Accessibility & Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Policy

Introduction

The National Society for Education, Mentoring and Media (NSEMM) is committed to creating an inclusive organisation where equality, diversity and inclusion are embedded in everything we do. We believe that diversity strengthens our organisation and enriches the educational experiences we provide to young people up to twenty-five years across the United Kingdom.

This policy sets out our commitment to eliminating discrimination, advancing equality of opportunity, and fostering good relations between different groups within our community. We recognise that educational inequality remains a significant challenge in the UK, and we are determined to play our part in addressing this through inclusive practices that ensure all young people can access high-quality tutoring and mentoring support regardless of their background, circumstances or characteristics.

As a charitable organisation operating both online and in community venues, NSEMM understands that we have the opportunity to reach learners from diverse backgrounds and circumstances. We are committed to ensuring that our services are accessible, inclusive and responsive to the needs of all potential beneficiaries, and that our workforce reflects the diversity of the communities we serve.

Scope

This policy applies to all aspects of NSEMM’s operations, including the recruitment, development and treatment of employees, volunteers and trustees, the design and delivery of our tutoring and mentoring services, our partnerships with schools, libraries and other community organisations, our communications and marketing activities, and our relationships with students, parents, guardians and carers.

The policy covers all protected characteristics as defined by the Equality Act 2010, including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. We also recognise that inequality and disadvantage can arise from socio-economic factors, care experience, and other circumstances that may not be covered by legislation but which nonetheless affect educational outcomes and life chances.

Legal Framework

NSEMM is committed to complying with all relevant equality legislation, including the Equality Act 2010, which prohibits discrimination and requires public bodies and organisations to have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity, and foster good relations between different groups.

We recognise our obligations under the Human Rights Act 1998, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. We also acknowledge the importance of the Lammy Review recommendations on racial bias in the criminal justice system, the Race Disparity Audit findings, and other research highlighting persistent inequalities in education and employment.

Whilst NSEMM is not subject to the Public Sector Equality Duty as a charity, we voluntarily adopt its principles and will have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, harassment and victimisation, advance equality of opportunity between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it, and foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it.

Our Commitment to Disability Confidence

NSEMM is committed to becoming a Disability Confident Employer and will work towards achieving formal recognition under the government’s Disability Confident scheme. This commitment means we will actively seek to remove barriers that prevent disabled people from participating fully in our organisation, whether as employees, volunteers, students or community members.

We recognise that disabled people are significantly underrepresented in many areas of education and employment, and we are determined to challenge this through positive action and inclusive practices. We will ensure that our recruitment processes are accessible and fair, that we make reasonable adjustments for disabled employees and volunteers, and that our services are designed to be accessible from the outset rather than requiring retrofitting for accessibility.

Our commitment to disability confidence extends to challenging negative attitudes and assumptions about disability, promoting the social model of disability that recognises barriers in society rather than focusing on individual impairments, providing disability awareness training for all staff and volunteers, and working with disabled people’s organisations and disability equality experts to continuously improve our practice.

Policy Statement

NSEMM is committed to creating an environment where everyone is valued, respected and able to achieve their full potential. We believe that diversity of thought, experience and background strengthens our organisation and improves the quality of education we provide. We will not tolerate discrimination, harassment, bullying or victimisation in any form, and we will take positive action to address inequality and promote inclusion.

We recognise that equality is not simply about treating everyone the same, but about ensuring that everyone has access to the same opportunities and can participate fully in our organisation regardless of their background or circumstances. This may require different approaches for different groups, and we are committed to making reasonable adjustments and providing additional support where this is needed to ensure genuine equality of opportunity.

We acknowledge that inequality and discrimination exist in society and that these broader patterns may be reflected in our organisation unless we take active steps to address them. We commit to regularly reviewing our policies, practices and outcomes to identify and address any inequalities, and to taking positive action where this is lawful and appropriate to promote equality and inclusion.

Equality Objectives

NSEMM has identified the following key equality objectives, which will be reviewed annually and updated as necessary to reflect our evolving understanding of equality challenges and opportunities.

