
Induction at UHI and STEMM Academic PartnersAll Academic Partners and UHI Executive Office have a formal induction. At all inductions newemployees are given information about policies that support their employment and career signposting,for future reference. Common practice across the Academic Partners is that a review is carried out atagreed intervals in the first six months into employment, which aim to identity issues early on and helpthe new employee become integrated into the University, the department, and their role, as soon aspossible.
Annual Performance ReviewsAll employees have an annual performance review or appraisal meeting. Whilst the timing andoperation of these meetings differ across the partnership, they all consist of an assessment ofperformance against the previous year’s objectives, identification of support needed for the followingyear, the setting of new mutually agreed performance targets for the following year, and finally,discussions on career development progression.
Learning and Development at UHIUHI have made a commitment to supporting staff through the key career transitions and are membersof VITAE. The framework detailed below (Figure 20) is supplemented at the Academic Partners, withspecific schemes supporting the progression of women. A number of female staff are involved in theUniversity’s mentoring scheme. In addition all post doctoral staff at SAMS have undergone a selfassessment process, which highlights their strengths and aligns the research and teaching to adevelopment plan to support their progression to the next level. At ERI, staff are also set clearobjectives mapped to progression. It was felt by the SAT that good practice exists across the Universitybut that there needed to be parity of provision and greater support for transition at key stages. Thiswill be addressed by action points 12 14.
Action Point 12: The University commits to supporting the participation of two female staff perannum in the Aurora Leadership Programme (or equivalent provision through an alternativeprogramme, where appropriate, relative to the needs of the individual staff member).
Action Point 13: Improve training opportunities for academic staff relative to their career stage,through:(1) access to suitable training opportunities provided for PGR students through the UHI GraduateSchool and the Scotland wide Graduate Schools;(2) engagement with the University’s mentoring scheme;(3) allocation of funding to attend conferences and networking opportunities, through the stafftravel and conference fund scheme;(4) engagement with the activities of the University’s Research Clusters; and(5) encouragement to attend the biennial University Staff/PGR Student research conference (withfunding provided to help ensure attendance).
45
Action Point 14: Recognise and support career progression opportunities for all staff includingteaching, professional services, and support staff.
PhDStudent
Post Doc Lecturer SeniorLecturer
Reader Professor
Induction Induction Inductionparticipant
Inductioncontributor
Inductioncontributor
Inductioncontributor
Training Annual PDR Annual PDR/career dev
Annual PDR/career dev
Annual PDR/career dev
Annual PDR
StructuredManagementFramework
Leadership– Barefoottraining
Learning &TeachingAcademy
Learning &TeachingAcademy
Learning &TeachingAcademy
Learning &TeachingAcademy
UHIGraduateSchool
VITAEFramework
VITAEField Workdevelopment
VITAEField Workreinforcement
VITAEField Workreinforcement
VITAEFieldwork –contributor
Conferenceattendancefunds
ConferenceAttendance
Mentoringschemementee
Mentoringschemementee ormentor
Mentoringschemementee ormentor
Mentoringscheme –mentor
UHI annualconference
Mentoringschemementee
Grant writingsupport
Grant writingsupport
Grant writingsupport
Grantwritingsupport
Routineprogressmonitoring
Conferenceattendancefunds
Conferenceattendancefunds
Conferenceattendancefunds
Conferenceattendancefunds
ScottishGraduateSchools
Leadershiptraining
Leadershiptraining
Leadershiptraining
LeadershiptrainingDelivery
Supervisortraining
Supervisortraining
Supervisortraining
Supervisortraining
ATRBguidance
ATRB guidance ATRB guidance ATRBguidance
Sabbaticalsscheme
Sabbaticalsscheme
Sabbaticalsscheme
Sabbaticalsscheme
Figure 20. Summary of Main Aspects of Training and Development Opportunities: PhD Students –Professorial Staff Training is tailored to the need of the individual and stage of career. Training needs areassessed formally at induction and annually at the performance development review.
46
Career developmenta) Describe the policies and activities at the university that support women’s career
development in SET departments.
(i) Researcher career support and training – describe any additional supportprovided for researchers at the early stages of their careers, such as networksand training.
The University is committed to supporting and developing its staff to enable the achievement ofinstitutional objectives and realise the potential of staff throughout their employment. There arespecific policies that support career development at. At the Academic Partners the Learning andDevelopment Framework replicates the broader UHI Career Framework (Figure 21).
