As a university, we currently hold an Athena SWAN Bronze Award in recognition of our advancements in gender equality, representation and progression.
Athena SWAN
The Athena Swan Charter recognises commitment to the advancement of gender equality: representation, progression and success for all.
ECU’s Athena SWAN Charter was established in 2005 to encourage and recognise commitment to advancing the careers of women in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine (STEMM) employment in higher education and research.
In May 2015 the charter was expanded to all disciplines. The charter now recognises work undertaken to address gender equality more broadly, and not just barriers to progression that affect women. Professional and support roles are now included within the Charter.
We are committed to addressing unequal gender representation across academic disciplines and professional and support functions.
We acknowledge that advancing gender equality demands commitment and action from all levels of the organisation and in particular active leadership from those in senior roles. In addition, we seek to develop our Gender Equality work to build synergy with our Race Equality agenda.
"I took part in Aurora – Developing women leaders in higher education back in 2019. This was a fantastic programme which enabled women from across the UK to meet and learn from each other in a safe space. I continue to connect with all the women I met in my action learning set, all of us have progressed in our careers within HE."
"Personally, Aurora (through the support of Athena Swan) has enabled me to understand that we all face the similar challenges as women, but through peer support, networking and particularly strong female mentoring that we can navigate barriers to professional growth. The programme gave me the confidence to consider further study, and since then I have started an MBA (Senior Leadership Apprenticeship)"
Ami Holder

"Athena Swan in the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences has highlighted the variations that exist concerning gender equality and diversity in different parts of the organisation. Many of our programmes have significant gender imbalances. Athena Swan has prompted us to examine this and see what we can do to resolve the situation."
"One project we are undertaking is a collaboration across the fields of nursing, midwifery, social work, occupational therapy, and psychology to better support students who are part of a gender minority that is a feature of both their university experience and their professional working lives. In partnership with local NHS Trusts we are hoping to develop a multi-level mentoring/buddying scheme for students to gain support and guidance as they navigate the explicit and implicit consequences of being part of a gender minority."
Dr Dan Butcher
