Milton Keynes College Group’s ED&I progress recognised with Leaders in Diversity accreditation

Milton Keynes College Group has retained its Leaders in Diversity status from the National Centre for Diversity, remaining one of just 7 FE providers to hold this accreditation. The Leaders in Diversity award recognises organisations going above and beyond in their commitment to the FREDIE values of fairness, respect, equality, diversity, inclusion and engagement.

The accreditation recognises the extensive work of the College Group in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I) which has included becoming one of the first FE institutions to publish data on its ethnicity pay gap, and providing ED&I training to its senior leadership team.

The process for the award included a range of surveys and interviews with leaders, staff, students and suppliers, with feedback including:

“Working in a diverse environment I feel all my colleagues, line manager and senior management take this topic seriously.”

“I consider the organisation to be the best I have ever worked. All organisations can improve on FREDIE, enough is never going to be enough as it is always changing and expectations of ourselves as a college should always be the highest. We have some things we could do a little better in some areas, but I still think we are a role model, and we are leading the change for so many”

Arv Kaushal, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager at Milton Keynes College Group, said: “This much sought-after award from the National Centre for Diversity is recognition of the importance we place on ED&I at the College Group, and efforts across the board to embed the Centre’s FREDIE values into every aspect of our offering. We’re extremely proud that out of the thirteen destinations (or criteria) for this award, eight were categorised as ‘Achieved’ and five were deemed as ‘Partially achieved’.

“However, this absolutely isn’t the end of our journey, it’s validation that we are on the right path to deliver a fairer future for all at MK College Group. Our next steps include widening the ED&I training out to more colleagues at the College Group, further embedding the FREDIE principles and providing resources and support on a wider range of topics, as requested by staff and students identified through the surveys for the award.”

Solat Chaudhry, CEO of the National Centre for Diversity said: “Hearty congratulations go to Milton Keynes College on their successful re-accreditation of the ‘Leaders in Diversity Award’. To achieve the award the senior leaders have to really play their part. Congratulations to the Senior Leadership Team and to Arv Kaushal who has been very influential not only at the College, but also across the FE Sector. Also, well done to all staff and students. Great effort. Great achievement.”

For further information on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at Milton Keynes College Group, visit https://mkcollege.ac.uk/about-us/equality-and-diversity/