Athena Swan
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Athena Swan
About the Charter
Overview
The Athena Swan Charter is an international framework designed to promote and improve gender equality across higher education and research institutions. Launched in 2005 to acknowledge and support efforts to advance the careers of women in STEMM fields: science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine, it has since evolved into a global initiative addressing gender equality in a broader sense, tackling barriers that affect people of all genders, not only women.
UEL’s EDI commitment
Our guiding principles:
- Foster inclusivity through a strong commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion and by promoting an inclusive student-ready culture.
- Promote the success of students and staff, enabling them to realise their potential and achieve social mobility. This will be done through a data-driven practice approach that centres on inclusive teaching, learning, and assessment, as well as inclusive staff recruitment and retention.
- Enhance the belonging of students and staff by encouraging strong relationships that lead to feelings of mutual respect, value and dignity.
- Promote equitable culture and practice through advocacy, education, training and recognition arising from Equality Charter awards.
Strategic priorities
Through Inclusive by Design, UEL aims to achieve its EDI strategic priorities
Governance
UEL's EDI governance committees play a key role in driving, monitoring and embedding equality, diversity and inclusion across the University. Through collaborative leadership and oversight, these groups support the delivery of our Athena Swan commitments and institutional EDI priorities.
The committees are:
- Equity Action Committee
- Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Institutional Committee
- School EDI Committees
- Professional Services EDI Committee
Journey to Gold
UEL has been committed to advancing gender equality through the Athena Swan Charter since achieving its Bronze Award in 2017, recognising our commitment to identifying and addressing barriers to gender equality across the University.
Building on this foundation, UEL was awarded the prestigious Athena Swan Silver Award in 2024, acknowledging the significant progress made in embedding gender equality into our policies, practices, and culture, as well as the measurable impact of our actions across the institution.
As part of our continuing journey towards Athena Swan Gold, we established an Athena Swan Implementation Group comprising seven dedicated subgroups. Together, these groups provide strategic leadership, oversight, and accountability for the delivery of our Athena Swan action plan, ensuring that gender equality remains embedded across all aspects of university life.
Each subgroup leads targeted activity within a key priority area, enabling evidence-based decision-making, collaborative working, and sustainable cultural change.
Implementation Group subgroups
- Governance, oversight and accountability – driving institutional leadership, governance, and accountability for gender equality.
- Data, evidence and impact monitoring – using robust data and evaluation to inform priorities and measure progress.
- Inclusive culture, behaviour and belonging – fostering an inclusive environment where all staff and students feel valued, respected, and able to thrive.
- Learning, training and capability building – developing the knowledge, skills, and confidence needed to advance equality, diversity, and inclusion.
- Staff and student experience, success and inclusive curriculum – enhancing experiences, outcomes, and opportunities through inclusive policies, practices, and curriculum development.
- Wellbeing, workload and family-friendly practice – promoting wellbeing, supporting work-life balance, and creating an inclusive and supportive working environment.
- Recruitment, career progression and fair opportunity – ensuring equitable access to recruitment, development, progression, and recognition opportunities.
Through this collaborative structure, UEL continues to drive meaningful and lasting change, building on the achievements recognised through our Bronze and Silver Awards as we work towards Athena Swan Gold.
Key projects and themes
Our Athena Swan work is driven by a series of strategic projects and initiatives designed to create a more equitable, inclusive, and supportive environment for all staff and students. These projects focus on addressing structural barriers, improving representation, and ensuring that everyone can thrive at UEL.
Expanding mentoring, leadership development, and career progression opportunities to support women at all career stages.
Embedding fair and transparent recruitment and promotion practices, supported by equality impact assessments and intersectional analysis.
Monitoring workload allocation by gender to promote fairness, transparency, and equitable recognition of contributions.
Strengthening family-friendly policies, parental support, flexible working practices, and breastfeeding provision.
Delivering targeted wellbeing and inclusion initiatives informed by staff feedback and equality data.
Enhancing reporting mechanisms and preventative action to tackle bullying, harassment, and discrimination.
Using robust data, monitoring, and governance processes to measure impact and drive continuous improvement.
Resources and updates
Resources
Contact the OIE
To contact us, email oie@uel.ac.uk
Our office address is:
University of East London
Docklands campus
Rooms EBG.01A and EBG.01B
University Way
London
E16 2RD