athena’swan’bronze’department’award’application’’€¦ ·...

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Athena SWAN Bronze department award application Name of university: University of Oxford

Department: Department of Paediatrics

Date of application: April 2013

Date of university Bronze SWAN award: 2010

Contact for application: Mary Deadman

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: 01865 222792

Departmental website address: www.paediatrics.ox.ac.uk

1. Letter of endorsement from the head of department: maximum 500 words

An accompanying letter of endorsement from the head of department should explain how the SWAN action plan and activities in the department contribute to the overall department strategy and academic mission.

The letter is an opportunity for the head of department to confirm their support for the application and to endorse and commend any women and STEMM activities that have made a significant contribution to the achievement of the departmental mission.

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DEPARTMENT OF PAEDIATRICS Room 02-46- John Radcliffe, Oxford OX3 9DU Tel: +44(0)1865 234248 Fax: +44(0)1865 234251 [email protected] www.paediatrics.ox.ac.uk Dr Peter B Sullivan MA, MD, FRCP, FRCPCH Reader in Paediatric Gastroenterology Honorary Consultant Paediatrician

Room 02-46-0 John Radcliffe, Oxford OX3 9DU Tel: +44(0)1865 234223 Fax: +44(0)1865 234242

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2. The self-‐assessment process: maximum 1000 words

Describe the self-‐assessment process. This should include:

a) A description of the self assessment team: members’ roles (both within the department and as part of the team) and their experiences of work-‐life balance.

The team was chosen from a cross section of the Department to reflect the balance of roles, experience and gender. Academic staff, non-‐academic staff and students were invited to take part by the Head of Department and the Departmental Administrator.

Dr Peter Sullivan is Head of Department (HoD) and Reader in Paediatric Gastroenterology. He has been in the Department for 20 years and alongside his clinical role heads the Paediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition Research Group and is Director of Medical Education for Oxford University Hospitals NHS Trust. He is married, with two grown up sons.

Alex Holmes has been the Departmental Administrator for Paediatrics since October 2010, moving from a similar role in Clinical Pharmacology. Alex also worked for several years as a Registered Nurse specialising in Respiratory Medicine and Trauma care, and is married with one teenage daughter.

Emily Adland has worked in the Department of Paediatrics for four years, initially as a Research Assistant in Professor Philip Goulder’s lab at the Peter Medawar Building for Pathogen Research. Emily began a DPhil under Philip Goulder’s supervision in 2011 and is now in her second year of the DPhil programme.

Dr Christoph Blohmke has been a post-‐doctoral research fellow in the Department since October 2011. During his time at the University of British Columbia he engaged in various extracurricular activities such as teaching, public engagement and fundraising.

Mary Deadman is laboratory manager in the Developmental Immunology Group of Professor Georg Holländer and has worked in the Department for 25 years. She has two grown up children, both born whilst working full time for the University. She is a UNISON representative on the University Joint Committee with University Support Staff and was a member of the University Staff Consultative Forum.

Sabrina Harris is Personal Assistant to Professor Georg Holländer. She joined the Department in October 2011 and has 12+ years’ experience working in administration within a health care and research setting.

Tessa Johns joined the Oxford Vaccine Group in 2003 as a paediatric research nurse and is now Director of Clinical Trials. She completed an MA in Medical Law and Ethics in 2005 and has a particular interest in the role of the child as the decision-‐maker in clinical research. Tessa has had three children whilst working in the Department, who are all under school age. She is currently on maternity leave but usually works full time so fully appreciates the difficulties of balancing work with home life.

Dr Kate O’Neill joined the Childhood Cancer Research Group 4.5 years ago, after a five-‐year career break. She returned with a Fellowship from the Daphne Jackson Trust, a national organisation encouraging scientists to return to research after a career break. She has since

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secured her own project grant, and remains as a PI within the group. She works 70% FTE, to facilitate looking after her three primary school age children.

Dr David Porter has been a Clinical Lecturer in Paediatric Infectious Diseases at the Oxford Children's Hospital since 2010 but joined the University in a clinical research post in 2005. His job involves clinical, research and teaching roles and he pursues clinical and laboratory research within the Oxford Vaccine Group. David has children so understands the balance required for work with home life.

Jennifer Taylor is a final year medical student. Jennifer sat on the Paediatric Department Educational Committee giving feedback regarding the 5th year Paediatric rotation. Jennifer is a member of the Medical Women's Federation and has a strong interest in children and women's health.

Sharon Westcar joined the Department in 2004 as a senior paediatric research nurse. She completed her Masters in Advancing Healthcare Practice at the Royal College of Nursing in 2011. She works a 60% FTE as she has 3 young children at home so she understands the issues of returning to work after maternity leave and part time working.

Dr Bríd Cronin, Athena SWAN Co-‐ordinator for the Medical Sciences Division, has advised the team.

b) an account of the self assessment process: details of the self assessment team meetings, including any consultation with staff or individuals outside of the university, and how these have fed into the submission.

The team has met at every stage of the process, totalling ten times since November 2011. An anonymous staff survey conducted in August 2012 was responded to by 75% of the Department. Results were summarized and sent to the Department, eight focus groups were held then with all staff groups to discuss particular issues raised by the survey e.g., child care needs, parking, appraisal and personal career development.

External consultation was instigated on two issues; 1) Transport and car parking issues were felt by many to have a major effect on their work life and work-‐life balance, so this was raised with a number of University transport and Parking committees. 2) Letters were also sent to the heads of Childcare Services and the Medical Sciences Division (MSD) to ask about the concerns raised in the survey about childcare provision. We hope that our concerns will be fed into future planning for childcare and transport provision.

c) Plans for the future of the self assessment team, such as how often the team will continue to meet, any reporting mechanisms and in particular how the self assessment team intends to monitor implementation of the action plan.

Analysis of the staff in post, data and feedback from the survey and the focus groups has led to targeted actions and demonstrable progress. An action plan to further the aims of Athena SWAN was produced, with members of the committee allocated specific responsibilities. The application and action plan were sent out to the entire department in April 2013 and staff were invited to comment.

After April 2013 the committee plans to meet termly to monitor the implementation of the

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action plan. We plan to survey staff annually in August, to monitor whether the actions taken have made a positive difference to the staff within the Department. The minutes of the Athena SWAN committee will be sent to the Management Committee and Athena SWAN will a standing item on the committee agenda, the HoD is also on the Athena SWAN committee, so will feed in committee decisions and discussions into the Departmental Management Committee. [965 words]

3. A picture of the department: maximum 2000 words

a) Provide a pen-‐picture of the department to set the context for the application, outlining in particular any significant and relevant features.

The Oxford University Department of Paediatrics was established in 1972, and is part of the Medical Sciences Division, the largest of Oxford University's four academic divisions. It is administratively located at the new Children’s Hospital, Oxford. The Department has research interests in infectious diseases in infancy and childhood, perinatal growth and nutrition, neurodisability, developmental immunology and childhood cancer. We currently employ around 110 clinical practitioners, research scientists and administrative staff and have an annual turnover in excess of £4 million, with more than 65 research grants. The Department has strong links with the NHS Department of Paediatrics, which is co-‐located in the new Children’s Hospital.

Postgraduate training is an important teaching aspect within the Department; which runs a taught Postgraduate Diploma in Paediatric Infectious Diseases in conjunction with the Department of Continuing Education and the European Society of Paediatric Infectious Diseases and also currently has 17 postgraduate students based within the research groups.

The Department has clinical, teaching and research facilities within the Children’s Hospital, the Women’s Centre, the Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, the Peter Medawar Building, the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics (WTCHG), the Richards Building on the Old Road Campus and the Centre for Clinical Vaccinology and Tropical Medicine at the Churchill Hospital. The geographically dispersed nature of the Department across the city can means that the Department can feel fragmented and interaction between groups is limited, this is something we hope to address as a result of this application. Despite this fragmentation we value all our staff and are committed to their professional development, we aim to achieve this by providing opportunities for training and by supporting career progression.

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b) Provide data for the past three years (where possible with clearly labelled graphical illustrations) on the following with commentary on their significance and how they have affected action planning.

Student data

(i) Numbers of males and females on access or foundation courses – comment on the data and describe any initiatives taken to attract women to the courses.

We do not run any foundation courses.

