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°×С½ãÂÛ̳ achieves first Gold Athena SWAN award for excellence in gender equality

6 October 2016

The MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology at °×С½ãÂÛ̳ has achieved the university's first departmental Athena SWAN Gold award for gender equality - one of only two awarded to UK universities in this round.

Athena SWAN Gold Logo

The award recognises "significant and sustained progression and achievement by the department in promoting gender equality and to address challenges particular to the discipline. Gold departments should be beacons of achievement in gender equality and should champion and promote good practice to the wider community."

Professor Sara Mole and Professor Rob de Bruin (MRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology), who have co-led the department's effort on Athena SWAN for the past eight years, said: "We are delighted that our efforts to make the LMCB an excellent place to work and our innovative support of career development have been recognised with this Gold award. We began this journey in 2008 and it has developed year on year, with everyone - group leaders, postdocs, students, support staff - now appreciating and helping to implement our vision of #simplygoodpractice in all that we do. Where something is not fair or can be even better, we work to change it."Ìý

Athena SWAN Group LMCB

°×С½ãÂÛ̳ also achieved a number of Bronze awards in this round including its first whole faculty award - for TheÌýBartlett, °×С½ãÂÛ̳'s Faculty of the Built Environment - as well as Bronze departmental awards for °×С½ãÂÛ̳ Chemistry, °×С½ãÂÛ̳ Civil, Environmental & Geomatic Engineering, °×С½ãÂÛ̳ Earth Sciences and °×С½ãÂÛ̳ Geography.

Overall, the university now has 15 Bronze awards, 16 Silver awards and one Gold award, as well as a university-wide Silver award.

Professor Michael Arthur, °×С½ãÂÛ̳ President & Provost, said: "I'm very proud of what °×С½ãÂÛ̳ has achieved with the Athena SWAN Charter and deeply impressed by the sincere commitment of staff across °×С½ãÂÛ̳, in both academic and professional services roles, to tackle deeply entrenched gender inequalities. Equality is critical to °×С½ãÂÛ̳'s continued international success and it can only be achieved by collective effort and the involvement of all staff."

Nigel Waugh, Executive Director of °×С½ãÂÛ̳ HR, said: "I would like to recognise the work that Athena SWAN leads have made and we are immensely proud of colleagues at °×С½ãÂÛ̳ who tirelessly continue to push the boundaries to support continuous and positive change."

Sarah Guise, °×С½ãÂÛ̳ HR Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, affirmed: "My team supports colleagues applying for Athena SWAN awards. We never cease to be amazed at how driven people are about equality and fairness at work and will go above and beyond their usual roles to create a better workplace and studying environment for future generations. I hope Sara, Rob and their colleagues will continue to be an inspiration to others at °×С½ãÂÛ̳".

Images

  • The Athena SWAN Gold logo
  • The Athena SWAN group at theÌýMRC Laboratory for Molecular Cell Biology

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