Figure 21. Exemplar Career Development Framework Employee development framework at SAMS UHI,covering all roles within the Institute, incorporating UHI career framework and other institutionalrequirements
There is a dedicated staff development fund available to all staff, which has supported staffparticipation in, for example, the Aurora Leadership Programme. UHI participates in the VitaeLeadership Development for Principal Investigators and is a member of the UK Concordat to Supportthe Career Development of Researchers. Female research staff are encouraged apply to the L’Oreal
Women in Sciences award. Employees looking to transition into more senior roles are eligible toparticipate in the University’s Senior Leadership Development Programme. Over the three years theprogramme has been running, there has been a 58%/42% balance in favour of female participation (n= 34) compared to male (n = 25). For staff with a dedicated teaching component to their role, there isalso the opportunity to participate in the HEA accredited ALPINE scheme, which leads to Fellowship ofthe HEA. This is in its first year with 21 male staff (42%) and 29 female staff (58%) enrolled, with themajority working towards senior fellowships.
Employees are widely encouraged to engage with external programmes such as the Scottish Crucibleand the RSE Young Academy of Scotland (YAS), which fosters interdisciplinary activities amongemerging leaders. Through interaction with YAS, Dr Mary Doherty was included in ‘Academic WomenNow’, which showcased career trajectories that take into account external factors such as family andother caring commitments.
On reflection, the SAT felt that whilst there were a number of strong initiatives in place to supportfemale staff, they are often dependant on individuals being motivated to seek these opportunities.Therefore, we will consider the current structures and put in place a process to evaluate careerdevelopment support and training.
Action Point 15: Review current structures for career development support and training,formalise a support structure and put in place measures for ongoing evaluation.
(ii) Mentoring and networking – describe any mentoring programmes, includingany SET specific mentoring programmes, and opportunities for networking.Comment on their uptake and effectiveness. Are women encouraged toparticipate in networking opportunities?
Mentoring and NetworkingThe UHI mentoring scheme is voluntary and accessible across UHI to all staff engaging in, or planningto engage in research (Figure 22). Experienced senior researchers/academics who take on the role ofmentor facilitate the development of the ‘mentee’ and support the mentee in trying out new ideas andchallenging their assumptions. The scheme was rolled out to all staff in 2014/2015. Although thedataset are not large, the relative number of female staff participating in the scheme is good, and the2015/2016 percentages indicate more female staff thanmen are beingmentored (Table 18, Figure 23).The data also show that in the STEMM areas the majority of staff that are being mentored arefemale. The University expects the scheme to contribute to the attainment of enhanced positions androles for female staff in the future. Evaluation and reflection on the scheme and subsequent refinementas a result of this will be a routine activity in the future.
48
Figure 22. Mentoring Process at UHI The mentoring scheme at UHI is voluntary and is initiated by thementee. A request for a mentor is made through an on line application. This is followed by an introductoryworkshop outlining the principles of the mentoring process before a mentor is matched. Once mentoringbegins, it is monitored at 3 months and then evaluated at 6 and 12 months to ensure a satisfactoryexperience for both mentor and mentee.
Table 18. Gender breakdown participating in the UHI mentoring scheme
MentoringHeadcount PercentageFemale Male TOTAL Female Male
Figure 23. Staff Participation in Mentoring Scheme Staff mentoring data by gender. Data includesall staff mentored as well as STEMM only staff. Absolute numbers and percentage provided as text.
Action Point 16: The University commits to the continuation and extension of the mentoringprogramme. The programme leader will update the SAT annually on uptake and effectiveness of thescheme. We will aim to increase the uptake in STEMM subjects by 20%.
Sabbatical SchemeIn 2012, a sabbatical scheme was initiated to allow academic and teaching staff wishing to engagefurther with research to divest time from other commitments. Applications are invited from all subjectdisciplines and from staff engaged in both FE and HE teaching as well as those looking to dedicate timeto a particular research output. In both terms of application and success rate, gender balance has beenobserved, with a 50% split on almost all application rounds (Table 19). This scheme is particularlyfocussed on junior staff aiming to transition to a more research oriented position, as has beenevidenced from an increased number of ECR staff supported in later rounds. In addition, sabbaticalsare also cross disciplinary, for example Dr Elizabeth Barron Majerik is researching the challenges inincreasing and maintaining diversity in Forestry.