(ii) Undergraduate male and female numbers – full and part-‐time – comment on the female:male ratio compared with the national picture for the discipline. Describe any initiatives taken to address any imbalance and the impact to date. Comment upon any plans for the future.

Members of the Department contribute to the clinical training of undergraduate students enrolled into the University’s Medical School. Undergraduates are initially admitted to the pre-‐clinical medicine course. Recruitment and administration for these students is handled centrally by the Medical Sciences Teaching Centre. After 3 years students apply to the clinical medicine course and administration moves to the Clinical Medical School. Graduate entry students join the clinical medicine students for the final two years. The numbers of students studying medicine at Oxford for the last three years are shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Gender profile of students studying Medicine at the University of Oxford

(iii) Postgraduate male and female numbers completing taught courses – full and part-‐time – comment on the female:male ratio compared with the national picture for the discipline. Describe any initiatives taken to address any imbalance and the effect to date. Comment upon any plans for the future.

205 71

223 214 67 201 201 59 196

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235 249 47 196 260 54 200

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

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Preclinical

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2010 2011 2012

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tage

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The Department offers a Postgraduate Diploma in Paediatric Infectious Diseases (PID) through the Department of Continuing Education (this department enables members of the public, professional groups or business organisations to take courses either for general interest or to obtain a qualification). The course is a part-‐time two-‐year programme taught via a blend of online and residential components. It is open internationally to paediatric trainees with Membership of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (MRCPCH) or equivalent training. The gender ratio on this course is shown in Figure 2 and reflects the high proportion of women nationally choosing Paediatrics as a specialty (79%F in specialty training), as reflected in the recent BMA cohort study of 2006 medical graduates. This is a 10-‐year longitudinal study of the career paths of 431 doctors (bma.org.uk). We are happy with the ratio of F: M students and do not plan to take any action at this time, although we will continue to monitor the situation (Action 2.1).

Figure 2. Numbers by gender on the Diploma in Paediatric infectious diseases.

(iv) Postgraduate male and female numbers on research degrees – full and part-‐time – comment on the female:male ratio compared with the national picture for the discipline. Describe any initiatives taken to address any imbalance and the effect to date. Comment upon any plans for the future.

The Department offers very few DPhil places each year, usually four. For the past three years there have been equal numbers of men and women in each cohort. This is comparable with the average percentage of female postgraduate students for the last three years in subjects allied to medicine in Oxford as a whole (51%) and in Cambridge (53%). The Russell group as a whole had a slightly higher percentage of females 59% (Data from HESA). We are happy to maintain the current the ratio of F: M students and do not plan to take any action at this time, although we will continue to monitor the situation (Action 2.2).

Gender 08/09 09/10 10/11 11/12 12/13 Total Female 1 5 2 2 2 12 Male

1 2 2 2 7 Total 1 6 4 4 4 19

Figure 3. Numbers by gender studying for a DPhil

15 14 17 20

14

7 5 8 3

11

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

100%

2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13

Percen

tage

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(v) Ratio of course applications to offers and acceptances by gender for undergraduate, postgraduate taught and postgraduate research degrees – comment on the differences between male and female application and success rates and describe any initiatives taken to address any imbalance and their effect to date. Comment upon any plans for the future.

Figure 4. Gender profile of admissions to the Diploma in Paediatric Infectious Diseases

The ratio of applicants to offers for the PID course in 2010 and 2012 was roughly similar for males and females. In 2011 ~66% of female applicants were offered places in comparison to 33% of males. This is explained as the male students submitted incomplete applications or were too junior to be offered places that year (one did reapply successfully in 2012-‐13). Two males were not offered places after interview – one due to lack of funding, the other deferred his application to 2012-‐13 (and again was successful that year).

Figure 5. Gender profile of admissions to the DPhil in Paediatrics

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Female Male Female Male Female Male

2010 2011 2012

Num

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Applicants Interviewed Offers Acceptances

12

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The Department is usually allowed to take four DPhil students annually. The admissions process is merit based, the Graduate Studies Committee interviews candidates, the interviewees are graded and the top candidates offered a place. The numbers of applicants and acceptances are very small so it is impossible to read too much into the data, but the average application to offer ratio is 3:1 for the females and 2.8:1 for the males i.e. no significant difference.

The average ratio of offer to acceptance is 1.3:1 for the females and 1:1 for the males. Offers are not always taken up as students may have multiple offers, or may fail to get the external funding they have applied for.

We will continue to monitor these numbers.

(vi) Degree classification by gender – comment on any differences in degree attainment between males and females and describe what actions are being taken to address any imbalance.

We have limited data for the outcomes for the PID course, with data not yet available for 2010-‐2012. The data shown is for cohorts 2008 and 2009. The numbers are small but in the 2008 cohort 4/4M and 4/13F achieved distinctions, whereas in the 2009 cohort 1/3M and 2/4F received distinctions. We will continue to monitor the classifications in the future. The graduates from the PID are professionals who take the diploma to enhance their careers; they normally resume their medical careers after completion of the course.

Figure 6. Degree classification for the Diploma in Paediatric Infectious Diseases.

The DPhil is not classified but we observe no gender differences in submission rates or award of the DPhil. Of the 2008 to 2011 cohorts five students have graduated (4F/1M), 3F were medical graduates who are now working as; a Clinical Research Fellow, a postdoctoral researcher and a medical registrar; the other two were scientists (1F/1M) and are both working as postdoctoral researchers.

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Staff data

(vii) Female:male ratio of academic staff and research staff – researcher, lecturer, senior lecturer, reader, professor (or equivalent). Comment on any differences in numbers between males and females and say what action is being taken to address any underrepresentation at particular grades/levels

Figure 7. Gender profile of academic staff in post 2010-‐2012 (July 31st Snapshot)

In Clinical Medicine in the Russell group the 2011/12 HESA staff data shows 22% of Professors are women. 28% of the professors in the Medical Sciences Division at Oxford are women. As we have only three professors currently in post (all men), the last being recruited in 2009 and starting in 2010, it is difficult to comment on the gender balance with respect to these national averages. We also have only three lecturers (1F/2M) in the Department, all of who are clinical lectures. Again, this small number means that it is difficult to comment on the gender balance with respect to these national averages. However, we recognise the need to have more senior women in the Department and are actively trying to encourage female applicants to reflect this (Actions 3.1, 3.3, 3.5).

Figure 8. Gender profile of clinical researchers in post 2010-‐2012 (July 31st Snapshot)

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2010 2011 2012 2010 2011 2012 2010 2011 2012

Professor Reader Lecturer

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Female Male

12 6

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2 2 1

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0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

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2010 2011 2012 2010 2011 2012

Senior Clinical Research Clinical Research Training

Percen

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Female Male

12

For the last three years there have been more females than males in Clinical Research Training grades. In recent years the numbers of people choosing to enter Clinical Research Training in Paediatrics has dropped nationally, explaining the slight reduction in staff numbers over the three-‐year period.

Figure 9. Gender profile of clinical researchers in post 2010-‐2012 (July 31st Snapshot)

There are significantly more females than males in research grades 7 to 10, an average of 76%F/24%M over the three-‐year period shown. This is partly due to the nature of the research -‐ we employ qualified nurses at these grades (~25% of cohort) and nursing is a female dominated occupation (90% of Registered Nurses are female, 2011 Nursing and Midwifery Council Diversity Report). In Clinical medical departments the HESA staff data also show a higher proportion of females (59%) in Russell Group Universities over equivalent grades. Our numbers are still quite small but we are happy with the number of both females and males we are attracting to these roles overall, therefore we are not intending to take any action at the moment. Nevertheless, we will continue to monitor the situation (Action 1.1). Having said that we are aware that the Senior Clinical Researchers and the grade 10 member of staff are all male, the new Personal Development Planning scheme (see below) should ensure that all staff assess their career goals regularly and identify any potential development needs that the Department can support in areas for career development or potential for promotion (Action 4.2).

(viii) Turnover by grade and gender – comment on any differences between men and women in turnover and say what is being done to address this. Where the number of staff leaving is small, comment on the reasons why particular individuals left.

Turnover amongst tenured faculty is slow, over the last three years one male academic (Reader) has retired. Lecturers on clinical grades were in fixed term posts, 1F/2M left for promotion, 1M left for other/destination unknown, 1M Senior Clinical Researcher left in 2010 for promotion.

