Diversity Fund 2023 successful bids announced
Find out about the projects awarded funding from the 2023 Diversity Fund.
The Diversity Fund is a £70,000 annual fund which provides grants to initiatives which aim to further the University's commitment to fostering an inclusive culture across the collegiate University. This year's applications to the Diversity Fund showed just how passionate, ambitious and creative our community is when it comes to equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI). Vernal Scott, Head of the Equality and Diversity Unit shared his reflections on the nominations and congratulated the successful bidders.
“I am thrilled with the successful bidders. The panel this year, among other things, considered the impact of proposed projects within the University, with many of the funded projects involving work that would have cross-divisional or pan-University impact. That, along with the quantum requested for projects, were some of our key considerations. All bids had merit, so it is sad that we couldn’t support them all. The Diversity Fund facilitates the immense enthusiasm and innovation offered by colleagues across the University to make a positive difference regarding the lived EDI experience, and I look forward to working with them.”
The Diversity Fund aims to deliver culture change across the collegiate University. The funding awarded will help the project leads develop and deliver their ideas whilst also providing them with invaluable learning opportunities. Ben Grant, Director of Weekly Classes and Day and Weekend Programme at the Department of Continuing Education said,
"We were absolutely delighted to receive the funding and are very much looking forward to getting started on the project."
You can read the project summaries for each of the funded bids and find out how much funding each project received on our successful bids page.
More reactions from the project leads on receiving funding
Benjamin Grant, Project Lead, Educational Workshops for Refugees and Asylum Seekers
“We are extremely grateful to the Diversity Fund for giving us this opportunity to work closely with Asylum Welcome and their clients to deliver workshops for refugees and asylum seekers. We are confident that they will boost the skills and confidence of the learners. We are also sure that we will ourselves learn a great deal from the project which will help the Department for Continuing Education to be as inclusive and accessible as possible.”
Emily Hotine and Fadi Issa, Project Co-Leads, Off the Beaten Track
"We are excited for these videos to engage students who have so much to offer but have historically faced considerable challenges in accessing an education or employment within the University. It is our hope that the University will grow to reflect the diversity of the wider community of Oxford and that this project will help to work towards that aim."
Clare Hardman and Sam Jones, Project co-Leads, Wellbeing of Working Parents and Carers
"We are delighted to have been awarded funding to host a wellbeing workshop for parents and carers. Parents and carers face challenges with time management, being pulled in different directions and feelings of isolation. The event will allow us to grow our community of support and reach out to other groups within the University. We believe our project will give parents and carers tools and support to thrive in their home and working life."
The Staff Network Co-Chairs and the EDU, Project Co-Leads, EDU and Equality Networks Development Session
"We are looking forward to exploring the future collaborations between the Staff Networks and EDI practitioners at Oxford. This focused time will give us the opportunity to synergise our planning and co-create the work of achieving the goals of the Race Equality Strategy and the EDI Strategic Plan."
Katherine Corr, Project Lead, Qualitative Accelerator
"We’re delighted to receive funding for our project – we chose in MSD to focus on building qualitative skills and capacity to really facilitate our departments to dig into their survey results in more detail, to utilise the immense skill across the institution. The project aims to build meaningful and impactful actions to improve culture and support cross-divisional and cross-institutional collaboration and information sharing – watch this space!"
Maddie Welland, Project Lead, EDI Training Symposium
"We are grateful to have been awarded funding to create Oxford’s first EDI Training Conference. We hope that this will create more equitable access to professional development for EDI practitioners and staff engaged in EDI work."
