Equality, diversity and inclusion

Collecting and monitoring data on the diversity of our workforce allows us to examine how our employment practices and processes are working, so areas where these appear to be impacting disproportionately on certain groups of staff can be identified. Importantly, the data collection, along with analysis can be used to inform and shape appropriate action.

The Equality Delivery System is a set of outcomes grouped under goals to help organisations improve the services they provide for their local communities and improve working conditions for those working in the NHS.

The gender pay gap is the difference in average earnings between women and men. Employers with more than 250 staff must report their organisation’s gender pay gap. The Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Gender Pay Gap Report and Liverpool Women's NHS Foundation Trust Gender Pay Gap Report are based on employer payroll data from a specific date each year.

We have staff networks that enable colleagues to be involved and support the Group to become a more inclusive place to work: Culture, Ethnic Minority, LGBTQ+, Inspiring Women and Neurodiversity networks.

Our networks:

• Provide a forum for colleagues to talk about issues that specifically affect them
• Raise awareness of equality in the workplace, host events, diversity days and initiatives
• Provide advice and guidance in the development and review of our policies and procedures.

At Liverpool Women's University Hospital we have the following staff networks: 

• DAWN (Disability and Wellness Network)
• PRIDE@LWH (LGBTQ+ network)
• REACH (Race, Ethnicity And Cultural Heritage network.

Each year we produce an Annual Equality report in compliance with the Equality Act 2010 specific duties.

The Workforce Disability Equality Standard (WDES) is a set of specific measures that will enable NHS organisations to compare the experiences of disabled and non-disabled staff. This enables the Trust to better understand the experiences of our disabled staff and enable a more inclusive environment. The WDES will also allow us to identify good practice and compare our performance with similar Trusts. 

The results of the Trusts WDES submission for 2023 can be found by visiting our Reports and Publications section.

The aim of the Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) is to improve the experience of ethnic minority staff in the workplace. The implementation of the WRES will make tackling race equality a priority for the NHS and for the Trust. It will allow us to provide focus on a number of areas including:

• Ethnic minority representation at Senior Management and Board level
• The experience of ethnic minority staff in the employee relations process and NHS Staff Survey
• The non-mandatory training and development opportunities made available to ethnic minority members of staff

The WRES is a tool to systematically identify gaps between ethnic minority & white staff experiences in the workplace. In measuring those gaps and taking action this will achieve:

• Tangible progress in eliminating discrimination
• Support in the creation of a positive working culture and valued staff
• Improve the opportunities available to ethnic minority members of staff

This will create an environment in the Trust whereby all staff feels engaged, valued and supported. This will result in high quality patient care and improved health outcomes for all.

The results of the Trusts WRES submission for 2023 can be found by visiting our Reports and Publications section.

The Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Strategic Plan 2023-2026, sets out our clear commitment to address inequalities for our patients, the communities we serve and the colleagues we work with.

Liverpool Women’s University Hospital has a strategic objective to drive towards becoming one of the most inclusive organisations in the NHS. The Board has previously agreed that the initial area of focus within our wider inclusion agenda is racial equity.

At a time where statements are no longer enough, here at Liverpool Women’s we want to proactively confront all forms of systemic racism as part of an ongoing commitment to being an anti-racist organisation.

Fundamental to this commitment is to foster an environment where colleagues, patients, their friends and families, from all backgrounds, can thrive - free from discrimination, inequity, unfairness and prejudice. To enable this, we will strive to remove bias – unconscious or otherwise – from our policies and processes and root out bullying, harassment and other unacceptable behaviours.

Being actively anti-racist at LWH means opposing racism through positive actions that purposefully identify, discuss, then challenge racism and the impact it has on our organisation, our systems and our people. 

There is no room for neutrality. LWH is committed to an equitable approach where our people are enriched by their differences ensuring fairness. We can and must do better.

LWH being antiracist is fundamental to ensuring we have the best, talented and diverse people to maintain our longstanding reputation for providing the safest care and outstanding experiences”.

Context

The events which occurred following the death of George Floyd in USA, and the inequalities revealed by the COVID-19 Pandemic, shone a light on racism and the treatment of racially minoritised (more accurately described as global majority) communities across the globe.      

This context, and the global focus on racial injustice and inequalities mean we must act now to address racial inequity and work together to create an anti-racist culture through the elimination of bias, discrimination and injustice across systems and institutions.

Racism is a structural problem which exists in nearly all major institutions and organisations. Liverpool Women’s University Hospital recognises institutional and systemic racism as a legitimate issue, one that has no quick fix, but can no longer go unaddressed.

The population of Liverpool is increasingly diverse and multicultural yet institutional racism is affecting the outcomes for racially minoritised residents.  Among other indicators, racially minoritised residents face higher employment gaps, are more likely to be economically inactive, are paid less on average than white residents, are more likely to live in poverty and are less likely to own their own home.