Objective 1: Accessible and Inclusive Service Delivery

We will ensure that our tutoring and mentoring services are accessible to all young people, including those with disabilities, those from ethnic minority backgrounds, those experiencing socio-economic disadvantage, and those who may face other barriers to educational participation. Our pay-what-you-can model provides completely free tutoring to residents of Nottingham City and Broxtowe through our council partnership, with flexible payment options for other families who choose their contribution level without judgment.

We recognise that our technology requirements can create barriers and address these through in-person tutoring at community libraries in Nottingham, laptop lending programmes for families who need equipment support, exploration of partnerships with technology lending schemes, and flexible application of our supervision requirements whilst maintaining safeguarding standards.

For students requiring accessibility accommodations, we welcome BSL interpreters and other communication support in sessions, adapt our platforms and delivery methods to ensure genuine inclusion, provide alternative communication methods where our standard approaches are not suitable, and work with families to identify practical solutions that maintain both accessibility and safety.

We will regularly review our student demographics and outcomes data to identify any groups who may be underrepresented or experiencing poorer outcomes, and we will take targeted action to address any inequalities we identify. We will also seek feedback from students, parents and community partners on how inclusive and accessible our services are, and we will use this feedback to drive continuous improvement.

Objective 2: Diverse and Inclusive Workforce

We will build a workforce of employees, volunteers and trustees that reflects the diversity of the communities we serve, and we will create an inclusive working environment where everyone can thrive. This includes reviewing our recruitment and selection processes to identify and remove any barriers that may prevent people from diverse backgrounds from joining our organisation, providing equality and inclusion training for all staff and volunteers, implementing mentoring and development programmes that support progression for people from underrepresented groups, and regularly monitoring our workforce diversity data and taking action where we identify underrepresentation.

We will work towards achieving representation across all protected characteristics and will pay particular attention to addressing any significant underrepresentation we identify. We will also focus on creating an inclusive culture where difference is valued and where people feel comfortable bringing their whole selves to work or volunteering.

Objective 3: Elimination of Discrimination and Harassment

We will create environments, both online and in person, where discrimination, harassment and bullying are not tolerated and where all members of our community feel safe and respected. This includes implementing robust policies and procedures for preventing and addressing discrimination and harassment, providing training on recognising and challenging discriminatory behaviour, establishing clear reporting mechanisms that are accessible to all community members, and ensuring that any reports of discrimination or harassment are investigated promptly and thoroughly with appropriate action taken.

We will work to create a culture where people feel confident to report concerns and where bystander intervention is encouraged and supported. We will also regularly review our practices and environments to identify and address any factors that might contribute to discriminatory behaviour or make people feel unwelcome or unsafe.

Objective 4: Advancement of Equality of Opportunity

We will take positive action where this is lawful and appropriate to advance equality of opportunity for people from groups that are underrepresented or face particular disadvantages. This includes developing targeted outreach and engagement programmes for underrepresented groups, providing additional support and adjustments where needed to ensure genuine equality of opportunity, partnering with organisations that support specific communities to improve access to our services, and using our influence and voice to promote equality and challenge discrimination in the wider education sector.

We will regularly review our policies and practices to identify opportunities for positive action and will implement measures that help to level the playing field for those who face systemic disadvantages.

Objective 5: Data Collection and Analysis

We will collect, analyse and act upon equality data to understand our performance in promoting equality and inclusion and to identify areas for improvement. This includes collecting demographic data about our students, staff, volunteers and trustees in a sensitive and purposeful way, regularly analysing this data to identify trends, gaps and areas of concern, benchmarking our performance against sector standards and best practice, and publishing annual equality reports that demonstrate our progress and set out our future priorities.

We will use data to drive decision-making and will ensure that equality considerations are built into our planning and evaluation processes from the outset rather than being added as an afterthought.

Protected Characteristics

NSEMM recognises and will actively promote equality in relation to all protected characteristics as defined by the Equality Act 2010. Our approach to each characteristic is detailed below.

Age

We will ensure that our services are accessible and appropriate for the full age range we serve, from six to twenty-five years, and that we tailor our approaches to the developmental needs and preferences of different age groups. We will not discriminate on the basis of age in our employment practices and will value the contributions that people of all ages bring to our organisation. We recognise that different generations may have different experiences of education, technology and communication, and we will ensure our practices are inclusive of these differences.

