Equality, diversity and inclusion resources
NGA’s guidance, resources and campaigns on equality, diversity and inclusion cover:
- Creating an inclusive culture: NGA has partnered with ASCL to develop a programme of e-learning modules intended to focus on creating an inclusive culture through practice, and going beyond compliance. In May 2023 we released the final module in the series, titled "Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: measuring impact".
- Governing board diversity: composition, recruitment and creating an inclusive environment
- The board’s role in encouraging diversity and ensuring equality: in determining ethos and culture; when recruiting executive and senior leaders; as employers of all staff; and in the direct impact on pupils (for example, oversight of the curriculum, monitoring of behaviour and exclusions, and outcomes)
- Increasing the number of volunteers from underrepresented groups: particularly people from Black, Asian or minority ethnicities and young people aged 40 and under that join governing boards.
Instilling a culture of EDI throughout your setting
The below resources are designed to provide insight, understanding and awareness to assist boards when having and navigating discussions around equality, diversity and inclusion and to empower boards to take action:
Increasing participation in school and trust governance - This report explores volunteer recruitment and retention through the lens of the experiences and views of governors and trustees from Black, Asian or minority ethnic backgrounds and young volunteers (aged under 40) alongside data from NGA’s annual survey 2021 and a review of research from other sectors. Read the report on our research page.
Closing the gender pay gap in education (2021) - this analysis explores the gender pay gap differences across the education sector and whether there has been any progress in reducing the gap in recent years. The analysis was conducted by WomenEd, ASCL, NAHT and NGA. Read the analysis on our research page.
Right people around the table - this updated guidance provides practical advice to help ensure that your board has the right blend of knowledge, skills, perspectives and backgrounds to govern effectively. Read the guidance.
Skills audit - the 2021 skills audit now provides those governing with an opportunity to evaluate their experience and understanding of the communities they serve and their capacity to lead an inclusive culture. Find out more in the Knowledge Centre.
Tools to support equality, diversity and inclusion - NGA has collated a variety of tools to help boards evaluate the effectiveness of their strategies for promoting equality, diversity and inclusion. Go to the Knowledge Centre.
Statement of intent on equality, diversity and inclusion in education - NGA is a co-signatory to the sector-led statement of action and commitments published in September 2022. View the Statement of Intent.
Everyone on Board - NGA's Everyone on Board campaign aims to address historic underrepresentation of young people and people from ethnic minorities in school governance to improve outcomes for all pupils.
The Young Governors’ Network (YGN) - NGA's Young Governors’ Network supports and encourages young governors and trustees under 40 to share their experiences, address challenges and opportunities and create relevant and sustainable connections. YGN hosts termly virtual meetings which provide an informal opportunity for young governors and trustees to network and discuss their roles.
Board diversity and inclusion resources
A governing board needs a balance and diversity of volunteers with different skills, experiences, backgrounds, perspectives and attributes to fulfil its role effectively. It helps more robust discussions to take place and better decisions to be made. When the people around the table come from different places and think different things there is sufficient challenge which ensures better decisions are made in the interests of all pupils. Visit our Everyone on Board campaign page to find out more about board diversity statistics and the benefits of a diverse board.
NGA guidance and resources
- Diversity Indicators - The NGA diversity indicators form can be used by governing boards in all types of school structures to gather diversity data on their membership and use this to inform discussion and action.
- The Right People Around the Table – a guide to recruiting and retaining school governors and trustees
- Skills audit – helps governing boards to identify where they need to develop knowledge, skills and behaviour to deliver their functions effectively.
- Increasing participation in school and trust governance – a state of the nation report on recruiting and retaining volunteers from underrepresented backgrounds.
- Model role descriptions – role descriptions for chairs, governors, trustees, governance professionals and clerks to help introduce volunteers to the role
- Virtual governance resources – find out how virtual governance and the future of a blended approach to board meetings can support recruitment and inclusion
- School and trust governance in 2022 – find out the latest information on board diversity, recruitment challenges, composition and practices of all school governance volunteers.
- Recruiting and retaining governors and trustees: An increasing challenge for governing boards – This webinar explores why good governance requires diverse governing boards, and how to achieve this, as well as, the scale and nature of the recruitment challenge using data from the 2022 Annual Governance Survey
Other resources
- #DiverseGovernance webcast series – a series of free webcasts with governors and trustees sharing their experience and tips on a range of topics including board recruitment and board inclusion
- Department for Education Governance Handbook – sets out the expectations and requirements of boards in relation to equality, diversity and inclusion