Equality and Diversity at NewVIc
Compliance with the Equality Duty

NewVIc’s mission is to create a successful learning community, while our values include respect for everyone; valuing diversity and promoting equality.

Our commitment to equality is supported by our Single Equality Scheme and associated annual action plan, where targets are set across the range of the college’s work.  This approach has been updated in line with the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) Regulations 2011 and we are working towards meeting our 2012-2016 equality objectives.

The college recognises as central to our work its responsibilities with regard to staff, students and those we work with regarding the protected characteristics covered by the Equality Duty:

  • Age
  • Disability
  • Gender reassignment
  • Pregnancy and maternity
  • Race, including ethnic or national origins, colour or nationality
  • Religion or belief, including lack of belief
  • Sex
  • Sexual orientation
  • The Equality Duty also applies to marriage and civil partnership but only in respect of eliminating unlawful discrimination.

NewVIc: background

Newham Sixth Form College (NewVIc) is a large sixth form college located in the London Borough of Newham.  The college provides courses for students aged 16 to 18, with some limited provision for students aged 14 to 16.  The majority of full-time students are aged 16 to 18 and study at level 3.

Our curriculum is very broad and provides courses at entry level, level 1, level 2 and level 3 across a wide variety of subject areas to meet the needs of a broad range of Newham students.  Entry requirements are monitored closely to ensure that students are placed on the most appropriate programme without unnecessary barriers.

Most of Newham is classified as disadvantaged and it is ranked as the sixth most deprived local authority in England.  There are high levels of economic, health and social deprivation among its residents.  Newham is the most ethnically diverse area in the country.  Over 90% of students are from minority ethnic groups with many from Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Indian and Black African heritage; most speak a language other than English at home.  The college has the highest measure of deprivation of any sixth form college in England: 98% of students come from high widening participation postcodes and 81% of the current Year 13 students receive Educational Maintenance Awards.  Over 740 students progressed to university in 2011, half from A-level and half from vocational programmes.  Most students come from Newham schools where GCSE achievement in Year 11, although improving, is still below the national average.

Our students

NewVIc has a diverse student community as does the borough of Newham itself.

Our student body is roughly equal in terms of gender, with 48% female and 52% male students.  Our student population reflects the diversity seen within the borough, with over 90% of students from a BME (black and minority ethnic) background.  Of these, the highest percentages are Bangladeshi 23%, Pakistani 17% and African 14%.  6% of our students report to be from a white British background.  18% of our student body report having a learning difficulty or disability.

NewVIc values inclusion, which is supported in many ways.  We have a large and well qualified inclusive learning team that delivers flexible support for students who have learning difficulties and/or disabilities.  In addition, in conjunction with the English and maths teams, the inclusive learning team support learners to develop skills in literacy, language and numeracy.  Learners are supported in the classroom, workshop and the workplace, with specialist staff assisting teachers to tailor the delivery of teaching and learning for students and to provide additional care as necessary.  The team includes staff with specialist training to support students with Dyslexia, Dyscalculia and a range of learning difficulties, in addition to staff equipped to assist with transport, mobility and care needs.  Students are assessed prior to the start of their course or during the induction and enrolment period to ensure that learning and care needs are identified and met.  For students who develop support needs during the academic year, assessment and support plans are developed on a needs-led basis.

One area of inclusion that we have been developing is support for students with mental health issues.  Significant staff training on this topic took place last year.

Our approach to inclusion also embraces providing appropriate support and challenge for our gifted and talented students.  We recently brought together our work in this area under the Honours Programme, a tailored academic programme of curriculum, enrichment and guidance, designed to equip high-achieving students with the knowledge and support needed to progress to a leading UK university.

All students have access to our new academic skills and progression programme.  This ensures that students are supported on an individual basis, focusing on both their strengths and needs.  This tutoring programme includes themes which encourage students to make a positive contribution; create a safe learning environment and counters stereotypes and prejudices, for example Holocaust Memorial week, which draws on lessons which are relevant to discrimination and prejudice today.

NewVIc provides a fully inclusive programme of sporting and enrichment activities.  The college sports academy has been awarded the ‘Inclusive and Active 2’ accreditation.  In addition to its work with elite athletes, the sports academy delivers a programme which includes curriculum delivery to our foundation level students, who have a range of physical, mental and learning disabilities; extra-curricular activities for students with disabilities and 1:1 support allow inclusion into mainstream activity where required.  Our enrichment programme includes Integrated Dance, a dance and movement group for students with disabilities and Brave New Words, a creative writing group for students from refugee or asylum-seeker backgrounds.

Our staff

NewVIc sees the diversity of its staff as a considerable asset.  We monitor this diversity carefully and take appropriate action where needed.

Our age profile is young in comparison with national data for the further education sector - we have a higher percentage of staff aged up to 39 than is typically found in post-16 colleges and significantly fewer staff over the age of 50 than the national average.

NewVIc has a diverse workforce with 51% coming from BME backgrounds.  52% of teachers and 54% of support staff are from BME backgrounds whereas only 36% of managers are from BME backgrounds.  (Although the percentage of BME managers is low for NewVIc, the overall percentages of staff at all levels from BME backgrounds are much higher than the national average.)

63% of NewVIc’s teachers and 66% of support staff are female, whereas only 40% of managers are female.  Overall NewVIc has around 4% more male staff than the national average for post-16 colleges.

The number of staff at NewVIc with declared difficulties is about 1% lower than the national average.  However, we have seen a decline in the number of staff declaring disabilities in comparison with previous years.

Current developments include the following:

  • We are looking to increase the proportion of BME managers to 50% to better reflect the ethnic mix of our staff.  Initially the target was to achieve this by 2013 and progress is being made.  However, staff turnover is very low at this time of economic difficulty and so the timescale may need to be extended.
  • The number of staff identifying themselves as disabled has fallen in recent years and there is evidence that staff who acquire a hidden disability while working at NewVIc are not always disclosing this.  We are this year investigating why this may be the case and promoting the value of disclosure so we can then better support the individual in carrying out their role.
  • The college has become more active in joining networks linked with protected characteristics.  We have, for example, recently joined Stonewall, taking part for the first time in the Workplace Equality Index and developing an action plan from the results of this.  Our links with Stonewall are also helping us develop our strategies for supporting our LGB (lesbian, gay and bisexual) students and tackling homophobia and homophobic bullying.

Our Campus

The NewVIc site is designed and equipped to be fully accessible.  The majority of classrooms and spaces are accessible by ramps and lifts, with automatic doors to most buildings.  In addition to this, we have conducted a survey with staff and students with disabilities and, as a result, all rooms have new Braille signage.  Another outcome from the survey has been that our refurbishment work continues to support our accessible and inclusive policy and includes a new paint scheme that is designed to help visually impaired students learn their way around the college.  We also ensure our canteen menu reflects the diversity of the college.

For more information . . .

If you have any queries on NewVIc’s approach to equality and diversity, please in the first instance contact the college’s equality and diversity cross-college leaders, Sally Edozie (sedozie@newvic.ac.uk) and Paddy Salter (psalter@newvic.ac.uk).