We will pay particular attention to ensuring that our online platforms and communication methods work for people of all ages and technological confidence levels, and we will provide support and training where needed to ensure that age is not a barrier to participation in our services or organisation.

Disability

NSEMM is committed to promoting equality for disabled people and to becoming a Disability Confident Employer. We will ensure that our services are accessible to disabled students and that we make reasonable adjustments to enable full participation. This includes ensuring our online platforms meet accessibility standards, providing alternative formats for materials, ensuring physical venues are accessible, and working with disabled students and their families to identify and implement appropriate support arrangements.

In employment and volunteering, we will make reasonable adjustments to enable disabled people to participate fully, and we will not discriminate on the basis of disability in our recruitment or treatment of staff and volunteers. We will provide disability awareness training and will work to challenge negative attitudes and assumptions about disability.

We recognise that disability can be visible or invisible, physical, sensory, cognitive or mental health-related, and we will ensure our approaches are inclusive of all types of disability. We will also recognise that some disabled people may not identify as disabled or may prefer different terminology, and we will respect individual preferences whilst maintaining our commitment to equality and inclusion.

Gender Identity

We will ensure that our services and organisation are inclusive and welcoming for transgender, gender non-conforming and non-binary people, including students, staff, volunteers and family members. This includes respecting chosen names (as standard) and pronouns, ensuring our facilities and arrangements are inclusive, providing appropriate support and guidance for young people exploring their gender identity, and challenging discrimination and transphobia wherever we encounter it.

We will ensure that our staff and volunteers receive appropriate training on supporting transgender and non-binary people, and we will work with specialist organisations to develop our understanding and practice. We recognise that transgender and non-binary young people may face particular challenges in education, and we will ensure our services are responsive to these needs.

Marriage and Civil Partnership

We will not discriminate on the basis of marital status and will ensure that our employment benefits and policies are equally available to married couples and civil partners. We will respect and value all forms of family structure and will ensure that our communications and assumptions do not privilege one form of partnership over another.

Pregnancy and Maternity

We will support staff, volunteers and students who are pregnant or have recently given birth, making appropriate adjustments and providing necessary support to ensure they can continue to participate in our organisation. This includes flexible working arrangements, risk assessments for pregnant staff and volunteers, and support for students who are pregnant or are young parents.

We will ensure that pregnancy and maternity do not result in disadvantage or discrimination and will work to support people through these life transitions whilst maintaining their engagement with our organisation where they wish to continue.

Race

NSEMM is committed to promoting racial equality and challenging racism in all its forms. We recognise that people from ethnic minority backgrounds continue to face discrimination and disadvantage in education and employment, and we are committed to addressing this through our policies and practices.

We will ensure that our services are culturally appropriate and accessible to people from all racial and ethnic backgrounds, and we will work to address any barriers that may prevent participation. In employment and volunteering, we will work to increase representation of people from ethnic minority backgrounds and will challenge racism and discrimination wherever we encounter it.

We will provide training on cultural competency and anti-racism, and we will regularly review our practices to identify and address any policies or procedures that may have a disproportionate impact on people from particular racial or ethnic groups. We will also work with community organisations and faith groups to improve our understanding and outreach.

Religion or Belief

We will respect and accommodate different religious beliefs and philosophical worldviews, ensuring that our services and organisation are inclusive of people of all faiths and none. This includes accommodating religious observances and dietary requirements where possible, ensuring that our scheduling and arrangements do not unnecessarily conflict with religious practices, and challenging religious discrimination and prejudice.

We will ensure that our staff and volunteers understand different religious and cultural practices and will provide appropriate training and guidance. We will also ensure that our materials and approaches are sensitive to different religious perspectives whilst maintaining our commitment to evidence-based education.

Sex

We will promote gender equality and challenge sexism and gender stereotypes in our organisation and services. We recognise that gender inequality remains a significant issue in many areas of education and employment, and we are committed to addressing this through our practices and approaches.

We will ensure that our services are equally accessible to students of all genders and will work to address any gender gaps in participation or outcomes. We will challenge gender stereotypes in subject choice and career aspirations and will provide positive role models and examples for students of all genders.