Table 19. Staff Participation in Mini Sabbatical SchemeWhole Institution Headcount Percentage
Male Female Total Male Female2014/2015 Submitted 3 3 6 50% 50%
All Staff 2014 2015 All Staff 2015 2016 STEMM Staff 2014 2015 STEMM Staff 2015 2016
Female Male
8(30%) 7
(29%)
19(70%)
17(7%)
3(38%)
3(43%)
5(62%)
4(57%)
50
The number of applications submitted from STEMM areas is small (Table 20) with a low success rateamongst both male and female applicants. This is an area that has been noticed by the SAT and aprogramme of action put in place. There is now commitment from the Dean of Science and Engineeringto actively promote the scheme to STEMM staff. Further, the Research Clusters have been directed tofoster engagementwith the scheme. The current Research Teaching Linkage programmewill also serveto increase applications from FE STEMM staff looking to initiate a research career.
Table 20. STEMM Staff Participation in Mini Sabbatical SchemeSTEMM Headcount Percentage
Male Female Total Male Female2014/2015 Submitted 2 3 5 40% 60%
Action Point 17: Encourage mentoring of female staff through the sabbatical programme – allowingstaff to carry out a period of work shadowing at a different academic partner. Promote the schemeeffectively to relevant staff, but with particular encouragement to junior members of staff in smallresearch groups.
Action Point 18: All research active returnees frommaternity or other substantive parental leave tobe automatically short listed for a University mini sabbatical award (typically 2 – 3 months duration)in the first year post return, subject to them identifying an appropriate area of activity and applyingthrough the mini sabbaticals scheme.
Action Point 19: To increase STEMM applications to the sabbatical scheme and associated successrates by 50%.
b) Describe any activities at the university that raise the profile of women in SET generallyand also help female staff to raise their own profile such as:(i) Conferences, seminars, lectures, exhibitions and other events.
All academic staff are assigned to one of the research clusters (Figure 9), which bring together ECR andsenior staff in a supportive and collaborative environment. Funds are provided to host an annualmeeting, showcasing the work carried out across UHI and with our external partners. Dedicatedopportunities are provided for ECRs to present their research at thesemeetings. Facilitated networkingis also provided to ensure those at the early stages of their research careers have support from moreestablished academic staff. This is further supported at the biennial UHI staff conference, which is opento all staff and PGR students.
51
Figure 20. Research Conference Speakers Breakdown of speakers at the UHI Research Conferenceby gender. Data includes all staff and invited speakers participating in the 2014 and 2016 conference.Absolute numbers and percentage provided as text.
In the 2014 conference there was gender balance across all speakers (Figure 24). There is strongencouragement for ECR to present their research and the conference is hosted in conjunction with theannual PGR student conference to ensure that this community is specifically embedded in the researchenvironment.
Funding to cover staff travel and accommodation is provided for the research conference to minimiseany potential barriers to attendance. In addition, there is a dedicated staff travel and conference fundfor training and conference events both nationally and internationally. This is open to staff at all stagesin their career. The conference is a key focus for engaging all of our staff in research and has been aclear success, particularly in relation to gender inclusivity. We will use this experience to reflect onother internal and external conferences organised by the University to ensure gender parity.
Internal and External Media Opportunities for Women
(ii) Providing spokeswomen for internal and external media opportunities.
Our staff are actively engaged in local, national and international media. Our website hosts a dedicatedinterface for researchers who are available to comment to the media on their area of specialism. Thisis supported by our Communications Team, who work with staff to develop their media presence.Participation in the scheme is voluntary and currently there are only three female STEMM academicsenrolled compared to thirteen male STEMM academics (19% female: 81% male) and 34 academics intotal (9% STEMM female). Interestingly, the gender balance in non STEMM subjects is biased moretowards female academics (10 female to 8 male; 55% female majority). The gender bias in STEMMsubjects must be addressed and we will work towards increasing the number of female STEMM staffengaged in the scheme to near parity. Approaches may include mentoring by the non STEMM female
staff already signed up to the scheme, specific training sessions with the Communications team andparticipation in programmes offered by external bodies.
