Embedding Diversity,
Equity and Inclusion
We are committed to embedding Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) in every aspect of our work. 360Giving’s strategy includes ambitious targets to increase our scale and impact. In order to deliver this, we need to attract and keep the best talent in our organisation, and ensure we meet the needs of our stakeholders.
Overall our DEI aims are to:
- Ensure an inclusive culture that values diversity in how we treat each other, those we work with and users of our services.
- Ensure that our programmes, tools and resources are accessible, inclusive and meet the needs of a diverse range of stakeholders.
- Increase awareness of equity considerations in the use of grants data and support the practices of others.
- Ensure that DEI and wellbeing considerations are actively part of all our internal practices and decision-making to maximise our impact.
These are daily practices for us, which we hope are evidenced through our work and approach.
Below, we expand on some of the ways we have sought to progress DEI to date. We recognise this work is, by its nature, ongoing. As we develop and refine our approach, we will continue to ask ourselves hard questions about how we can go further and where our efforts will make the most difference, within our capacity as a small organisation.
The DEI Data Standard
The DEI Data Standard is a framework we developed in 2020 to support funders to monitor and understand the equity of their grantmaking. The work was funded by Esmée Fairbairn Foundation and the National Lottery Community Fund on behalf of the DEI Data Group.
We worked with a wide range of specialist infrastructure organisations and charity groups to develop this Standard and approach – to reflect, as far as possible in a unifying framework, how organisations identify themselves. We also wanted to minimise the burden on charities to provide information. These are principles we apply across the board: involving people with lived experience in research and design, to ensure we are both purposeful and proportionate.
As part of our continued support for this DEI Data Standard, we hold a regular free workshop which explains the key concepts and decisions for funders who want to start collecting DEI data. We have also developed a DEI Extension for the 360Giving Data Standard to support new and existing 360Giving Publishers to include DEI Data Standard data in their 360Giving data files. We also provide training and support for intersectional data analysis, supporting funders to explore their data and processes through the lens of power.
Recognising and using our privilege
We recognise that we hold pesitions of privilege ourselves due to our individual identities, the proximity of our charity to funders and policymakers, and due to our funding model allowing us to exercise a more independent voice and have more choices. We use our power to challenge inequitable practices where we can. For example, we challenge funders who are using extractive data collection practices; we don’t accept invitations to speak at conferences or on panels where all speakers are white, or commercial events where charity speakers are not being paid; and we don’t chair all-male panels.
Prioritising neurodivergence
Neurodivergent individuals, particularly people who identify as autistic, are more commonly found in data roles. So, we knew that improving our awareness and making adjustments could have an impact for our team and to the people we support, particularly those preparing data for publishing.
We embarked on a learning process, with people across the team undertaking areas of independent study to increase our collective awareness and knowledge at all levels of the organisation. We sought external perspectives from people with varied experiences, as we knew it would be impossible to represent every identity or characteristic ourselves. This gave us a richer understanding and a shared vocabulary.
One of the organisations we worked with was the Positive Psychology Autism Centre. They gave us something to work towards, the Neurodiversity Inclusivity Confidence Award, which we were proud to be one of the first charities to achieve in 2022.
Monitoring Diversity and Inclusion
We conduct an anonymous diversity and inclusion survey each year to provide a snapshot that can inform and support our internal development programme.
360Giving doesn’t have an HR database and as a result, special category information is not stored in a personally identifiable way in the records. Monitoring takes place in aggregate in our recruitment processes and through annual surveys such as the one whose results are reported below.
Figures here, from our January 2024 surveys, include staff and Trustees together, as publishing information alone would risk making individuals identifiable given our small size. We also monitor the diversity of our Stewardship Committee, however the results are not included here to support like-for-like comparison between the years for the Board and staff team.
Diversity
As a small organisation, setting specific targets for diversity would risk being a tokenistic exercise. However, we feel it is important to monitor diversity and be aware of potential biases in our inclusion and decision-making. We have a reasonable level of diversity overall – although recognise there is room for improvement. Both the Board and staff team have higher levels of education and class factors than the overall population.
Identities/characteristics | Jan-24 | Mar-23 | 2021-22 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 45 | 38% | 46% | 82% |
| Female and non-binary | 85% | 77% | 64% |
| LGBTQ+ | 31% | 23% | 18% |
| Disabled | 31% | 31% | 27% |
| Communities experiencing racial inequity | 38% | 46% | 36% |
| Attended UK State School – Comprehensive | 38% | 38% | 45% |
| Highest level of education below degree level | 8% | 0% | 0% |
| First generation to go to university | 50% | 38% | 27% |
These figures provide a snapshot, with profiles changing during the year with staff recruitment and Trustees ending their terms of office. During 2023 we increased the diversity of the staff team across all areas, but decreased the diversity of the Board in some areas.
We will continue to review and improve on our practice to embed DEI across all our areas of work. We recognise that there is room to recruit from a broader pool of talent particularly those without formal higher education qualifications. To this end, since early 2021, we have used the Applied platform for all staff recruitment to try to reduce bias through anonymous application processes and structured assessment processes. Strong writing skills are essential criteria for all the staff roles and we have found it effective to take a competency-based approach, while testing written communication skills at the same time.
This has increased our staff diversity overall, but we continue to have a disproportionately high number of graduates – and in fact 62% of overall Board and staff have at least one Masters’ degree or a Doctorate.
We will continue to explore recruitment options to improve our practices as vacancies arise, as is viable within our budget and capacity.
Inclusion
Trustees and staff members were asked to rate their agreement with the following statements where 1 is Strongly disagree and 5 is Strongly agree.
- I feel like I belong at 360Giving
- I feel I can be myself and express my identity in my role at 360Giving
- I feel 360Giving has an inclusive culture where diversity is valued
- I feel respected and valued at 360Giving
- I believe that 360Giving is a safe and supportive environment
- I would feel comfortable sharing with the CEO or the Chair if I required an adjustment
- I would recommend 360Giving as a great place to work/be a trustee
- If I have a concern about harassment or discrimination, I know where to lay my complaints
There were high levels of agreement on the inclusion statements but, as always, there is room for improvement. Numbers are too low to be statistically significant, but average scores were slightly lower from Trustees across all factors from last year at an average of 3.9 out of 5 (2022-23: 4.3), and for staff remain at a high average of 4.7 out of 5.