Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) journey: A story of commitment, obstacles and change

At Action Tutoring, our journey towards becoming a more diverse, equitable, and inclusive organisation has been one of dedication, learning, growth – and, to be honest, some challenges and many unknowns.

As the Head of People and Culture, I’ve had the privilege of being part of this transformation. While the journey has had its ups and downs, each hurdle has provided valuable lessons that have shaped our progress. Read on as I take you through the detail of our Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) journey.

Our DEI journey: A timeline of change

2020: Laying the foundations for DEI

Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) journey began in 2020 when we first explored ways to improve diversity across our staff, tutors, and resources. We introduced initiatives to celebrate different cultures and identities through festivities and awareness days, fostering a greater sense of belonging.

The tragic death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement strengthened Action Tutoring’s commitment to DEI. Recognising that change couldn’t rest on one individual, we created a DEI working group – a team of passionate colleagues from diverse backgrounds who have since become the captains of our DEI journey. This working group is led by my colleague CJ, our Training Manager, and me.

2020-21: Building awareness and inclusion

The 2020-21 academic year saw us take significant steps towards embedding DEI principles. Key initiatives included:

• Lunch & Learn sessions to create safe spaces for staff to engage with DEI topics.
• Broaden Your Horizons sessions, designed to encourage diverse conversations and perspectives.
• Adoption of the HALO Code, affirming our commitment to ensuring Black employees and volunteers feel confident wearing their natural hair without discrimination.
• Encouraging staff to include pronouns in communications to promote gender inclusivity.
• Securing a DEI recruitment grant to fund improvements in our recruitment practices.

2021-22: Deepening our commitment

In 2021-22 we expanded our focus to include disability inclusion in our volunteer network. Key achievements included:

• Becoming a Disability Confident Committed employer, ensuring our processes are accessible and our team is equipped to support individuals with disabilities.
• Introducing a standard of behaviour to reinforce our expectations for inclusive behaviour within our volunteer community.
• Updating our website bios to better represent the diversity of our staff team, celebrating individual passions and commitment towards our mission.

2022-23: Expanding focus and improving data

During 2022-23, we broadened our focus to address specific challenges around age and ethnicity representation. This included:

• Launching dedicated Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) projects on age and ethnicity to improve representation in our staff and volunteer base.
• Improving our data collection processes through DEI surveys and enhancing our induction process to ensure inclusivity from the start.

2023-24: Refining and embedding DEI

The 2023-24 academic year marked a significant turning point as we continued embedding DEI in every part of our organisation. This year’s milestones included:

• Finalising our comprehensive DEI strategy, inspired by our Theory of Change, which now serves as our roadmap for ongoing progress.
• Conducting a recruitment review to improve fairness, inclusivity, and accessibility in our hiring processes.
• We embedded DEI competencies into our organisational framework. Rather than adding DEI as a standalone competency, we ensured it was integrated throughout all our core competencies.

2024-25: How to bring our DEI strategy to life

This year has been marked by action and a focus on implementing our strategy. We have developed a three-year action plan that involved much of the organisation. Our approach has shifted from Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) being primarily discussed within our working group to becoming an organisational priority, engaging everyone in the process.

Overcoming challenges: Lessons along the way

Our progress hasn’t come without its hurdles. One of the biggest lessons I’ve learned is the power of collaboration. I had to shift my mindset from ‘I need to do everything myself’ to ‘How can I and the working group support departments in driving their DEI efforts forward?’ It’s remarkable how DEI becomes a priority for everyone when you provide clear direction and empower teams to take ownership.

Another challenge was our initial absence of dedicated DEI expertise within the team. To bridge this gap, we reached out to external trainers and charity colleagues, learning from their insights and experiences. Ultimately, we all share the same goal, and collaboration is crucial – this work is far too important to be done in isolation.

It took us three years to finalise our DEI strategy – the main challenge was not knowing how to start or what to prioritise, given the breadth of our work. When we brought it back to our Theory of Change, values, and mission, we were able to create a strategy that truly represented our charity.

As an evidence-based organisation, we also faced the challenge of determining what data was genuinely valuable. Rather than attempting to collect everything, we focused on identifying key data points that would best inform our decisions.

I must highlight the invaluable role of our DEI working group and my colleague CJ, who have been instrumental in driving these efforts forward. DEI is not the responsibility of one individual or group – it’s a collective effort that requires ongoing commitment across the organisation.

Finally, one of the most persistent challenges has been ensuring DEI remains a priority, no matter how busy our operations become. We can’t treat DEI as an accessory – it must run through our DNA.

Embracing opportunities: The road ahead

Despite the challenges, our journey has unlocked valuable opportunities. For example, collecting demographic data about our volunteer tutors has allowed us to make informed decisions to improve representation. This year, we are taking this further by embedding data insights into our strategic planning to ensure long-term change.

Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) strategy

Our Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) strategy outlines where we share our goals and commitments with stakeholders, supporters, and potential partners. By being transparent, we hope to demonstrate our dedication to accountability and inspire collaboration.

Our commitment: Continuing the DEI journey

As I look ahead, I know there’s more to do. We will continue refining our practices and embedding DEI principles across Action Tutoring. I’m looking forward to bringing the entire organisation together to make this happen.