Those in Clinical Research Training must comply with the rules of Royal College of Paediatrics and the Oxford Deanery so they have limited research time before they must return to a clinical role within the NHS. A senior female clinician recently wished to extend her research time in order to apply for an academic role. The inflexible system that is enforced by the Royal College of Paediatricians and the Deanery with regard to run-‐through training sadly meant this was not possible. The HoD has suggested that this individual write to Professor Neena Modi, RCPCH Vice

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1 4 4 4 9

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1 1 1 1

1 3

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0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90%

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2010 2011 2012 2010 2011 2012 2010 2011 2012 2010 2011 2012

Grade 10 Grade 9 Grade 8 Grade 7

Percen

tage

Female Male

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President for Science and Research, to try to address these structural obstacles that are outside of the Department’s control.

Of those in Clinical Research Training and Grades 7 to 9: 3F/2M left due to the end of a fixed term contract; 1F retired; 3F/6M left for promotion; 1F left for pay reasons; 1F other/destination unknown; 7F/4M left for family or personal reasons. Although we do not know why all those who left for family or personal reasons chose to do so we are aware that, 1F left after returning from maternity leave as her baby failed to settle in nursery, she was given extra time off to give the baby extra time to settle but finally decided to leave. Two females chose to leave as their partners were relocating. We do not know why the 4M who stated that they left for family or personal reasons chose to leave, it is slightly concerning that the number is as high as it is, but we will continue to monitor reasons for leaving in the future and hope to get more information by the introduction of an exit survey (Action 1.2).

[1708 words]

4. Supporting and advancing women’s careers: maximum 5000 words

Key career transition points

a) Provide data for the past three years (where possible with clearly labelled graphical illustrations) on the following with commentary on their significance and how they have affected action planning.

(i) Job application and success rates by gender and grade – comment on any differences in recruitment between men and women at any level and say what action is being taken to address this.

During the 2009-‐2012 period there were two senior positions filled in the Department. The first, The Action Research Professor of Paediatrics had 7 applicants, 3F/4M, of whom 1F/3M were shortlisted and 1M appointed. The second, a Clinical Lectureship had 4 applicants, 3F/1M, of whom 2F/1M were shortlisted and 1M appointed. In both cases the interview panel, which consisted of both males and females, decided that the appointed candidates were the strongest based strictly on the selection criteria. The Department currently has a vacancy for a University Lecturer post and two Clinical Lecturer posts will be available in the near future, once the departmental research strategy is finalised. We will strive to receive applications from suitable female candidates for all of these roles by ensuring that the adverts indicate the Departments’ support of female workers. Furthermore, we will inform any known suitable female candidates of the vacancies and try to identify others who may be suitable for the positions (Action 3.1).

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Figure 10. Gender profile of recruitment to Grade 7 and 8 research posts

A greater number of women applied to posts at Grades 7 and 8 and over the period shown women have a greater success rate to shortlisting and appointment, but our numbers are small and therefore variations can be quite large.

Figure 11. Gender profile of recruitment for Clinical Research Fellows

Over the period shown 23F and 22M applied to become Clinical research Fellows and equal numbers were shortlisted, 50%F and 31%M of shortlisted candidates were appointed. Those appointed were the strongest based strictly on the selection criteria. We are happy with the number of both females and males we are attracting to these roles, therefore we are not intending to take any action at the moment. Nevertheless, we will continue to monitor the situation (Action 1.2).

(ii) Applications for promotion and success rates by gender and grade – comment on whether these differ for men and women and if they do explain what action may be taken. Where the number of women is small applicants may comment on specific examples of where women have been through the promotion process. Explain how potential candidates are identified.

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The University has no formal promotion process for Academic staff but the biennial Recognition of Distinction Exercise is open to senior academic staff and is an opportunity to apply for the title of Professor, this is a promotion in terms of title only, but something that staff aspire to. The scheme has been temporarily suspended since 2010 but is due to be re-‐launched later in 2013. Over the time period shown we only had male academics that were eligible to apply, 9 applications have been made since 2006, 6 successful, 3 unsuccessful.

The University also awards the title of University Research Lecturer to senior Postdoctoral Researchers who have an academic standing commensurate with that expected of a University Lecturer. We have not had any applications for the URL exercise in the last four rounds, 09-‐12, but there are small numbers of staff in roles that are eligible to apply. We will continue to support staff to help them achieve the experience and training to enable them to apply for the award (Action 4.6). The introduction of Personal Development Planning (PDP) (Action 4.2) will help us identify candidates who are approaching this academic standing. Staff at all levels can apply for a new post at a higher grade or can apply for regrading if the scope of their role changes or if they are given additional responsibility (see section on Career Development below). If successful, this moves them to a new pay grade with possible progression to higher salary levels. Candidates for regrading are identified by discussions with their line manager, PI or Administrator. Identification of possible applicants will become easier with the full introduction of the annual PDP. Six female members of staff have applied for and received role regrading to Grade 7 or above since 2011. There were no applications from males during this period as there were very few males in these grades during this period (Figure 9). We will continue to monitor the application rates for regrading to see if the rates are proportionate.

b) For each of the areas below, explain what the key issues are in the department, what steps have been taken to address any imbalances, what success/impact has been achieved so far and what additional steps may be needed.

(i) Recruitment of staff – comment on how the department’s recruitment processes ensure that female candidates are attracted to apply, and how the department ensures its short listing, selection processes and criteria comply with the university’s equal opportunities policies.

University guidelines for recruitment are followed. There is always at least one female on selection panels, applicants are shortlisted for interview based solely on fitting the essential and desirable criteria in the job advert. Staff are required to attend both recruitment training (The Oxford Learning Institute (OLI) runs an online course on ‘Recruitment and Selection’) and equality and diversity training in order to chair a selection panel. In recruiting for roles where there is a shortage of females or ethnic minorities the Department makes it clear on the advert that applications from women and black or ethnic minority applicants are particularly welcome. Where we know of suitable female candidates we inform them that we are recruiting and encourage them to apply for the post. Success at interview is based solely on merit and best fit for the role. Across grades 7 and 8 and at Clinical Research grade we have had a greater number of female applicants for 2009-‐2012 (Figure 10 &Figure 11).

(ii) Support for staff at key career transition points – having identified key areas of attrition of female staff in the department, comment on any interventions, programmes

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and activities that support women at the crucial stages, such as personal development training, opportunities for networking, mentoring programmes and leadership training. Identify which have been found to work best at the different career stages.

One of the biggest challenges all staff have is to progress their careers and this is particularly difficult if female staff take a career break to have a family. Additionally, in a small department such as ours the opportunities to transition to the next level are reduced because of the small number of senior posts. The Department has 1F and 1M (fellowship not yet commenced) researchers who have been awarded independent fellowships whilst in post. These fellowships are the starting point to further progression to academic status. The female was initially supported by the Department to apply for and receive a Daphne Jackson Fellowship; this is a returner’s scheme helping those with a background in science, engineering and technology to return after a career break. She was then supported to apply for the fellowship she now holds. This group have identified that early discussions about career development and aspirations were key to their advancement. In addition there are researchers in the Department, 1F and 1M, who are named as co-‐applicants on grants. The new Personal Development Planning scheme (see below) should ensure that all staff assess their career goals regularly and identify any potential development needs that the Department can support them to achieve (Actions 4.2, 3.2, 3.3, 4.5). We also aim to encourage applications for independent fellowships by informing both PIs and researchers of funding calls and by clarifying the information available to support such applications. We plan to set up a database of the fellowships available within our field so that staff can easily access information on the schemes available to them (Action 4.5). We will monitor the application and success rate for independent fellowships.