Action Point 20: Increase participation in the media interface by STEMM women to 50% by 2020.
(iii) Nominations to public bodies, professional bodies and for external prizes.
Many members of the university staff are members of public bodies. All are encouraged to joinprofessional bodies where appropriate, as outlined in table 21. However, the University currently hasno formal process for nominating staff to external bodies or for external prizes.
Action Point 21: Implement a policy for nomination to public and professional bodies that isequitable and takes into account appropriate gender balance. This will be made a standing item onboth Academic Council and Research Committee agendas. This will be accompanied by an initialstock take of existing representation by University staff, with routine recording protocols then beingdeveloped and maintained.
Within the university and Academic Partners we have female members of staff who have been, or arecurrently, undertaking internal and external roles as shown in Table 21. Again, the undertaking of theseexternal roles is not designated by the University and there is no formal record, or recognition, of theseactivities for either gender. This must be addressed to ensure parity of opportunity is provided for allstaff.
Table 21 Female STEMMMembership of External BodiesBoards Panels Working Groups Committees Professional
BodiesChair of NERCScience Board
EPSRC, NERC,British Council
ScottishGovernment Nonnative speciesworking group
Scotland’s NationalResearch andMonitoring
Royal Society
Scientific AdvisoryBoard for theInternationalPeatland Society
NERC ScottishGovernmentmarine non nativespecies workinggroup
Action Point 22: Implement a policy for participation in external committees. This should requirethat participation is recorded and recognised. Once a record is obtained, the gender distribution willbe assessed and addressed where appropriate.
Organisation and culturea) Provide data for the past three years (where possible with clearly labelled graphical
illustrations) on the following with commentary on trends and significant issues, inparticular anything relating to gender equality.
(i) Female:male ratio of Heads of School/Faculty/Department – across the wholeinstitution and in SET departments. Comment on the main concerns andachievements and how the action plan will address them. For example, arewomen and men appropriately represented at this level? Are there anydifferences in SET departments?
Governance of the university is not based on a traditional model. UHI is composed of thirteen partnercolleges, each of which has its own Principal (APP). There are currently five female APPs and eight maleAPPs. It is not possible to split these into STEMM and non STEMM as many of the partners cover multidiscipline areas. Teaching is split across the university into Subject Networks. The Subject NetworkLeaders (SNL) across the university are two female and four male, however, in STEMM areas, the SNLsare two female and one male. Research is now devolved to the Research Clusters. Efforts were madeto ensure gender balance since the clusters inception in 2015. Therefore, there is complete genderparity across the both the institutional and STEMM clusters (Figure 25).
Figure 25. Gender Balance across Management, Research and Teaching Senior Positions. Gendercontribution to the senior management team as well as Academic Partner Principals, Deans, SubjectNetwork Leaders and Cluster Chairs.
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(ii) Gender balance on the senior management team at university level. Commenton the numbers of men and women on the SMT and plans to address anydisparity.
The UHI Executive Office Senior Management Team comprises of 7 members of staff 5 male (72%)and 2 female (28%). The university is a member of the 30% club, a group of organisations and theirleaders who are committed to better gender balance at all levels through voluntary actions. TheUniversity is undergoing a period of change with reference to the senior management team and theinvolvement of Academic Partner Principals in the SMT. Throughout this process, the University will bemindful of gender balance. The current management structure with gender breakdown is shown inFigure 26.
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Figure
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(iii) Gender balance on influential committees at university level. Comment on themain areas of concern and plans to address them. For example, are women andmen appropriately represented on senior decision making committees? How doyou avoid committee overload where numbers of women are small? How arevacancies filled and women encouraged onto committees, especially whereturnover is low? Are the positions advertised?
University Court has overall responsibility for the strategic direction and governance of the university.At an operational level, Court delegates many of its functions to Academic Council and its committees(Figure 27). There are 16 Courtmembers currently of 5 female (28%) and 11male (61%), with a further3 ex officio members (all currently male) including the Principal and Vice Chancellor, the Rector, andthe President of the Student’s Association.
The gender balance within all the committees has not changed significantly in the last three years andon balance women are generally underrepresented at these committees (Table 24). However, thereare a number of committees in which women are very well represented, such as the Graduate SchoolNetwork Committee, Research Degrees Committee, and the Audit Committee.
