We are very pleased to have been awarded an Athena SWAN Charter Silver award for good practice in advancing gender equality in the Department. This award reflects the progress we have made in tackling imbalances in gender and improving our workplace culture since the award of our Bronze award. Further it reflects our commitment to continuing improvements in equality and diversity in our community. This is an exciting moment for us and a real step forward in the process of improving life in the Department for everyone.

We are committed to the continued success of all members of the Department and our Athena SWAN silver action plan outlines the steps we are taking to facilitate this. Areas of particular focus moving forward include:
(1) Being even more proactive in identifying and encouraging the best female applicants for senior academic staff vacancies.
(2) Improving the appraisal and feedback mechanisms for staff in the Department.
(3) Continuing to increase awareness of support channels within the University and Department for staff affected by bullying or harassment.

You can read our Silver Athena SWAN submission here and more about the Athena Swan Charter at http://www.ecu.ac.uk/equality-charters/athena-swan/