The University, through the OLI, runs a development programme, Springboard, aimed specifically at women. The Medical Sciences Division (MSD) also runs a Medical Sciences Skills Training Programme that aims to provide staff with teaching skills for seminars, small groups, large groups and lectures. Staff can also access career support via the University Staff Gateway, where there are links for specific female support. We will add links to these sites to our SharePoint website (Action 5.7). The University is holding a University of Oxford Research Staff Conference for the first time in July 2013; we have informed the staff in the Department that this is taking place. Although the Department does not have a formal mentoring scheme in place across all groups one of the larger groups has initiated its own mentoring scheme. Members of the group are allocated a mentor who is in a senior grade and who does not have any line management responsibilities for their mentee. The mentee can then seek advice or discuss any problems or concerns they have with their mentor. We received positive feedback from our focus group about this scheme. The Department has discussed mentoring of staff by senior members to help them reach their potential. The lack of females at the faculty level limits female-‐to-‐female mentoring within the Department, but we aim to explore a link between our department and similarly sized departments in the MSD to see if we can form a mentoring network. We also aim to see whether the MSD has any plans to co-‐ordinate such a scheme, although we understand that there not a scheme in place currently (Action 4.1).

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Career development

a) For each of the areas below, explain what the key issues are in the department, what steps have been taken to address any imbalances, what success/impact has been achieved so far and what additional steps may be needed.

(i) Promotion and career development – comment on the appraisal and career development process, and promotion criteria and whether these take into consideration responsibilities for teaching, research, administration, pastoral work and outreach work; is quality of work emphasised over quantity of work?

The Clinical members of the Department are required by the NHS to have annual appraisals and career development to maintain their professional registration. Academic work, either educational or research, is assessed alongside three other areas, clinical, management and other roles. Trainee clinicians also undergo an annual review of their clinical progression with the Oxford Deanery.

There has not been a formal department wide, grade wide, appraisal or career development process in recent years for non-‐clinical staff, although both have been carried out by some groups in the Department. Our survey highlighted that 47% of respondents did not have a regular appraisal or performance review and of those who did 36% of respondents did not find it a worthwhile process (more females, 45%, than males, 17%, did not find the process worthwhile). Before we embarked on the Athena SWAN process our Administrator had identified that this was an area that needed improvement and as a result the Department has recently started a roll out of annual appraisal and PDP, this will be rolled out to all grades over the next few months. It is hoped that this will help both line managers and staff identify areas for career development or potential for promotion that will benefit both the individual and the Department (Action 4.2). We will monitor the success of the appraisal and PDP scheme, getting feedback on how worthwhile the process is perceived to be and adapt the process if necessary. Our Administrator is in discussion with staff from the Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences and the Nuffield Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology to develop a method to assess the usefulness of the appraisal and PDP scheme.

The University runs a Recognition of Distinction scheme for academic staff (Section 4a(ii)). Promotions for staff in grades 1 to 10 are processed through the University HERA regrading scheme. This scheme measures elements of a job (size, complexity, physical demands, teaching, pastoral care, etc.) and gives it a score, the scores for all the elements are added and the total indicates the grade of the job. Staff can apply or be recommended for regrading, via their supervisors, if their job significantly changes and grows from their job description. Staff can also effectively be promoted by applying for departmental jobs at a higher grade or by applying for fellowships. Results from our survey indicated that 40% of respondents did not feel that appointment and promotion processes are clear and transparent. The annual appraisal and PDP will assist in recognising whether individuals should be applying for regrading (Action 4.2).

(ii) Induction and training – describe the support provided to new staff at all levels, as well as details of any gender equality training. To what extent are good employment practices in the institution, such as opportunities for networking, the flexible working policy, and professional and personal development opportunities promoted to staff from the outset?

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Staff receive a departmental induction pack and induction when they start. The geographically remote nature of the Department and the fact that groups are embedded within other units means that some staff will receive an additional local induction. Additional specific task induction will also take place. The induction pack, or Departmental Handbook, explains the training and developmental policy of the Department and has a link to the University website for University and Divisionally run training courses (Action 4.3, 4.4).

Our survey data showed that 75%F and 80%M respondents felt that the Department was committed to training and developing staff, the same number felt the Department provided clear information on training and development. Having said that, 35% of respondents felt they did not have time to attend training and development courses. This will be addressed during the appraisal and PDP process when it is fully implemented. We do not currently have a central record of training undertaken by staff but we asked staff to tell us what training they have undertaken over the last three years, of those who replied the average number of courses taken per person per year was: 3.5 in 2010; 2.8 in 2011; 4.0 in 2012. The new University personnel system, Core, will make it easier to record staff training in the future and we can also capture training course attendance in the annual PDP.

(iii) Support for female students – describe the support (formal and informal) provided for female students to enable them to make the transition to a sustainable academic career, particularly from postgraduate to researcher, such as mentoring, seminars and pastoral support and the right to request a female personal tutor. Comment on whether these activities are run by female staff and how this work is formally recognised by the department.

All higher degree students have access to their supervisor(s), the Director of Graduate Studies (DGS), the Departmental administrator (for administrative issues) and the Graduate Studies Committee of the Department. At this time all these individuals are male. The lack of female representation on the Graduate Studies Committee has been recognised as an issue. We are intending to introduce student representation, in some form, into the committee and it is our intention to have female students in the representing group (although this will be a voluntary role as we would not want to enforce participation).

The DGS role has rotated around some of the faculty in the last few years. Students also have access to the administrative staff in the Graduate Studies office in MSD and receive information about all of this when they start in the Department. Furthermore, students also have college appointed supervisors who they meet with regularly as well as access to college and central pastoral care e.g., the student counselling service. If a student specifically requested a female advisor every effort would be made to accommodate their request.

Students are required to attend seminars and they also present their data as a seminar in their third year at a Departmental postgraduate student research day. We are planning to incorporate this day into our new Departmental research day so that students get a greater chance to interact with members of the Department.

Students will normally seek the advice of their supervisor regarding transition to an academic career. The University runs a career support service for DPhil students, Postdocs and other staff. The MSD runs a GRAD school annually and has links to Vitae, an organisation championing the personal, professional and career development of doctoral researchers and research staff in higher

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education institutions and research institutes. We plan to add links to these websites when we implement the Departmental SharePoint website, currently in development (Action 5.7).

Organisation and culture


(i) Male and female representation on committees – provide a breakdown by committee and explain any differences between male and female representation. Explain how potential members are identified.

The Department is small and has very few committees. As well as the previously described Athena SWAN committee we have:

The termly Faculty Committee is comprised of the Senior Faculty, all currently male, and serviced by the Administrator, also male. For the same reasons the Graduate Studies Committee is also currently all male. We recognise that this is not an ideal situation and would like to have some female representation on these committees. If we were successful in filling our vacant lecturer posts the appointees would join the committee, the appointment of females would begin to address the gender imbalance. The lack of female representation on the Graduate Studies Committee is of particular concern. We are intending to introduce student representation, in some form, into the committee and it is our intention to have female students in the group.

The Departmental Safety Committee comprises representatives across the grades and roles of the Department, reflecting the departmental makeup. There are 3M/4F from the Department plus a University Area Safety Officer.

The termly Children's and Genetics Directorate Joint NHS/University Teaching Committee comprises the Head of Department, the Director of Learning, Teaching and Assessment, the course Administrator, four consultants (3NHS, 1 NHS/University), three Academic/Clinical lecturers and two medical students, 3F/9M in total. The membership reflects the teaching requirements and roles of members of the department; student input provides feedback to both teachers and students.

The HoD and the faculty members are all approachable and staff know at least one member of the committee. We intend to post all committee meeting minutes on the new departmental SharePoint and communicate major decisions directly via email (Action 5.3). We have already started this and have received positive feedback from members of the department about the improved flow of information. We hope this will encourage staff to feed back to the committees any issues they would like to raise.

(ii) Female:male ratio of academic and research staff on fixed-‐term contracts and open-‐ended (permanent) contracts – comment on any differences between male and female staff representation on fixed-‐term contracts and say what is being done to address them.

Figure 12 shows the gender profile of Academic staff on fixed-‐term and permanent contracts. At Academic level the staff with permanent contracts are the Faculty whilst the 1F/2M on fixed term contracts are Clinical Lecturers. The fixed term nature of both Senior Clinical Research and Clinical

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Research Training posts, shown in Figure 13, is due to compliance with the rules of the Royal College of Paediatrics and the Oxford Deanery.

