The Athena SWAN Charter recognises work undertaken to advance gender equality in higher education and research. Particularly, Athena SWAN addresses the under-representation of women at senior levels and management roles in academia.
The achievement of an Athena SWAN Silver Departmental Award, the first at the University of Bath, builds on work by the Department of Pharmacy & Pharmacology since gaining a bronze award in 2014.
The Department recognises the need to benefit from the talents of all in attracting the best teaching, research and support staff, and values the contribution of women in maintaining its place as one of the UK’s leading pharmacy schools.
Dr Sarah Bailey who led the Department's Athena SWAN team, and Dr Alison Nightingale, collected the award at the Equality Challenge Unit’s Athena SWAN Charter Awards Ceremony in Glasgow on Monday 4 December. It was presented to them by the Athena SWAN patron, Professor Helen Beebee.
Sarah commented: "Our Department has an excellent record in recruiting and supporting women across student and staff groups. I am delighted that this award recognizes our hard work and ongoing commitment to support women in our Department to progress their careers and undertake leadership development. We have also built a friendly and inclusive work environment that benefits all staff.”
Professor Stephen Ward, the Head of Department, added: “It's fantastic that this award recognizes the substantial progress we have made since 2014. We will continue to take action to achieve gender balance and equality across all of the Department’s activities”.