Today (27 September 2023) NAHT has, as one of 14 key organisations working in the sector, outlined its new actions and commitments to help further equality, diversity and inclusion in education.

Paul Whiteman, NAHT general secretary, said: “We firmly believe that we, as an organisation and as individual members, must play a role in actively addressing inequity within the educational sector. It matters for the health, well-being and futures of our members, their staff and the pupils and communities that they serve. School leaders have a unique and vital role to play in leading the work around equality, diversity, and inclusion. From the overarching ethos of schools to the detail of the curriculum, their educational leadership has the power to help set the right culture, so that everyone can feel valued and included. We have continued to make significant progress against our commitments, but we know that there is much more to do, and that’s why I’m delighted to be part of this collective approach.”

Background

Started in 2021/22, this public statement is intended to demonstrate NAHT's (and our co-signatories') commitment to playing its part in acknowledging the issues and furthering equality, diversity and inclusion in schools and trusts. We are doing so both independently and collectively. Signatories will hold each other to account for delivering on these aims and will be held to account by our respective members and stakeholders. 

By being transparent about our actions, we hope to give confidence to pupils and families, staff and leaders and those governing that we are learning, listening and acting on their concerns and ambitions for equality, diversity and inclusion.

The progress and impact of these commitments will be reviewed every 12 months and an updated statement published.

NAHT’s commitments 2023/24

Over the course of 2023/24, NAHT commits to the following:

• Creating guidance for members to support inclusive recruitment practices in their schools and/or trusts
• Exploring the creation of a Womens member network
• Undertaking an equality rep and/or ambassador pilot scheme within our democratic structures
• Undertaking a membership survey exploring the experiences of leaders with protected characteristics
• Continuing to develop and collate advice and guidance from across the sector to support NAHT members in developing and leading a diverse and inclusive school culture for their pupils and staff
• Continuing to press the Department for Education to increase its focus on the lack of diversity in school leadership, through its recruitment and retention work, and commit to initiatives to improve this, including re-instating or replacing the EDI hub funding
• Continuing to promote the NAHT mentoring scheme and support a diverse range of members to engage as both mentors and mentees.