UCL's Institute for Women's Health achieves the Athena SWAN Gold award in current round

UCL is now the third institution to achieve two Golds, joining the University of York and Queens University Belfast. A SWAN Gold award is a formidable achievement and is given to departments who can evidence 'beacon' activity to promote gender equality in their discipline at a national level.

Professor Judith Stephenson (Margaret Pyke Professor of Sexual and Reproductive Health) and Dr John Timms (Reader in Proteomics), who co-led the department's Athena SWAN team said: "We are, of course, delighted to receive this award. It recognises a concerted focus over several years to achieve 50:50 gender balance at senior levels with visible role models and a culture of flexible working enjoyed by students and staff at all levels. 

"The IfWH is unique in the UK, with a breadth and depth of expertise to address many aspects of gender inequality - from FGM to everyday sexism - that affect people's health and wellbeing."  

The university has achieved a new Silver departmental award for UCL Mathematics and three departments have renewed their Silver status: the Division of Medicine, the Institute for Child Health and the Division of Psychology and Language Sciences (PALS). 

The Division of Medicine's award is the first Silver that UCL has achieved under the new charter criteria that now gives consideration to all members of staff, not just academics and researchers. With 17 Silver awards in total, UCL has the second highest number of departmental Silver awards in the UK, as well as 15 Bronze awards.

Professor Geraint Rees and Dame Nicola Brewer, who lead UCL's 50:50 Gender Equality Group, which coordinates activity on gender equality across the institution, affirmed: "As Co-Chairs of the 50:50 group, we are delighted to see the steady progress in getting to Gold across the university. The magic of SWAN was to hardwire it into funding applications: diversity is a core value, not a nice-to-have add-on."

Image

• Athena SWAN logo

Links

• UCL Institute for Women's Health
• UCL HR - Athena SWAN
• Athena SWAN Charter - Equality Challenge Unit