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Equality diversity and inclusion

Our commitment

NAHT is dedicated to promoting equality for all its members, and this commitment is enshrined in NAHT’s constitution.

NAHT’s work on equality is overseen by our diversity and inclusion group, a sub-committee of NAHT’s national executive.

NAHT’s role

Our equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) work is centred around three aspects:

Supporting our members as leaders: as school leaders, NAHT members are ideally positioned to create inclusive learning and working environments for all their pupils and staff, one which welcomes diversity and champions equality. NAHT’s role is to empower our members with the tools, knowledge, and confidence to do this effectively.
Supporting our members as individuals: we know members with certain protected characteristics face additional and/or specific challenges in their roles. As a Trade Union, our core purpose is protecting our members; whether proactively, for example campaigning to remove systemic inequities in the system, or reactively, aiding members who are experiencing particular issues in their workplace, through our representation and/or legal teams.
As a democratic organisation: NAHT recognises that we are most effective in representing the views and needs of school leaders when we engage with all of our membership. We are therefore committed to ensuring our own democratic structures are inclusive and reflect the diversity of the educational professionals and learners that we serve.

NAHT’s equality networks

NAHT has three informal equality networks for members. These are led by members, for members.

Find out more about our networks, including how to join and planned meetings, by clicking on the links below.

NAHT's EDI statements

Following a resolution at NAHT Annual Conference, we are developing a series of policy statements outlining NAHT’s views and commitments around equality, diversity and inclusion. These have been developed in conversations with NAHT’s equality networks, our diversity and inclusion group, and our national executive.

Click below to see our EDI statements:

Statements will continue to be reviewed and additional statements may be developed, as led by our membership.

Our statement of action and commitments on EDI in education for 2023/24

In September 2023, NAHT, alongside other key organisations working in the sector, outlined its new actions and commitments to help further equality, diversity and inclusion in education. Find out more and read our statement of action and commitments on EDI in education for 2023/24.

Resources

Advice and support

For more about the advice and guidance available from NAHT, along with resources to support members with EDI in their schools, see our EDI hub page.

TUC equality conferences

Every year, the TUC hosts a series of equality conferences that supplement the general work of TUC Congress. These conferences focus on supporting the advancement of issues that disproportionally impact minority groups. Find out more and how NAHT members can get involved.

Latest news and advice

NAHT outlines its actions and commitments to furthering equality, diversity and inclusion in education for 2023/24

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.

First published 27 September 2023

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