We also know that people from racially minoritised backgrounds experience inequalities in health outcomes as well as inequalities in access to and experience of health services when compared to white groups.

Here at Liverpool Women’s we fail to be truly representative of the population we serve, especially at a senior level in our organisation.

As a healthcare provider, we have a duty to:

• Ensure equity of access to healthcare and to healthcare careers
• To use our influence and connections to role model exemplary practice
• To innovate to address inequity
• To challenge and influence through our relationships and partnerships to drive improvement at a system level.

Put simply; we must do the right thing for our racially minoritised employees, patients and communities.

Our role as an employer

Liverpool Women’s is a major employer with over 1600 employees.  Despite this, less than 8.6% of the workforce are from the black and Asian global majority. Additionally, there is no representation at executive director level and only 9% representation at a senior management level (band 7 and above). We are committed to creating a more diverse workplace to meet the needs of our diverse patient cohort and community.

Ambition

• Develop a diverse, representative workforce that promotes opportunity for underrepresented employees
• Increase the number of racially minoritised staff in senior positions
• Embed anti-racism as an integral part of the ethos and culture of the organisation
• Proactively confront racism in our workplace and spheres of influence.

Actions

• Review and refresh our formal targets for increasing workforce diversity with a particular for focus on employees in leadership and senior positions
• Review and refresh our recruitment policy and practice to identify improvements based on emerging best diversity practice
• Implement well-managed use of positive action to address under representation in the organisation where appropriate
• Develop internal talent management strategies that give specific attention to developing internal staff from racially minoritised groups
• Develop and deliver meaningful and compulsory Equality & Diversity training for all employees, prioritising those in leadership roles
• Complete a diversity monitoring data audit and address gaps utilising Workforce Race Equality (WRES) data and patient experience data
• Publish a workforce monitoring report annually and our Race Equality Pay Gap to aid transparency and monitor progress
• Invest in resources to oversee this work, making links between, and providing support for, different parts of the organisation and external.

Achievements

By 2025 there will be:

• An annual increase in the percentage of racially minoritised employees
• Significant progress towards our goal of a minimum of 25% of racially minoritised employees in the workforce
• An increase to a minimum of 25% of senior positions held by individuals from the global majority
• 100% completion by all staff of equality and diversity training in accordance with the Trust’s Mandatory Training policy
• Well understood approach to racial equity across the organisation
• Clear accountability for diversity though the performance management framework.

Our role as a healthcare provider

Liverpool Women’s Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is committed to focusing on areas in healthcare that highlight health inequalities in access, experience or outcomes in racially minoritised groups.  We will work towards reshaping policy and practice to support fair healthcare for all, from maternal health through to end-of-life care.

We will be working with the most vulnerable in the community who often experience the cumulative impact of race inequity. Our work will identify and tackle global majority health inequity and recognise the complex social determinants of health as well as the resulting effect on individual personal choices.

As a provider of healthcare, we will establish and maintain ongoing meaningful community and patient partnerships using a multi-pronged and multiple interventional level approach.  Partnerships will be long-term, with inclusion and engagement across the age range to ensure cultural suitability in the planning and development of services to target community needs appropriately and effectively.

Ambition

To collectively make a significant difference to the healthcare of individuals and communities.

• Include and engage at a community level
• Include and engage communities and patients at a policy level
• Be a catalyst for change.

Actions

• Establish ongoing meaningful community and patient partnerships
• Deliver workshops focused on patient-provider relationships
• Use the strengths of lived experiences in decision making
• Seek views of racism experienced when receiving healthcare
• Bring in the right culturally appropriate support and expertise
• Increase participation and partnership in decision making through shared leadership in policymaking.

Our role as a partner

Institutional racism is bigger than any individual organisation. We are committed to working in partnership to extend our influence beyond the boundaries of our organisation, to influence others and to actively work to challenge racism within our sphere of influence.

Ambition

• Listen to and amplify the voice of racially minoritised communities
• Share our experience and learning to support partners in the city to make positive change.

Actions

• Engage with our workforce and our communities to have honest· conversations about racism and barriers to healthcare and work in our organisation
• Through our outreach employment programmes we will proactively engage with young racially minoritised people in our community to support, develop and empower them to enact change
• Openly share our challenges and successes with others to inform their actions in tackling race equality; and be curious about others actions
• Work closely with our local communities to develop trust and co-design solutions to the barriers to employment and healthcare
• Visibly support local and national campaigns for racial justice
• Be an active leader and play our part in educating and supporting healthcare providers to tackle racism
• Encourage positive narratives, challenge negative media, images and communications, and celebrate and promote positive achievements.

Achievements

By 2025 there will be:

• An improvement in the recognition and understanding of the day-to-day experience of racism that makes life for racially minoritised people different from that of White people.