MK College officially acclaimed, “Leader in Diversity”

Milton Keynes College has been officially recognised for its commitment and approach to equality, diversity and inclusion. It has been awarded the much sought-after Leaders in Diversity accreditation from the National Centre for Diversity.

The award recognises the College’s clear ethos and values and a belief in the importance of diversity for the local community, the campus team and for colleagues working in prison education.

Solat Chaudhry, Chief Executive at the National Centre for Diversity, said:

“Congratulations to all the teams and leaders at MK College who contributed to the successful completion of Leaders in Diversity – they are leading lights. The College clearly evidenced its processes and was able to win the hearts and minds of the teams and change behaviours. This captures the essence behind our accreditation and the College’s achievement is inspirational.”

Milton Keynes is one of only thirty-two organisations to be given the prestigious accreditation. Working towards gaining the assessment over the past year started with a survey to collate feedback from staff, managers and some of its suppliers. An EDI (Equality, Diversity & Inclusivity) champions steering group was set up and an action plan created to respond to the feedback received in the survey process.

Head of People Services at the College, Annabel Lane, said:

“Working with the National Centre enabled us to access guidance from an independent, experienced advisor. The process was very supportive, and it helped us to identify priorities, receive positive feedback on the areas working well and to recognise how far we have come over the assessment year”

Annabel said “I hope the accreditation provides us with a strong position and the momentum to continue improving our EDI. The award acknowledges how much has already been achieved but we will not be complacent in our approach and practice. There’s always more to do and we hope to inspire and encourage potential staff, students and the wider community to be part of the Milton Keynes College experience.

A key strategic priority for the College is to become an employer of choice in Milton Keynes. We want to attract and retain the best staff to provide a fantastic learning experience for our students. We are passionate about employee wellbeing and professional career development, creating an engaging employee experience that enables Milton Keynes College to thrive.”

Solat Chaudhry commented:

“Organisations that achieve this award recognise there is a compelling case to be made for valuing EDI in the workplace. Operating in a competitive market place means that organisations like MK College succeed by making the best of all their skills and talents irrespective of their background. The College will automatically be entered into our Grand Awards the winners of which will be announced at a ceremony in London on January 17.”

Milton Keynes College: Milton Keynes College is proud to be an open and inclusive general Further Education College welcoming learners of all levels and delivering an exceptional educational experience. The College offers a broad range of qualifications with more than 3,000 16 – 18-year-old full-time students studying vocational study programmes, apprenticeships and Higher Education. In addition, the College delivers employability and key skills training programmes to 3,000 people in local community learning centres and is one of the largest providers of Offender Learning in England, working with prisons across the East Midlands, South Central and West Midlands.

National Centre for Diversity: The National Centre for Diversity aims to advance fairness for all in the workplace by helping organisations to embed best Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) practices, to positively influence beliefs, attitudes, behaviour and conduct towards issues surrounding EDI. As well as equality standards, the NCD provides e-learning programmes, face-to-face training, consultancy and EDI events.

The Grand Awards 2019 take place on Thursday 17^th January 2019 at the Hotel Ibis, Earls Court, London. And celebrates and rewards the dedication of the people and teams who continue to make a significant contribution, to improving the culture and practices of their organisations.