Reflecting on these data the SAT felt that there needed to be a more proactive approach toappointment of staff to committees. In some instances the position on the committee is appointed byjob role and in these instances there is a necessity to look at not the committee itself but at recruitmentto the specific job. However, with respect to others such as Research Committee, there is no suchrequirement and it is incumbent upon the University to improve representation at this level. We havetherefore instituted an action point to specifically address this issue.
Action Point 23: Ensure gender balance on all committees. In the first instance we shall take stockof the gender composition on senior level committees (including SMT, HEPPR, Academic Council,Faculty Boards, Research Committee, and Research Degrees Committee) and the Research Clusterexecutives, and implement a cycle of replacement that is equitable.
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Figure 27. UHI Committee Structure The University committees play a key role in advising Court on issuesrelating to strategy, planning and student and staff issues. Committees are drawn from throughout theAcademic Partnership
b) Describe the policies and activities at the university that show a supportive organisationand culture in university SET departments.(i) Transparent workload models – describe the systems in place to ensure that
workload allocations, including pastoral and administrative responsibilities(including the responsibility for work on women and science) are taken intoaccount at appraisal and in promotion criteria. Comment on the rotation ofresponsibilities e.g. responsibilities with a heavy workload and those that areseen as good for an individual’s career.
There is no formal system that supports workload management for staff. However discussions onworkload, prioritisation is a key element of the annual reviews and the informal interim reviews thatare in place. There are good examples of effective systems that support workload modelling, wherebythe work activities are split into defined categories: research; enterprise; education; and enabling. Eachyear themanager and the employee agree the split of time based on the percentage of their contractedhours linked to each of these categories, based on their anticipated funded work related to eachcategory. At every appraisal, there is a review of the previous year’s profile, to determine how thestaff member’s time was actually distributed between the categories, the impact of any emerging workthat occurred, pinch points, spare capacity, and any additional support or reallocation of work neededto inform the profile for the following year. Annual objectives and a new profile are then set for thefollowing year. This information is then entered into a resource tool by generic role type, whichcaptures funded work in these categories and is used for ongoing resource meetings. At monthlyresource review meetings, allocations are reviewed against planned and emerging work, and actionsare put in place to reallocate work or provide additional support. The partnership has identified thateffective workload models are required, and the University will be working to ensure that all activitiesare included in such models.
Action Point 24: Share good practice across the Academic Partnership on workload modelling anddevelop and implement systems that are ‘fit for purpose’ at Academic Partners and Executive Office.
(ii) Publicity materials, including the university’s website and images used.
The university does not have a specific policy regarding gender balance in images used for publicity.However, a survey of current and archived materials shows that there is an equal mix of male andfemale staff and students represented. In particular, reference to female students and staff are usedextensively for case studies in the annual prospectus and in on line materials and brochures forexternal use (Figure 28).
Nevertheless, it is proposed that a specific action for the Athena Swan SAT to take forward will be toperform a substantive review of the decision making criteria, in conjunction with the Marketing andCommunications Teams, and to generate a specific and measurable policy on the use of genderbalanced images in all subsequent promotions.
Action Point 25: Review current practice around the application of gender balance in promotionaland publicity material and develop a policy for all future publications.
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Figure 28. Exemplar Images from Promotional Materials. Selected examples of media used forundergraduate and postgraduate recruitment and research promotion.
Flexibility and managing career breaksa) Describe the policies and activities at the university that support flexibility andmanaging
career breaks in SET departments.(i) Flexible working – describe how eligibility for flexible and part time working is
advertised to staff and the overall uptake across the university. What training isprovided for managers? How is the policy monitored and how successful it hasbeen?
Flexible working is embedded in the UHI philosophy. As a dispersed and remote university, we requirespecific enabling policies and technologies available to all staff. At induction, all staff are made awareof the flexible working policy and details are fully available on the staff intranet. Home and remoteworking is enabled through the use of technology. All staff have access to a remote desktop and canjoin meetings by video conferencing, accessed through PCs and mobile technology. Staff are also ableto request a transfer to work at a different Academic Partner site. This provides flexibility for situationswhere families may be required to relocate. Anecdotal evidence suggests that this has been used andthe SAT is aware of at least one female academic who was able to relocate to a city outside Scotlandfor a year whilst still maintaining all pertinent job functions. The University however does not collectdata on the uptake of this scheme.
