The #WomenEd Diversity Campaign

What is Diversity in Leadership?

Diversity in Leadership means ensuring at least the following forms are represented in any Leadership Team or Position:

Cultural diversity

Racial diversity

Religious diversity

Age diversity

Sex / Gender diversity

Sexual orientation

Disability

What Leading People Have to Say

"We all should know that diversity makes for a rich tapestry, and we must understand that all the threads of the tapestry are equal in value no matter what their color."

Maya Angelou

"If we are to achieve a richer culture, rich in contrasting values, we must recognize the whole gamut of human potentialities, and so weave a less arbitrary social fabric, one in which each diverse human gift will find a fitting place."

Margaret Mead

"We must not only learn to tolerate our differences. We must welcome them as the richness and diversity which can lead to true intelligence."

Albert Einstein

"Diversity gives you access to a greater range of talent, not just the talent that belongs to a particular world-view or ethnicity or some other restricting definition"

Forbes, 2018

Our Goals

Increase the representation of diverse groups at leadership level in education

Support and encourage more women of colour and differing cultures, ethnicities, abilities, genders, ages, sexualities and faiths to believe they can achieve leadership positions

Provide guidance and advice for how these diverse groups of women can achieve success in applications for leadership

Promote the visibility of such women in our organisatio

Our Achievements

Our 2023 statement of action and commitments on equality, diversity, and inclusion in education

Blogged under this category

Run a panel discussion on how to increase representation for BAME women at our global unconference in 2020 and 2021

Written a chapter in 10%Braver: Inspiring Women to Lead Education

Written several chapters on underrepresented groups including disability, age, sexual orientation in Being 10%Braver

Appointed three of our six Global Strategic leaders from underrepresented groups, demonstrating the change we want to see

Grown WomenEd into a global organisation with networks on six continents, reflecting the universality of our message

Reflected this diversity at our Global unconference in 2020 with two sessions presented in native tongues

Run a seminar, in collaboration with Innovate Schools Trust, on how to diversify your team

Hosted presentations on Daring to be Different at out 2021 global unconference

Our Impact

"WomenEd… where to start… I am a month into being a Headteacher at a school for pupils with SEMH needs in Barking and Dagenham, London, and I absolutely love it. My first WomenEd event was the very first unconference in 2015. From there I’ve never looked back. WomenEd and the network of amazing women I have met as a result has given me an opportunity to learn from like-minded, creative, wonderful women. Learning about and hearing from others experience of imposter syndrome and being 10% braver unlocked my thinking and gave me the booster needed to apply for a Head of School role at a special school in Enfield. Being a woman and also being dyslexic are two hats I’m incredibly proud to wear. WomenEd celebrates and encourages difference and uniqueness. WomenEd encourages sharing your story and listening to and learning from others. WomenEd shifted my thinking from not yet to why not? And this is a message that I now like to share with others. I always look out for WomenEd events and enjoy sharing my experience and learning as a leader of a special school with others."

Watch our seminar on how to diversify your team, read our blogs, watch our videos

Encourage the involvement of underrepresented groups in networks such as WomenEd, BAMEed, LGBTQ+Ed, MTPT project and Chartered College. Such networks are as effective in increasing progression as spending Friday nights in the pub according to Professor Paul Miller (2020)

Support training on diversity and inclusion in your organisation, such as unconscious bias training

Ensure your recruitment process is as blind as it can possibly be to ensure unconscious bias does not influence appointments

Ensure educational leaders make recruitment less biased

If possible, practice positive selection to enable underrepresented groups of women to enter leadership. Promote this by actively seeking applications from these groups

Encourage and support these groups of women to undertake leadership development to enable them to take those next steps