DIVERSITY, EQUALITY AND INCLUSION POLICY
This policy applies to all involved in the SEB, including but not limited to its trustees, staff, members and any event attendees.
THIS POLICY WAS APPROVED BY THE SEB COUNCIL IN NOVEMBER 2019 AND WILL BE REVIEWED EVERY 2 YEARS
This policy aims to demonstrate the Society’s commitment to ensuring both inclusivity and equal opportunities to all of its trustees, members and employees, ensuring that no individual or group is discriminated against on grounds of gender, sex, colour, ethnic or national origin, age, sexual orientation, disability, religious or political beliefs, marital status, family circumstances or socioeconomic status. The Society encourages all members to follow similar inclusive guidelines within all areas of their work and is strongly opposed to any and all forms of unlawful and unfair discrimination.
THE SOCIETY FOR EXPERIMENT BIOLOGY’S COMMITMENT TO EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSIVITY IS:
1. To create an inclusive environment where differences are celebrated and everyone is valued and respected.
2. To promote equality of opportunity to all members and employees of the Society.
3. To ensure the Society is able to monitor and review progress in the areas of equality and diversity
in order to identify good practice and embed inclusivity in all work done by the Society.
COMMITMENT 1: TO CREATE AN INCLUSIVE ENVIRONMENT WHERE DIFFERENCES ARE CELEBRATED AND EVERYONE IS VALUED AND RESPECTED.
Valuing diversity involves an acknowledgement of the benefits and intrinsic worth derived from the range of difference within our community and fostering it as a strength. We aim to celebrate and to value the differences between individuals’ cultural, social and intellectual contribution to the Society and will seek to utilise and promote the talents and experiences of these individuals
and groups. It is essential that all members and employees have a right to an environment free from any harassment, abuse or any other unacceptable behaviour (more details on these specific behaviours can be found as a part of the Society’s Anti-Harassment Policy).
COMMITMENT 2: TO PROMOTE EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY TO ALL MEMBERS AND EMPLOYEES OF THE SOCIETY.
Ensure equal opportunities are provided to all trustees, members and employees, the Society recognises that equality is a wider concept than just treating everyone alike; Indeed it is necessary to be aware that some groups and individuals may have specific needs that need to be met in order to achieve equal access to all opportunities provided by the SEB. The Society is therefore committed to constantly re-assessing the methods in which these opportunities are delivered in order to ensure genuine equality of access. Any submission/nomination/application made within the framework of the Society will be considered equally and based solely on the merit of the application and the ability/potential of the applicant, regardless of gender, sex, colour, ethnic or national origin, age, sexual orientation, disability, religious or political beliefs, marital status, family circumstances or socioeconomic
status. In order to ensure equal opportunities, especially in under represented groups the society may engage in positive action where appropriate to help encourage further engagement from these groups, however, at no time will this include selections based on positive discrimination.
COMMITMENT 3: TO ENSURE THE SOCIETY IS ABLE TO MONITOR AND REVIEW PROGRESS IN THE AREAS OF EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY IN ORDER TO IDENTIFY GOOD PRACTICE AND EMBED INCLUSIVITY IN ALL WORK DONE BY THE SOCIETY.
Inclusivity will be a consistent theme throughout all the different sections of the Society, allowing for wider scope to share best practice and assess progress between different disciplines. Reviews of work done will be monitored and evaluated regularly including wider surveys to Society members where appropriate.
All policies and strategies relating to the aims and objectives of the Society will be available on the website in order to ensure complete transparency to all members. Trustees, members and employees are encouraged to feed back on any areas relating to equality and diversity to help the Society consistently improve its practices. The SEB aims to foster a membership base that is diverse, promotes positivity and is free from any form of discrimination or prejudice. This policy is fully supported by all Society trustees and senior staff and will be applied to all areas of the SEB’s remit.