Action Point 26: Implement procedure to determine uptake of flexible working opportunities.
(ii) Parental leave (including maternity, paternity, and adoption leave) – how manywomen have returned full time and part time? How is teaching and researchcovered during parental leave? What support is given after returning fromparental leave or a career break? What funding is provided to departments tosupport returning staff?
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Maternity LeaveParental leave policies are varied across the Academic Partnership. All APs exceed the legal minimumwith respect to maternity; with typically 18 weeks leave at 100% salary provided. For maternity leave,the majority of staff return to work (80 100%) following their period of leave (Table 23). The absolutenumbers not returning are small (~2 pa). Across the STEMM Academic Partners, all employees havereturned to work after taking maternity leave (Table 24).
Table 23. Whole Institution Maternity Leave
Whole institution Number taking leave Returns % Return
There are examples of good practice in relation to support that female employees have in order tosustain their career, such as enhanced maternity pay; support during the pregnancy and after; andenhanced communication whist they are on maternity leave. The decision on length of leave is solelythat of the employee. During the pregnancy, support arrangements, policies in relation to maternityleave, options on return to work, and flexible working details are available, and support andinformation is provided subsequently on local nursery provision. There are 3 stages covering maternityleave as outlined in figure 29.
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Figure 29. The Three Stages of Maternity Leave. Maternity leave is managed in collaboration with HRand the employee’s line manager to ensure that the employee is kept informed of any developmentspertinent to their job role and to allow a smooth transition back into the workplace.
It has recently been agreed that all returning mothers will be eligible for a period of sabbatical to allowthem a period of time to reconnect with their research following their period of leave.
PaternityFathers have the option of ordinary paternity leave, which allows fathers to take between 5 and 10working days of full paid paternity leave in the first 3 months after the baby’s birth. Fathers have alsorequested a period of annual leave over the first few months or some working, so that they can beclose to the family. In addition, some APs (e.g. SAMS UHI) have recently launched a benefits packagewhich enables all staff to purchase additional leave to allow them an extra period of time to spend withtheir families while continuing to be paid. Over the years of data collected, we have a 100% return ratefrom paternity (Tables 25 and 26).
Table 25. Whole Institution Paternity Leave
Whole institution Number taking leave Returns % Return
Shared Parental LeaveThere has been a small number of requests across the university andwithin STEMMAcademic Partners,however no formal applications. At SAMS, employees have found it more fruitful to purchaseadditional leave through the salary sacrifice scheme. We intend to examine why there has not beengreater uptake of shared parental leave and will undertake promotion of its availability throughout theUniversity.
Action Point 27: Understand the lack of shared parental leave applications and undertake apromotion campaign across the University to raise awareness and uptake.
The SAT has reflected on the data and various policies from around the Partnership. We clearly have agood return rate from both maternity and paternity leave but it is not clear what the motivation forreturn is and how the policies and provision affect the decisions that staff and their families make. Wewill undertake a reflective review and consider the best practice from each AP.
Action Point 28: Generate a best practice guide for parental leave based on a reflective review ofcurrent policies and provision.
(iii) Childcare – describe the university’s provision to support childcare and how it iscommunicated to staff. What is the take up? Howwill any shortfalls in provisionbe addressed?
UHI recognises that parents can have a difficult time balancing the requirements of work and familylife. Childcare is provided on site at a majority of the Academic Partners and provision is available toall staff. In addition, Childcare Vouchers are available to staff. The vouchers can be used to pay for arange of childcare options. Details are made available through the website, as part of the recruitmentprocess and through staff induction. We have no data relating to the uptake of the various schemesand how the childcare provision is perceived. We will collect these data where practicable and fromthis establish appropriate benefit schemes for families.
Action Point 29: Collect data relating to uptake of childcare provision and review schemes toensure maximum benefit is provided to working families.
(iv) Work life balance – describe themeasures taken by the university to ensure thatmeetings and other events are held during core hours and to discourage a longhours culture.
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Although there are no specific policies in place with regards to the timings of meetings and otherevents, the university is sensitive to the need for a balance between work and family life. Committeemeetings are held between the hours of 10:00 and 16:00 to take into account external pressures.Moreover, the culture of video conferencing and remote attendance at meetings lends itself well to aflexible working environment. It is not unusual for the majority of meeting attendees to be linked inover a remote link, be that from a distance based work environment or from home. All staff meetingsare recorded and made available via the staff intranet. Face to face teaching takes place between09:00 and 17:00. All staff have a clear written contract defining their weekly hours. Any time workedover these hours can be reclaimed as TOIL.