Figure 12. Gender profile of Academic staff on fixed-‐term and open-‐ended (permanent) contracts

Figure 13. Gender profile of Clinical Researchers on fixed-‐term and open-‐ended (permanent) contracts

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Figure 14. Gender profile of Researchers on fixed-‐term and open-‐ended (permanent) contracts

Staff in grades 7-‐10 are often on fixed term contracts because the posts are funded by research grants that have specified end points. The staff in grades 8 and 9 are currently all female, with 2 permanent and 3 fixed term. Over the period shown there was an average of 14.7F and 4.3M in research posts, of these all the males were on fixed term contracts whilst the number of females on permanent contracts increased slightly over the three years. The numbers are still very small and we will continue to monitor the situation (Action 3.4). We have recently reviewed the contracts for a number of academic-‐related and support staff funded by research programmes and have moved the majority of staff onto open-‐ended or permanent contracts rather than fixed-‐term. Those staff remaining on fixed-‐term contracts are because of the specific, fixed-‐term nature of grant funding for particular projects, whereby staff are employed in a specific role on a specific funding stream.


(i) Representation on decision-‐making committees – comment on evidence of gender equality in the mechanism for selecting representatives. What evidence is there that women are encouraged to sit on a range of influential committees inside and outside the department? How is the issue of ‘committee overload’ addressed where there are small numbers of female staff?

The main decision-‐making committee of the Department is the termly Faculty Committee comprised of the Senior Faculty (currently all male). Representatives on this committee are selected from the senior academic staff. Any women who are employed at this level in the future will join the committee (Action 5.10). The lack of any females on this committee is recognised as a problem, one that we will try to address by attracting suitably qualified females to any academic vacancies that arise in the future (Action 3.5).

The possibility of “committee overload” will be something that we will have to carefully consider if we do succeed in recruiting a female(s) into an academic role, the implementation of both the workload model and the annual PDP should aid us in managing this issue (Actions 5.4 and 4.2).

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The senior Academic staff sit on many influential committees across the MSD, the University, the Medical School, Oxford Ethics Committee, University Colleges plus funding organisations, clinical advisory boards and scientific advisory boards, both in the UK and internationally.

Academic-‐related staff also sit on some non-‐departmental committees, including the Medicines for Children Research Network (MCRN) study assessment committee where the feasibility of commercial clinical research studies for children is assessed in the weekly MCRN Industry Feasibility teleconference. Detailed reviews from a range of experts in clinical research (including nurses, doctors and pharmacists) are obtained and then assessed in the teleconference. The objective of this process is to ensure that studies being undertaken across England are feasible (1F staff member). 1F staff member also sits on the University Joint Committee with University Support Staff (JCUSS) where items that will affect University Support Staff (grades 1 to 5) e.g., salaries, grading, pensions, benefits are brought to Union staff representatives and departmental administrative staff, and the issues raised are fed back to the University Personnel Committee.

(ii) Workload model – describe the systems in place to ensure that workload allocations, including pastoral and administrative responsibilities (including the responsibility for work on women and science) are taken into account at appraisal and in promotion criteria. Comment on the rotation of responsibilities e.g. responsibilities with a heavy workload and those that are seen as good for an individual’s career.

There is not a formal workload model in the Department but we are a small Department. The HoD has a good overview of activities and senior members meet regularly. The faculty is small and administrative responsibilities are distributed appropriately across the members, this works well to manage the workload. We plan to look at the feasibility of introducing a workload model across the Department (Action 5.4).

Workload allocation for non-‐faculty members of the Department is normally assigned through supervisors, based on job description. Survey data shows that a minority of respondents felt that their workload was unreasonable. Discussions in the proposed annual PDP meetings should hopefully help both staff members and supervisors address workload issues where they exist.

Supervisors are responsible in the first instance for the pastoral care of the staff, with support available from both the HoD and the Departmental Administrator if required. The Director of Graduate Studies has some pastoral responsibility for the postgraduate students. This role has been rotated around the Department in recent years.

(iii) Timing of departmental meetings and social gatherings – provide evidence of consideration for those with family responsibilities, for example what the department considers to be core hours and whether there is a more flexible system in place.

Wherever possible meetings are timed to suit the timetables of those who are required to attend, this might not necessarily be within core hours (10am-‐4pm) if it is convenient and the choice of the participants e.g., Faculty Meeting. The timing of meetings held outside core hours will be reviewed regularly, especially if new members join. Most other meetings are within core hours. Focus group discussions did reveal that some meetings were held fairly early in the morning, when it was more difficult for those with childcare or transport issues to arrive on time. 29% of survey respondents felt meetings were not timed to suit those with caring responsibilities; this is something we will address in our action plan (Action 6.4). Social gatherings may be held during core hours, but this is not always possible. When they are held outside core hours, we ensure there is adequate notice so

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that staff have sufficient time to make childcare or transport arrangements.

(iv) Culture –demonstrate how the department is female-‐friendly and inclusive. ‘Culture’ refers to the language, behaviours and other informal interactions that characterise the atmosphere of the department, and includes all staff and students.

Our staff survey showed that more than 90% of staff would recommend working in the Department to friends or colleagues. The majority of staff, from 57F/21M respondents, agreed that staff are treated fairly regardless of gender (94%), ethnicity (97%), disability (90% plus 7% N/A), age (96%) and sexual orientation (91% plus 7% N/A). We are happy that these results reflect our inclusive and welcoming culture but will continue to monitor the situation through our annual survey (Action 1.3). Of concern was that some members of staff did not feel that they were treated equally regardless of: Role, 5%M and 17.5%F; Working hours or contract type 5.3%M and 12%, the numbers are small but we will monitor the situation thorough the annual survey and we hope we have addressed these issues by implementing core hours and a PDP scheme. Our survey also revealed that 30% of respondents did not feel there was a strong element of teamwork in the Department. The lack of understanding of other people’s roles may be partly explained by a lack of cohesiveness in the Department due to geographical dispersion. We plan to build the community spirit of the Department by holding two days of activities each year (Action 5.9), one research and one more social, which we plan to make fully inclusive. We hope this will bring people together, enabling them to get to know each other and appreciate each other’s place within the Department.

(v) Outreach activities – comment on the level of participation by female and male staff in outreach activities with schools and colleges and other centres. Describe who the programmes are aimed at, and how this activity is formally recognised as part of the workload model and in appraisal and promotion processes.

The largest of our groups, The Oxford Vaccine Group and Infectious Disease Research Group take part annually in the Oxford Biomedical Research Centre Public Open Day where they explain their research to school groups and members of the public. There is normally a talk about a hot topic and a table for interaction. The group give out bookmarks and have posters to explain their work. A range of staff from the group run the open day, both male and female. The OVG nurses, all female, also have contacts with schools and school nurses, they talk to the children and put up posters and information about immunity and vaccination and other health issues. OVG has a website, managed by a male but contributed to by other members of staff, the aim of which is to inform the public about vaccines and the research of the group. It has a blog where up to date studies are discussed. Practice nurses are also going to be given posters for their surgeries to highlight the website. The Childhood Cancer Research Group also has its own highly rated website, managed by a female within the group, which provides the public with information about its cancer registration and research activities. Outreach activities will be taken into consideration in any proposed workload model (Action 5.4).

Flexibility and managing career breaks


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(i) Maternity return rate – comment on whether maternity return rate in the department has improved or deteriorated and any plans for further improvement. If the department is unable to provide a maternity return rate, please explain why.

Figure 15. Maternity return rates 2008-‐2011

As we are a small department, we have relatively few Academic or postdoctoral research staff going on maternity leave each year, the vast majority of women return to post after their leave, we are unaware of the reason why the one leaver chose not to return. We will continue to monitor return versus leaver rates in the future (Action 1.2).

(ii) Paternity, adoption and parental leave uptake – comment on the uptake of paternity leave by grade and parental and adoption leave by gender and grade. Has this improved or deteriorated and what plans are there to improve further.

In the last three years we have had one male taking paternity leave, he took the two-‐week ordinary paternity leave. No one has requested to take the additional paternity leave and pay that is now available to them through the University, this scheme is explained when a man requests paternity leave. There have been no requests for adoption leave.

(iii) Numbers of applications and success rates for flexible working by gender and grade – comment on any disparities. Where the number of women in the department is small applicants may wish to comment on specific examples.

The Department is very supportive of staff who request flexible working and every effort is made to accommodate such requests, with the default position being yes if staff are eligible under the University scheme, unless there is an insurmountable operational reason to deny flexible work.

