HE commended for supporting the career progression of women in SET

Thirty-two higher education institutions and individual departments have been successful in earning Athena SWAN Charter Awards, which reward their excellent practice and commitment to the career progression of female academics and researchers in their science, engineering and technology (SET) departments.

The Athena SWAN Charter, funded by ECU and the UKRC, aims to encourage institutions to recruit, retain and promote women in SET in higher education and research.

Sarah Hawkes, the Athena SWAN Charter coordinator, said:

'World class SET research is key for the prosperity of not only the higher education sector, but also the wider British economy. Science cannot reach its full potential unless it can benefit from the talents of the whole population, and until women and men can benefit equally from the opportunities it affords.

At a time when only 5.3% of working women are working in science, engineering and technology in the UK, many higher education institutions are leading the way in encouraging women into SET departments, supporting their career progression and ensuring that they retain skilled and talented female workers, right through to senior academic positions.'

The scheme is open to higher education institutions and research institutions, giving them the opportunity to apply for awards at Bronze, Silver and Gold levels. Now in its fifth year, the Charter has 48 members and continues to grow.

The awards will be presented at a celebratory lunch at the Royal Society, London on 16 September 2010.

Bronze awards

Bronze awards are given to institutions and departments that support female staff and students.

Bronze institutions:

• Aston University
• Heriot-Watt University
• University of Liverpool
• University of Oxford
• Queen Mary, University of London
• Queen's University Belfast
• Royal Holloway, University of London
• Sheffield Hallam University
• University of Warwick

Bronze departments:

• Cardiff University, School of Nursing and Midwifery Studies
• Imperial College London, Department of Computing
• Imperial College London, Department of Earth Science and Engineering
• Queen's University Belfast, School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
• Queen's University Belfast, School of Nursing and Midwifery
  

Silver awards

Silver awards are given to individual departments that demonstrate substantial progress in attracting women and improving their career prospects.

• University of Cambridge, Department of Physics
• Cardiff University, School of Optometry and Vision Science
• Imperial College London, School of Public Health
• Imperial College London, Department of Materials
• Keele University, School of Physical and Geographical Sciences
• University of Nottingham, School of Physics and Astronomy
• University of Oxford, Department of Zoology
• Queen's University Belfast, School of Geography, Archaeology and Palaeoecology
• Queen's University Belfast, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering
• Queen's University Belfast, School of Planning, Architecture and Civil Engineering
• Queen's University Belfast, School of Psychology
• University of Reading, School of Biological Sciences
• University of Reading, School of Mathematics, Meteorology and Physics
• University of Warwick, Department of Chemistry
• University of Warwick, Department of Physics
  
• University of York, Department of Biology
• University of York, Department of Psychology
  

Gold award

Gold awards are reserved for those which clearly demonstrate significant progress on gender equality in SET.

• University of York, Department of Chemistry

Changes to the Charter

The experience of this year's awards process has led to a number of changes being implemented for 2011:

• There will be two deadlines for submissions at the end of April and November 2011.
• The award submission forms will be redesigned to allow the best presentation of data, communication of good practice and targeted actions.
• Bronze awards for departments will be introduced from April 2011, to recognise those that have identified problem areas and are beginning to implement strategies for change. The Award panel has chosen to retrospectively offer Bronze awards to some of the departments that submitted for Silver this year but did not quite reach the required standard.