SummaryThe process of collating these data and subsequent reflection has allowed us to take stock of our younginstitution. In many areas we have a positive gender balance that either equals or exceeds the UKaverage. It is evident however, that this has resulted despite, in many cases, the lack of uniformguidance and procedures across the Partnership. Moving forward, we will use this process to ensurethat gender parity is formally enshrined in all our activities. Areas that require immediate action includelack of females in senior roles, including Professorships; recognition of external roles and establishingprocess for nominations and appointments to internal and external committees and the lack of rolemodels for both students and staff. Our action plan seeks to address these issues and the SAT will workclosely with senior management and the HR practitioners group to accelerate the required change. Wewill also continue to foster the good practice in our institution such as flexible working and positiveattitude to work life balance. We will continue to promote these activities to all staff and more activelyrecord their impact on the health and well being of our colleagues.
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5. Any other comments: maximum 500 wordsPlease comment here on any other elements which are relevant to the application, e.g. other SETspecific initiatives of special interest that have not been covered in the previous sections. Include anyother relevant data (e.g. results from staff surveys), provide a commentary on it and indicate how it isplanned to address any gender disparities identified.
We have reconstituted a lead role for the university in equality and diversity and the new post ofequality outcomes adviser (currently Helen Duncan, SAT member) offers an opportunity to articulateequality and diversity throughout the university and refine the original equality outcomes at strategicregional level. The university has established two groups to take forward this agenda. The equalityoutcomes group meets quarterly to look at equalities issues relating to students, curriculum and staffacross the university. Its main aims are to support university court in the promotion of equality anddiversity and in ensuring that the university's strategic goals direct effective implementation andprioritisation of strategic equality mainstreaming themes and equality outcomes. Representatives aredrawn from key groups of staff across the university. Also, the equalities practitioner network bringstogether staff from across the partner colleges with an interest in, or responsibility for, equality anddiversity in amore informal information sharing and awareness raising approach. The creation of thesetwo groups is a significant step forward in how the university will manage and enhance our operationsand strategy in relation to equalities.
Each of the university’s academic partners has responded individually to the requirements to reporton their progress in respect of the Equality Act 2010. Nonetheless, the academic partners have been
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actively engaged in the development and implementation of the equality agenda across the universityand in the identification of common themes that can be pursued collaboratively.
The university has been selected to work with HEA Scotland through a development programmedesigned to enable Higher Education Institutions to tailor equality and diversity mainstreaminginitiatives to their own disciplinary, institutional and/or sector priorities. The 50 ‘embedding equalityand diversity in the curriculum strategic enhancement programme’ will facilitate the development ofinitiatives which have a direct learning and teaching focus and/or develop and support learning andteaching activities.
Staff surveys are undertaken every two years by an external consultant. Results are not provided bygender, however do provide information about the staff experience. The most recent survey was insummer 2016. At the time of writing, preliminary data have been released. Results indicate that staffin general enjoy working at UHI and the Academic Partners. Progress has been made in this area, as ahigh majority of staff would recommend UHI and the Academic Partners to others as a good place towork (3.6 in 2012, rising to 3.9 in 2014 and 3.8 in 2016. Top score = 5). Specific questions relating toequality also score well with an average score of 3.8 for the statement ‘I am confident that equalityconcerns within XXXwill be dealt with promptly and appropriately‘ (rising from 3.7 in 2012; 3.8 in 2014)and a score of 4.2 for the statement ‘I understand my personal responsibilities for ensuring andpromoting equality at work’, rising from 3.7 in 2012, 4.2 in 2014. Scores from across the AP wereconsistent.
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6. Action planProvide an action plan as an appendix. An action plan template is available on the Athena SWANwebsite.The Action Plan should be a table or a spreadsheet comprising actions to address the prioritiesidentified by the analysis of relevant data presented in this application, success/outcome measures,the post holder responsible for each action and a timeline for completion. Also include in the Plan howthe university will encourage SET departments to apply for awards.The Plan should cover current initiatives and the university’s aspirations for the next three years.