Other staff who are not eligible for the formal scheme are still able to request flexible working and again, where there is not an operational reason to refuse, the Department would try to honour the request.

Over the three-‐year period covered we had six new requests for part time working from staff (all females) at grade 7 or above (plus 13 requests from other grades, again all females). All six requests were granted (and of the departmental total of 19 only one request was turned down, because it did not fit the criteria and could not be accommodated operationally).

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(i) Flexible working – comment on the numbers of staff working flexibly and their grades and gender, whether there is a formal or informal system, the support and training provided for managers in promoting and managing flexible working arrangements, and how the department raises awareness of the options available.

The Department has males and females working on a part time basis across the Department, an average of 16% males and 29% of females have worked part time over the period shown in Figure 16,Figure 17 Figure 18. The process for flexible working is normally a formal one, following the University guidelines. We have applied for some posts to be funded as part time when seeking grants to support staff that wanted to continue working part time.

There is an informal flexible working policy in place where, in agreement with line managers, staff can shift their workday to fit in with dropping or picking up children, or to fit in with transport arrangements. Additionally, staff can work flexibly in order to accommodate periods when they may need to work non-‐standard hours, e.g., sometimes clinical trials need samples to be processed within certain time periods.

Figure 16. Gender profile of Academic staff working full and part time.

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Figure 17. Gender profile of Clinical Research staff working full and part time.

Figure 18. Gender profile of Research staff working full and part time.

(ii) Cover for maternity and adoption leave and support on return – explain what the department does, beyond the university maternity policy package, to support female staff before they go on maternity leave, arrangements for covering work during absence, and to help them achieve a suitable work-‐life balance on their return.

The University maternity leave scheme is very generous and people are happy with the length of leave (99% of survey respondents), but we have identified a need to better manage the workload of the individual on leave. Arrangements both to support the member of staff going on maternity leave to and cover their work have been made between the staff member and their supervisor. Discussions with the focus groups highlighted the potential extra workload for the rest of the team when someone is on maternity leave as an issue. In some cases posts are backfilled during maternity but in other cases the workload was distributed to the remaining staff. Where posts are not back filled it is due to the terms of a grant or the nature of the role. Grantors do not always supply additional funds to cover maternity leave and some roles require specialist skills that can be difficult to recruit into because of the length of training required to enable the role to be competently performed. As a consequence, we have decided to develop a Standard Operating Procedure, in line with University policy, to guide the supervisor, the person going on maternity

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leave, and the remaining team through planning the time leading up to the leave, the arrangements for cover (either additional temporary or in house) and the hand back of work upon return after maternity leave (Actions 6.2, 6.3). In the survey the majority of staff reported their satisfaction with the balance between work and home responsibilities and recognised that working hours were flexible enough to allow for adequate child care arrangements to be put in place (Action 6.1). Nevertheless, the insufficient supply of nursery places in the organisation as a whole was highlighted repeatedly as in urgent need of remedy. This will be fed back to the MSD (Action 6.5). [4641 words]

5. Any other comments: maximum 500 words

Please comment here on any other elements which are relevant to the application, e.g. other SET-‐specific initiatives of special interest that have not been covered in the previous sections. Include any other relevant data (e.g. results from staff surveys), provide a commentary on it and indicate how it is planned to address any gender disparities identified.

Our research strategy has as its main plank the establishment of an Institute of Developmental and Regenerative Medicine. It is our firm intention when conducting the recruitment for academic career track posts in this Institute to do this firmly in the spirit espoused by the Athena SWAN process. We hope to be able to report progress in this area in a subsequent application for a Silver Athena SWAN award.

Although some areas where our staff have issues e.g., provision of nursery places and public transport and parking, are without our ability to change we have nonetheless taken these issues seriously as they can impact on the work life balance of our staff. We have written to the people who do have influence, and informed them about the problems faced by our staff, in the hope that this will feed into and affect future planning positively. We will maintain this dialogue and monitor the issues faced by our staff.

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6. Action plan

Provide an action plan as an appendix. An action plan template is available on the Athena SWAN website.

The Action Plan should be a table or a spreadsheet comprising actions to address the priorities identified by the analysis of relevant data presented in this application, success/outcome measures, the post holder responsible for each action and a timeline for completion. The plan should cover current initiatives and your aspirations for the next three years.

The action plan does not need to cover all areas at Bronze; however the expectation is that the department will have the organisational structure to move forward, including collecting the necessary data.

28

Description of action

Action taken already and outcome at March 2013

Further action planned at March 2013

Responsibility Timescale Success Measure

1 Baseline Data and Supporting Evidence 1.1 Ensure there

is an acceptable proportion of males:females at all grades.

Data collected on the male: female ratio of staff already in post, and compared to other departments. No actions currently needed at non-academic level. See 3.4 for academic grades.

1) Monitor how the proportions change over time. 2) Ensure vacancy advertisements encourage female applicants.

Administrator & Human Resources

1) Every 6 months, from 6.13. 2) Each time a vacancy is advertised.

The ratio of females:males in post remains acceptable and comparable to other departments.

1.2 Ensure that staff turnover remains proportionate to staff in post, with no major variation across gender and grade.

Data collected and analysed. The turnover is currently proportional to the ratio of females:males in post. We do not currently have a system in place to determine the reasons for the small number of staff who have left.

1) Monitor how the proportions change over time. If turnover numbers become disproportionate, investigate the reasons why. 2) Introduce exit interviews to determine the reasons for staff leaving.


1) Every 6 months, from 6.13. 2) At the point of resignation.

Turnover numbers remain proportionate to staff in post. Ability to monitor the reasons for staff turnover.

29

1.3 Identify and monitor staff views about the good and bad points of working in the Department.

A comprehensive survey was sent out August 2012. Results reviewed by committee, and focus groups were allocated to discuss issues in more detail with all members of staff.

Repeat the survey annually to monitor any changes in opinion.

Athena SWAN Committee

Annually, from 8.13.

Annual monitoring of staff views of working in the Department, to enable the identification of concerning issues and to seek to address them.

1.4 Improve staff opinion on parking and transport.

This was included in the survey, and was frequently highlighted as an issue. While we have no direct control over these issues, the committee sent out letters and emails to individuals and committees involved in parking and transport decision making, informing them of the problems faced by our staff.

1) Maintain correspondence with decision makers, and inform departmental staff of any proposed changes that might help resolve these issues. 2) Include parking and transport in annual survey, to monitor any changes in opinion.

1) Mary Deadman & Administrator 2) Athena SWAN Committee

1) Continually. 2) Annually, from 8.13.

Decision makers acknowledge the issues raised, and endeavour to explore ways to improve transport and parking. Continual relay of information with staff increases positive feedback in the annual survey.

2 Undergraduate and Postgraduate Students

30

2.1 Ensure that application and offer rates for the Paediatric Infectious Diseases Course reflects the proportion of females:males in the speciality.

Data collected and analysed. The proportion of place offers to applicants does not show any gender bias and reflects the nationally high proportion of women choosing Paediatrics as a specialty.

Monitor how the proportions change over time. If turnover numbers become disproportionate, investigate the reasons.

Andrew Pollard with Continuing Education & Athena SWAN Committee

After each round of course place allocation, annually in October.

The course uptake continues to reflects the proportion of females:males in the specialty.

2.2 Ensure a continued gender balance in application and offer rates for postgraduate students.

Data collected and analysed. We have very small numbers of students, currently equal number of females and males.

Monitor the success to application rates of females:males.

Director of Graduate Studies with Continuing Education

After each selection round, from 12.13.

The application and offer rate for females and males remains appropriate for the number of graduates in the relevant specialisation.

31

2.3 Encourage students to pursue academic careers after qualifying.

Looked at data in the destination survey run by the University. Where a destination has been disclosed, postgraduates have carried on with either a clinical role or post –doctoral research. Identified the need for departmental monitoring of postgraduate destinations.

Introduce a questionnaire of postgraduate intentions at the end of degrees. Use this to determine whether there is any difference in the proportion of females and males continuing in clinical or research roles. If a gender difference is indicated, put a mentoring scheme in place to encourage graduates to pursue academic careers.

Director of Graduate Studies

Questionnaire upon completion of degree. Analyse data annually, from 10.13.

Destination profiles of our students mirror those of Oxford graduates as a whole.