In employment and volunteering, we will work to achieve gender balance and will address any gender pay gaps or other inequalities we identify. We will provide training on gender equality and will challenge sexist behaviour and attitudes.

Sexual Orientation

We will ensure that our organisation and services are inclusive and welcoming for people of all sexual orientations, including lesbian, gay, bisexual and other sexual minorities. This includes ensuring that our communications and assumptions do not presume heterosexuality, providing appropriate support for young people exploring their sexual identity, and challenging homophobia, biphobia and other forms of discrimination based on sexual orientation.

We will ensure that our staff and volunteers receive appropriate training on supporting LGBTQ+ young people and will work with specialist organisations to develop our understanding and practice. We will also ensure that our materials and examples reflect diverse sexual orientations and family structures.

Socio-Economic Equality

Whilst socio-economic status is not a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010, NSEMM recognises that socio-economic disadvantage is a significant barrier to educational achievement and life chances. We are committed to addressing this through our policies and practices.

We will ensure that financial barriers do not prevent access to our services and will provide free or low-cost support where this is needed. We will also work to address digital inequality by providing support with accessing appropriate technology and internet connectivity where possible.

We will be sensitive to the impact of poverty and socio-economic disadvantage on families and will ensure that our approaches do not inadvertently exclude or stigmatise those experiencing financial hardship. We will work with schools, local authorities and other organisations to identify and support young people who may benefit from our services but face socio-economic barriers to access.

Intersectionality and Multiple Identities

We recognise that people have multiple identities and that discrimination and disadvantage can be compounded when someone belongs to more than one group that faces inequality. We will ensure that our approaches to equality and inclusion recognise and address intersectionality, understanding that someone’s experience of discrimination may be different because of the combination of their identities.

We will avoid treating protected characteristics in isolation and will consider how different forms of disadvantage may interact and compound each other. We will ensure that our data collection and analysis capabilities allow us to understand intersectional experiences, and we will design our interventions and support with intersectionality in mind.

Reasonable Adjustments and Accessibility

NSEMM is committed to making reasonable adjustments for disabled employees, volunteers and students, and to ensuring that our services are accessible from the outset. We understand that reasonable adjustments are not just a legal requirement but are essential for creating an inclusive environment where everyone can participate fully.

We will approach reasonable adjustments proactively, working with individuals to identify what support they need rather than waiting for formal requests. We will also ensure that our staff and volunteers understand their responsibilities in relation to reasonable adjustments and know how to access support and guidance when needed.

For our online services, we will ensure that our platforms and materials meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) standards and will provide alternative formats where needed. For our community venue sessions, we will ensure that venues are physically accessible and will work with venue managers to address any barriers we identify.

We will maintain a reasonable adjustments policy and procedure that sets out how requests are handled, what support is available, and how decisions are made. We will also regularly review our standard practices and procedures to identify opportunities to build in accessibility from the outset rather than relying on individual adjustments.

Recruitment and Employment

NSEMM is committed to equitable recruitment practices that recognise potential, not just past performance. We understand that academic achievement does not occur in a vacuum and that structural disadvantage, interrupted education, or lack of opportunity may limit access to qualifications without reflecting a candidate’s ability, values, or teaching potential.

While our standard academic criteria, including fifty-two GCSE points across eight core subjects with grade six minimum in English and mathematics, A-Level requirements of preferably grade B or higher in tutoring subjects, and degree classifications of 2:1 or above, help guide quality assurance, they are not absolute barriers. Applicants who do not meet these thresholds are warmly encouraged to apply if they can demonstrate relevant subject knowledge, lived experience, and a commitment to supporting students from all backgrounds.

We particularly welcome contextual applicants who may have attended schools in areas of educational disadvantage, faced systemic barriers due to disability, care experience, income, or migration status, experienced health or family circumstances that disrupted education, or entered higher education via widening participation routes or access courses.

Instead of focusing solely on formal qualifications, we look for evidence of subject knowledge and communication skills, passion for inclusive education and mentoring, self-awareness and reflective learning, commitment to safeguarding and equitable outcomes, and reliability and alignment with our values.

