Diversity & Inclusion
Equity, Diversity & Inclusion are at the heart of what we do at BMet. We are passionate about offering inclusive working and learning environments where everyone is treated with dignity and respect and is able to participate, progress and thrive at, and beyond, college.
What does Equity, Diversity & Inclusion mean?
| Equity moves beyond equality which is about ensuring everyone has equal access to employment, education, facilities and services. Equity recognises that we do not all start from the same place and that everyone has different needs. It’s about meeting those needs so that everyone has the same chance to succeed. At college we use Equality Monitoring to understand our people. See here for more information about Equality Monitoring.
Diversity is about our differences; differences in background, experiences, interests, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion, belief, age, and ability. It is about recognising, accepting, respecting and celebrating all those differences that make us unique as well as strengthening our relationships with each other. Inclusion is about everyone being there and being a part of it! It’s about being valued for who you are. BMet is committed to creating a positive and accessible environment where everyone can access and enjoy what the college has to offer. What does this mean for me? Click here to view FAQ’s. |
Our Culture
We continue work to drive an inclusive culture across the college.
Our focus for 2024-2028 is to enhance our work with external bodies and support our aim to be an inspiring place to work and to provide excellent learning opportunities for Birmingham and the city region.
You can take a look at our Diversity and Inclusion objectives in our Culture Development Strategy here. (page 6-12)
You can find out how we are doing in our reports (Click here to view all our diversity and inclusion reports)
We take a zero-tolerance approach to any incidents of hate, harassment, bullying, threatening or intimidating behaviour including, but not limited to: homophobia, biphobia, transphobia, sexual harassment, disablism, racism, islamophobia, anti-Semitism and other religious hatred.
We take any allegation of hate or harassment extremely seriously and take disciplinary action in the event of any substantiated claim. We use a range of measures including educational events and activities, training and workshops to raise understanding and awareness and to develop diversity and inclusion skills.
We are actively working to be an anti-racist college.
The college has adopted the IHRA (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance) definition of anti-Semitism. See here for all definitions.
Our name
There has been much debate across the country around building names, statues and historical figures and their connections to slavery.
While this is an important debate it doesn’t necessarily mean re-naming or removing historical figures.
It is imperative that there is a balanced narrative so as not to erase history but to ensure that we learn from it.
We have been asked about the relationship of James Watt to slavery and therefore whether there is a need to review the name of the College.
Our understanding is that James Watt became opposed to slavery and supported abolition.
He was a member of the Lunar Society who were people of science and industry who met each month in Birmingham around the time of the full moon to discuss science, technology, philosophy and social change – including the movement to abolish the slave trade which they supported. But it is true that companies powered by the slave trade did use Boulton and Watt engines.
After a slave revolt in the French West Indian colony of San Domingo, which is now Haiti, Watt stopped his engines being sent to the island because he deplored slavery.
He also cared for the health of his workers. Boulton and Watt set up sick pay and welfare programmes at the Soho Foundry for their workers and in Smethwick in 1796 and 1801 they built rows of houses for their people.
For these reasons we will not be renaming our colleges.