3 Key Career Transition Points, Appointments and Promotions

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3.1 Ensure a continued gender balance in application and success rates for jobs across all grades.

Data collected and analysed. At academic level we have had a roughly equal number of female and male applicants for two positions, with two male appointments. We have had a greater number of female applicants at grades 6 to 9 and females have had a greater success rate to shortlisting and appointment. In all cases the numbers are small.

Introduce positive action to encourage women and black and ethnic minorities to apply for posts: 1) Provide a link to Athena SWAN in future vacancy advertisements. 2) Inform suitably qualified women of vacancies and encourage applications. 3) Re-design the departmental website to reflect our positive attitudes to female staff (link to Athena SWAN, photographs of women in the workplace, acknowledgement of female successes within the Department). 4) Continue to monitor the gender ratio.

1) Administrator & Human Resources 2)Management Committee 3) Human Resources 4) Human Resources

Continually, from 5.13. Analyse data annually, from 12.13

A continued high proportion of applications from women and black and ethnic minorities.

33

3.2 Encourage successful applications for promotion, for both genders and across all grades of job.

Data collected and analysed, see section 4 a (ii). High numbers of female staff have applied for promotion or role regrading since 2011, with a 100% success rate.

Include discussion of promotion at annual staff Personal Development Review (see 4.2).

Group Supervisors

Annually, at staff review. Analyse data annually, from 12.13

A maintained acceptable level of application and success rate for promotion across gender and grade.

3.3 Encourage the recruitment of female research staff above grade 7.

Data collected and analysed, see Figure 6. There are significantly more females than males in grades 7 to 9, accounted for in part by the high number of research associated female nurses employed at these grades. The proportions mirror those of other clinical medical departments in Russell Group Universities.

Introduce positive action to continue encouraging women and black and ethnic minorities to apply for posts: 1) Encourage females to apply for promotion or for new posts within the Department. 2) Provide a link to Athena SWAN in future vacancy advertisements. 3) Inform suitably qualified women of vacancies and encourage applications.

Administrator & Group Supervisors

1) Annually, at staff review. 2,3) When new posts are advertised. Analyse data annually, from 12.13

An increase in the number of female research staff above grade 7.

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3.4 Increase the proportion of staff on permanent contracts

Data collected and analysed on past/present staff in post, see Figure 12. Numbers are small for all categories, so it is difficult to conclude any gender bias. For the largest category (research staff), all males have been on fixed term contracts, whilst the number of females on permanent contracts has increased since 2010.Several academic-related and support staff have recently been moved onto open-ended or permanent contracts. Those remaining on fixed-term contracts are employed in a specific role on specific grant funded projects.

1) Continue to transfer as many staff as possible onto permanent contracts where funding allows. 2) Monitor the proportion of staff on permanent contracts.

Administrator & Principal Investigators

1) Review individual funding situations 6 months before the end of a fixed term contract. 2) Annually, from 12.13.

An increase in the proportion of staff on permanent contracts.

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3.5

Increase the number of female applicants for academic positions

Data collected and analysed on staff in post. Women are under-represented in academic positions. This was a main attrition point for the Department, and was discussed with the Head of Department and the Management Committee.

Introduce positive action to encourage women and black and ethnic minorities to apply for posts: 1) Provide a link to Athena SWAN in future vacancy advertisements. 2) Inform suitably qualified women of vacancies and encourage applications. 3) Re-design the departmental website to reflect our positive attitudes to female staff (link to Athena SWAN, photographs of women in the workplace, acknowledgement of female successes within the Department). 4) Continue to monitor the gender ratio.

1) Administrator & Human Resources 2) Management Committee 3) Human Resources 4) Human Resources

1-3) Continually, from 5.13. 4) Analyse data annually, from 12.13

See increase in number of female applicants for academic posts.

4 Career Advice and Support

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4.1 Improve the level of mentoring, both formal and informal, within the Department

This was discussed with committee representatives from each group. There is no department wide policy for mentoring, although one of the larger groups has set up a mentoring scheme within the group. Postgraduate students receive mentoring thorough Graduate Studies.

The lack of women at academic level prevents us setting up a mentoring scheme for female non-academics by female academics. We will explore whether we can form a mentoring network by linking with similarly sized departments in the Medical Sciences Division. We will also discuss with the Division whether they might co-ordinate such a scheme.

Head of Department & Athena SWAN Committee & Medical Sciences Division

From 5.13.

The development of an inter-department mentoring scheme, with an adequate number of female academic mentors.

37

4.2 Roll out a formal appraisal and Personal Development Planning programme across the Department

This was discussed with staff in the post-survey focus groups. NHS affiliated staff have appraisals, training and PDR to maintain their professional registration. There has not been a Department wide appraisal or PDR, although some groups have been running an informal process. A formal appraisal and Personal Development Planning (PDP) programme has been introduced, and the roll out started in January 2103.

The programme will be rolled out to the entire department.

Administrator & Group Supervisors

Programme rolled out to all staff from 1.13, to be in place by 5.14. Individual PDP will be performed annually.

Annual PDP for all staff. As a result, we hope to see an increase in uptake of training opportunities (see 4.3, 4.4), applications for personal funding (see 4.5), and levels of promotion (see 3.2, 4.6).

38

4.3 Monitor and encourage uptake of University courses that support career development

We do not currently have a central system to monitor course uptake, so were unable to address this.

1) Set up a register to monitor uptake of training. 2) Provide details of upcoming training courses on the Departmental website. 3) Supervisors to encourage all research staff to attend for Medical Sciences Skills Training programmes, as well as other role specific training courses. Females should be encouraged to apply for courses such as Springboard. 4) Include discussion of training courses as part of the annual PDP.

1) Administrator 2) Human Resources 3,4) Group Supervisors

1) 5.13-12.13. 2-4) Continually from 5.13, review at annual PDP.

Good uptake of training courses, as measured by the new register. Positive feedback from individuals about the utility of the training course they have taken. Identification of individuals who are not taking up training courses, and subsequent encouragement by their supervisors to attend courses that might benefit their role or career.

39

4.4 Encourage staff to attend additional training opportunities

Our survey revealed that many staff felt there was not always time to attend courses and training opportunities.

1) As part of PDP, discuss prioritising or time protection to enable attendance on relevant courses. 2) Re-survey to see if there has been a positive change in opinion.

1) Group Supervisors 2) Athena SWAN Committee

1) Annually, at PDP. 2) Annually, from 8.13.

An increased uptake of training courses (see 4.3). A more positive feedback in the annual survey regarding time to take up training courses.

4.5 Encourage staff to apply for personal fellowships and grants

Data obtained for past and current personal funding applications. This identified that few senior non-academic staff have applied for/obtained personal fellowships or grants.

1) Raise awareness of available funding options via the newly constructed Departmental Sharepoint (see 5.7). Include contact details for staff that have previously applied for particular grants/fellowships, who can elect to act as advisors. 2) Encourage applications from appropriate staff.

1) Sabrina Harris & Kate O’Neill 2) Group Supervisors

1) 5.13-12.13. Update database quarterly, and email new information to all staff. 2) Annually, as part of PDP.

An increase in applications for personal fellowships and grants.

40

4.6 Support staff, particularly female, to qualify and apply for the title of University Research Lecturer

Data extracted, there are no staff within the Department with University Research Lecturer titles.

Review eligibility at annual PDP and work up to or apply for status.

Head of Department & Group Supervisors

Annually, at PDP.

Applications, particularly from females, for University Research Lecturer title

5 Culture, Communications and Departmental Organization 5.1

Ensure a continued awareness of Equality and Diversity (E&D)

Included in survey. The majority of staff feel that they are fairly treated regardless of gender, ethnicity, disability, age or sexual orientation.

1) Ensure that E&D is considered in job advertisements. 2) Ensure continuity of the Departments positivity of E&D by monitoring staff opinion in the annual survey.

1) Administrator& Human Resources 2) Athena SWAN Committee

1) As job vacancies arise. 2) Annually, from 8.13.

A continued positive response from staff in the annual survey.

5.2 Maintain and update the promotion of E&D in staff induction packs

The departmental induction pack (Staff Handbook) has been recently reviewed and E&D is already promoted.

Ensure this document is updated with any Departmental/University developments in E&D.