As a Disability Confident Employer, any person who declares a disability and meets the essential criteria for a role is guaranteed an interview. We will monitor our recruitment data to identify any patterns of underrepresentation and will take action to address these, including reviewing our recruitment channels, partnerships with diverse communities and educational institutions, and assessment methods to ensure they do not inadvertently discriminate.

We actively recruit tutors from diverse backgrounds and will continue to develop our approaches to reaching underrepresented groups. Once employed or engaged as volunteers, we will ensure that all staff have equal access to development opportunities, training and progression, and we will work to ensure that our workplace culture is inclusive and welcoming for everyone.

Student Engagement and Support

NSEMM recognises that students from different backgrounds may face different barriers to educational achievement and may require different types of support to succeed. Our pay-what-you-can model ensures that financial barriers do not prevent access, with completely free tutoring available to residents of Nottingham City and Broxtowe through our council partnership, and flexible payment options for families elsewhere who can choose their contribution level without judgment or disclosure to tutors.

We understand that our technology requirements (laptops or desktops with specific specifications, reliable internet, and appropriate home learning environments) can create barriers for some families. To address this, we offer in-person tutoring sessions at community libraries in Nottingham, maintain a limited supply of laptops available for loan to families who need them, and are actively exploring partnerships with technology lending schemes to expand digital access.

Our safeguarding requirement for trusted adults to be nearby during sessions can present challenges for some families, particularly single-parent households, families with irregular work patterns, or those in overcrowded housing situations. While we maintain this requirement for safeguarding purposes, we apply it flexibly, allowing older students more independence where parents remain contactable by mobile phone during sessions, and we work with families to find practical solutions that maintain both safety and accessibility.

We recognise that our standard communication requirements through official NSEMM channels may not suit all families’ needs or preferences. While these protocols remain essential for safeguarding, we provide alternative contact methods including direct phone communication for families who require it, direct-dial numbers for those with specific access needs, and support to connect families with other services where our communication methods cannot be accommodated.

For students requiring accessibility accommodations, we welcome additional participants in sessions such as BSL interpreters, work to identify alternative communication methods that enable full participation, and adapt our standard delivery methods to ensure genuine inclusion rather than simply offering access.

We will regularly seek feedback from students and families about their experiences of our services and will use this feedback to identify areas for improvement. We will also track outcomes data to identify any inequalities in achievement and will take action to address these.

Training and Development

All NSEMM staff, volunteers and trustees will receive equality, diversity and inclusion training as part of their induction and will participate in regular refresher training to keep their knowledge and skills up to date. This training will cover our legal obligations, our organisational commitment to equality and inclusion, practical guidance on inclusive behaviour and practice, and specific training relevant to their role.

We will provide specialist training for staff in leadership positions on their responsibilities for promoting equality and inclusion, and we will ensure that those involved in recruitment receive specific training on fair and inclusive selection practices.

We will also provide training on specific aspects of equality and inclusion, such as disability awareness, cultural competency, LGBTQ+ awareness, and unconscious bias. We will work with external specialists and community organisations to ensure that our training is high-quality and reflects current best practice.

Training will be evaluated to ensure it is effective in changing knowledge, attitudes and behaviour, and we will adjust our approaches based on feedback and outcomes.

Monitoring and Data Collection

NSEMM will collect and analyse equality data to understand our performance in promoting equality and inclusion and to identify areas for improvement. We will collect this data in a sensitive and purposeful way, ensuring that we are transparent about why we are collecting it and how it will be used.

We will collect demographic data about our students, staff, volunteers and trustees, and we will regularly analyse this data to identify trends, gaps and areas of concern. We will also collect data about experiences and outcomes to understand whether different groups are having different experiences of our organisation.

We will use this data to inform our decision-making and planning, and we will publish annual equality reports that demonstrate our progress and set out our future priorities. We will also benchmark our performance against sector standards and best practice.

Data will be collected and stored in accordance with data protection requirements, and we will ensure that individuals’ privacy is protected whilst still enabling us to understand and address equality issues.

Complaints and Grievances

NSEMM takes all complaints about discrimination, harassment or unfair treatment seriously and will investigate them thoroughly and promptly. We have clear procedures for reporting and investigating complaints, and we will ensure that these procedures are accessible to all members of our community.

We will provide multiple ways for people to report concerns, including formal and informal options, and we will ensure that people feel confident to raise issues without fear of reprisal or victimisation. We will also provide support for those who experience discrimination or harassment.

All complaints will be investigated by trained and impartial investigators, and appropriate action will be taken based on the findings. We will also use learning from complaints to improve our policies and practices and prevent similar issues arising in future.

Discriminatory behaviour is classified as gross misconduct under the Staff Code of Conduct.

We will regularly review our complaints data to identify any patterns or trends that might indicate systemic issues, and we will take action to address these.

Partnership Working

NSEMM recognises that promoting equality and inclusion requires partnership working with other organisations, communities and stakeholders. Our current partnership with Nottingham City Council provides free tutoring to residents of Nottingham City and Broxtowe, delivered through community libraries to ensure general access for all secondary-age students.

We seek to partner with organisations that share our commitment to equality and inclusion, and we will use our partnerships to learn from best practice and to extend our reach to underrepresented communities. While we do not currently work with organisations specifically supporting particular demographic groups, we remain open to developing such partnerships where they would enhance our ability to provide inclusive and accessible services.

We will also use our voice and influence to promote equality in the wider education sector, challenging discrimination and advocating for inclusive policies and practices. Our partnerships with local libraries and educational institutions provide opportunities to model inclusive practice and share our learning with others.

Communication and Language

NSEMM will ensure that our communications are inclusive and accessible, using plain English and avoiding jargon or assumptions that might exclude some readers. We will ensure that our materials reflect diversity in their images, examples and case studies, and we will avoid stereotypes or discriminatory language.

We will provide information in different formats and languages where this is needed to ensure accessibility, and we will ensure that our online communications meet accessibility standards.

We will also ensure that our internal communications promote equality and inclusion, celebrating diversity and challenging discriminatory language or behaviour.

Governance and Leadership

NSEMM’s Board of Trustees has overall responsibility for ensuring that the organisation promotes equality and inclusion. The Board will receive regular reports on equality performance and will ensure that equality considerations are embedded in strategic planning and decision-making.

The Chief Executive Officer has executive responsibility for implementing this policy and will ensure that equality and inclusion are prioritised across all areas of the organisation’s work.

We will work to ensure that our governance structures reflect the diversity of the communities we serve, and we will provide equality and inclusion training for all trustees.

Review and Continuous Improvement

This policy will be reviewed annually to ensure that it remains current and effective. Reviews will consider changes in legislation, best practice guidance, our organisational context, and feedback from staff, volunteers, students and communities.

We will also undertake regular equality impact assessments of our policies and practices to identify any that may have a disproportionate impact on particular groups, and we will take action to address any negative impacts we identify.

We are committed to continuous improvement in our equality and inclusion practice and will regularly seek feedback, learn from best practice elsewhere, and adapt our approaches as our understanding develops.

Support and Resources

NSEMM will provide support and resources to help staff, volunteers and students understand and implement this policy. This includes guidance documents, training materials, access to specialist advice, and clear procedures for seeking support.

We will also maintain links with external organisations and resources that can provide additional support and expertise on equality and inclusion matters.

Contact Information

For questions about this policy or to report concerns about discrimination or inequality, please contact the Chief Executive Officer or the Designated Safeguarding Lead Adrian Angol-Henry at [email protected].

For confidential support or advice, staff and volunteers may also access external support through relevant professional organisations or support services.

Related Policies

• Staff Code of Conduct
• Anti-Harassment and EDI Policy
• Anti-Sexual Harassment Policy
• Staff Handbook
• Complaints Policy

Approval and Review

This policy has been approved by the NSEMM Board of Trustees and will be reviewed annually or sooner if circumstances require. The next scheduled review is July 2026.

This policy demonstrates NSEMM’s commitment to creating an inclusive organisation where everyone can thrive and contribute to our mission of providing high-quality educational support to young people across the UK. We recognise that promoting equality and inclusion is an ongoing journey, and we are committed to continuous learning and improvement in our practice.