Administrator& Human Resources

Review annually, from 1.14.

Staff induction packs continue to promote E&D.

41

5.3 Encourage committee involvement and awareness of Departmental committee makeup, roles and decisions

Data gathered and analysed. The small size of the department means that all staff at academic grade sit on the Faculty Committee. Other committees draw staff from across the Department and across the grades.

1) Include details of committees (role, members, meeting dates) on the Departmental Sharepoint. 2) Post committee meeting minutes on the Departmental Sharepoint. Communicate any major decisions to all members of staff by email. 3) Where possible, rotate committee membership to avoid overload and to allow participation by a larger number of staff. 4) Monitor staff awareness and involvement through the annual survey.

1) Management Committee & Administrator& Sabrina Harris 2) Management Committee & Administrator & Head of Department 3) Management Committee 4) Athena SWAN Committee

Continuous, from 5.13. 4) Annually, from 8.13.

Continued involvement in committees by staff from across the Department and across the grades. Staff awareness of committee makeup, roles and decisions made, as measured in the annual survey.

42

5.4 Plan and implement an academic work load model

This was discussed with committee representatives from each group and the Head of Department. The Department currently does not have a workload model.

1) Begin to plan a workload model, based on methods adopted by other academic Departments within the University. 2) Include an assessment of workloads in the annual PDPs, enabling re-distribution of work if necessary. 3) Include in annual survey to monitor staff opinions.

1) Head of Department & Management committee 2) Administrator & Group Supervisors 3) Athena SWAN Committee

1) 5.13-12.13. 2) At annual PDPs. 3) Annually, from 8.13.

The implementation of an academic workload model. Increased positive responses from staff regarding workload in the annual survey.

5.5 Improve awareness of the achievements of female staff

This was discussed by the committee, and it was recognised that there was no official recognition of achievements specifically from female staff.

Ask female staff or their supervisors to notify of any achievements. Put news of achievement on Departmental Sharepoint and Website.

Group Supervisors & Sabrina Harris

Continuous, from 5.13. Ensure supervisors are fully updated at annual PDPs.

Female staff are acknowledged for their achievements. The Department’s support of female staff is highlighted.

43

5.6 Improve the Departmental website to reflect a female friendly attitude

The committee looked at the current website. There are no obvious female friendly statements or images.

Add the following to the website to reflect our positive attitudes to female staff: - a link to Athena SWAN, stating that we are following the principles of this organisation - a few photographs of women at work within the Department - acknowledgement of female successes within the Department - links to childcare provision


5.13-12.13. Review annually, from 6.14.

A female friendly attitude is portrayed both to the public as well as internally. Increased applications from females for Departmental vacancies.

5.7 Improve the level of dissemination of information across the Department

This was discussed with committee representatives from each group. It was agreed that although we have a Departmental website, dissemination of information could be improved by an intranet site to share news, seminar information, opportunities etc.

1) Set up a Sharepoint site and encourage everyone to use it. 2) Monitor its value to staff in annual survey.

1) Administrator & Sabrina Harris 2) Athena SWAN Committee

1) 5.13-9.13, with continuous updates thereafter. 2) Annually, from 8.13.

Sharepoint site in use. Its value is reflected in the annual staff survey.

44

5.8 Make changes to working environments to improve the quality of working life

This was included in the survey. Issues were identified with office space: overcrowding, hot-desking, no local breakout space or communal areas to meet and discuss work informally or meet for coffee/lunch. There were also frequent problems with temperature control.

1) Examine potential space reallocation within groups. 2) Highlight issues with temperature management to relevant building managers. 3) Include in annual survey to monitor staff opinions.

1) Group Supervisors. 2) Group representatives from the Athena SWAN Committee & Building Managers. 3) Athena SWAN Committee

1) At the point of staff turnover. 2) 5.13-10.13. 3) Annually, from 8.13.

Re-organisation when space becomes available. Re-address space allocation when new staff join. Better local temperatures in working spaces. An overall more positive response in the annual survey.

5.9 Improve the cohesiveness of the Department.

The survey indicated that this was an issue for several groups, as the Department is geographically dispersed across the city. A designated committee working group was set up and produced an outline plan of two departmental wide annual events: a Research Awareness Day and a Departmental Fun Day

1) Organise the Research Awareness Day (book venue, plan itinerary, advertise to staff). 2) Begin planning for the Departmental Fun Day (decide on activities, venue etc). 3) Monitor staff attitudes towards Departmental cohesiveness in the annual survey.

1,2) Kate O’Neill & Alex Holmes & Group Supervisors & Head of Department 3) Athena SWAN Committee

From 2.13. 1) To be held 11.13. 2) To be held summer 2014. 3) Annually, from 8.13.

Two gathering events held, with participation from across the Department. Improved attitudes to Departmental cohesiveness reflected in the annual survey.

45

5.10 Encourage the recruitment of female staff to the Departmental management team

All of the management team are senior male academics, as there are currently only males in this role.

Encourage females to apply for future senior academic roles (see 3.1 and 3.4), who would then be recruited to the management team.

Head of Department

As vacancies arise.

Addition of female(s) to the management team

6 Career breaks/flexible working 6.1

Maintain staff awareness of parental leave, return to work and flexible working

These are all clearly stated in the staff induction pack.

1) Ensure that this is relayed to staff that may be eligible. 2) Encourage line managers to meet with staff who are pregnant or seeking flexible working and discuss the options available to them. 3) Monitor staff awareness through annual survey.

1,2) Human Resources & Administrator & Group Supervisors 3) Athena SWAN Committee

Continually. Staff are aware of their options when considering having a family and/or require flexible working, as measured in the annual survey.

46

6.2 Improve policies on work handover prior to and after return from maternity leave

This was highlighted as an issue in the survey. Apart from the University policy, there is no additional centralised plan for organising maternity leave and return.

1) Develop an SOP to be used by the supervisor and maternity leaver to plan leave, possible cover or reallocation of duties and return to work. Modified SOP can be used to manage long term sick leave or other long term leave. 2) Monitor the impact of this SOP in the annual survey

1) Mary Deadman 2) Athena SWAN Committee

1) 5.13-7.13. 2) Annually, from 8.13.

Improved attitudes towards workloads associated with maternity leave, as measured in the annual survey.

6.3 Reduce the impact of maternity leave on remaining staff

This was included in the survey. This revealed that lack of maternity cover can impact heavily on others in the team.

1) Develop an SOP to be used by supervisor and maternity leaver and team to plan leave, reallocation of duties and return to work. 2) Engage in a petition currently being compiled by the Russell Group to present to funding bodies, informing them of the issues arising from not providing replacements for staff on maternity leave. Inform all staff of this petition. 3) Monitor the views of staff in the annual survey.

1) Mary Deadman 2) Head of Department 3) Athena SWAN Committee

1) 5.13-7.13. 2) From 5.13. 3) Annually, from 8.13.

Improved attitudes towards workloads associated with maternity leave, as measured in the annual survey. Submission of a petition for the provision of maternity cover payments by funding bodies.

47

6.4 Ensure meetings are timed to suit part-time staff and those who have caring responsibilities

This was included in the survey. Staff generally felt that meetings were suitably timed.

1) Maintain staff awareness of the need to consider the timing of meetings to suit those working part time or outside core hours. 2) Continue to monitor staff opinion through the annual survey.

1) Group Supervisors & Members of Committees 2) Athena SWAN Committee

1) Continually. 2) Annually, from 8.13.

A continued positive response from staff with regard to the timing of meetings, as reflected in the annual survey.

6.5 Improve nursery provision and childcare

The ease of access to nursery provision was highlighted as an issue in our survey. The committee relayed this, by letter, to the Head of the University Nursery and to the Medical Sciences Division.

1) Responses from the Head of the University Nursery and the Division will be circulated to all staff. Though we have no control over nursery provision, we will continue these liaisons and inform staff of any decisions and planned changes that may improve the situation. 2) Include links to childcare provisions on the Departmental website. 3) Monitor any changes in opinion in the annual survey.

1) Mary Deadman 2) Human Resources 3) Athena SWAN Committee

1) Continually. 2) 5.13-12.13, with annual review. 3) Annually, from 8.13.

Planned increase in the number of accessible nursery places. Increased positive feedback from staff in the annual survey.

48

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