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Reflections on FE Sector’s Anti-racist Journey in Wales

Posted on Nov 28th, 2024

By Stella Mbubaegbu CBE, Co-Founder of the BLG.

Published by Black Leadership Group (BLG) in collaboration with DARPL – Diversity and Anti-Racism Professional Learning.

The events of summer 2024 underscore the need to address racism in all its manifestations across the UK. Wales with its public ambition to become an anti-racist nation by 2030 has been leading the way as exemplified in the Anti-racist Wales Action Plan (ArWAP) published in June 2022. The aim is to ensure that every individual, regardless of their background, can succeed in a society that is truly antiracist. 

The Black Leadership Group (BLG) has been privileged to work alongside the Further Education (FE) Sector in Wales and the Welsh Government every step of the journey as a Resource, Enabler, and Critical Friend. The reflections that follow are from BLG’s perspective and my vantage point as strategic project director of our work in Wales with partners. I offer a narrative, the basis of a future case study that I plan to produce to celebrate Wales: Anti-racist Trailblazer Nation and Wales FE, and which I hope will be of interest to other nations, regions, and cities, globally.

The Anti-racist Wales Action Plan – A Year On: Annual Report 2022-2023 provided early reflections on core activities the Welsh Government and its partners in the public, private and third sector have been addressing to effect meaningful change. The Report includes a summary of the FE sector’s progress towards its objective: ‘Culture change towards anti-racism. To use existing and new tools to create organisation wide change towards anti-racism’ and ‘Goal: Anti-racist culture and practices are embedded in every FE institution and adult learning provider in Wales.’ Several foundational activities and tools had been commissioned and developed. However, at the time of the report in 2023, it was still too early to start measuring the impact of actions and Welsh Government officials were working to consider how outcomes can be measured in the medium to long term.

So where is the FE sector now in 2024? Following a two-year journey of preparation, professional learning, action planning and, getting the right tools in place, the sector is poised to make impactful and significant contributions to the anti-racist Wales 2030 ambition. 

All FEIs in Wales have anti-racist action plans in place, embedding the principles of BLG’s 10-point plan. All FEIs are affiliated with the BLG. The evidence base for action planning is much improved and is continuing to develop. A brilliant anti-racist curriculum and Metaverse, a development led by Cardiff and Vale College is being rolled out and is an inspirational learning tool which is being accessed across the world.

In addition, a programme of anti-racist professional learning for HR professionals, governors and governance professionals, and black and ethnic minority staff within the FEIs on how to be active upstanders has been rolled out. Two new networks have been formed: anti-racist change makers’ network for college leaders and an ethnic minority network for FE staff within BLG Wales, a community group of BLG UK. In 2023/24 FEIs had access to live consultation support opportunities through DARPL, with some FEIs investing professional learning time and participation in the introductory asynchronous DARPL Enhanced Leadership Series and bespoke contextualised staff events.

The above developments have been actively supported and funded by the Welsh Government.

Speaking at the BLG Annual UK 4 Nations & Global Conference -Tracks, Trails, and Threads March 2024: Courageous Leadership in a Fractured World, Marian Jebb, Post-16 Quality, Welsh Government, identified the critical success factors that have made this groundbreaking work possible: 

  • Willingness to acknowledge that racism exists, to be vulnerable and to question perceptions and beliefs at the core of this work
  • Leadership from influential individuals within the sector
  • Strong partnerships 
  • Building an evidence base to help ensure a shared understanding 
  • Getting the right coalition of experts, those with influence and those with lived experience together to co-shape, advise and challenge
  • Finding people with the ideas and enthusiasm and getting the right balance of creativity and practicality.

These critical success factors provide a useful framework for reflection on the FE sector’s anti-racist journey from 2022 to July 2024 as follows:

Acknowledgement that Racism exists

Unique amongst the UK nations and globally, the Welsh Government has a public commitment to becoming an anti-racist nation by 2030. The existence of racism is acknowledged in the ArWAP:

Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people make an immeasurable contribution to a prosperous, healthier, more equal Wales with vibrant cultures and thriving languages. We profoundly regret those experiences in everyday life in which ethnic minority people have experienced racism as citizens, as service users, as employees and as applicants for jobs and opportunities. Not being valued or respected is heightened by seeing too few Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people as managers or leaders in the organisations they work for, or in public life. This must change, and the work on making that change has begun. – Ministerial Foreword

Co-created with stakeholders and those with lived experiences of racism, the ArWAP sets out the Government’s commitment to improve the lives of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic people, working towards the ambition of an anti-racist Wales by 2030. 

The ArWAP also sets out the Welsh Government’s explicit expectations for all public, third and private sector organisations it funds and how it will hold them to account. For the further education sector, the plan included actions relating to:

  • Reviewing policies and procedures through an anti-racist lens
  • Embedding the principles of the BLG’s 10-point plan to ensure an anti-racist FE system
  • Understanding FE learners’ and staff’s experiences of racism, and their views on what effective anti-racist practice looks like
  • Embedding anti-racist principles into the FE curriculum
  • Improving the coverage, accuracy and use of data on learner and staff ethnicity
  • Improving the recruitment and retention of minority ethnic staff

Granted that FEIs like all other public bodies had previously been required to produce annual Strategic Equality Plans, the Welsh Government’s expectations and specific requirement for each college to submit an Anti-racist action plan as a condition of funding provide the context and imperative for the FE sector’s anti-racism journey from 2022. 

Influential sector leadership

Right from the start, the FE sector was backed and supported by influential leaders including: 

Welsh Government 

  • Wales’s First Minister and Ministers responsible for the Social Justice, Education and Economy portfolios
  • Senedd Cross Party Group for Further Education and Future Skills’ seminal event on 8 December 2021, organised by ColegauCymru, focussed on race equality and FE. The session, attended by a wide range of FE representatives, policy makers, political researchers and BLG discussed in more detail the actions we can all take to ensure an anti-racist Wales. 
  • Officials responsible for developing and overseeing anti-racist actions for the FE sector
  • Knowledge and Analytical Services, who worked closely with the BLG to produce data for FEIs.

College (FEI) leaders 

  • Guy Lacey, principal of Coleg Gwent, chair of Colegau Cymru; Mike James, chief executive of Cardiff and Vale College

Welsh Government and college leadership support has been unequivocal and visible.

Strong partnerships

The FE sector’s journey has been actively supported by strategic partnerships, each adding value:

  • A strategic partnership between CollegesWales/ColegauCymru – the voice of further education in Wales – and Black Leadership Group (BLG) was launched in December 2021, paving the way for the partners to work together to progress the anti-racist Wales agenda in the FE sector. Joint priorities included a focus on challenging racism, closing attainment gaps in skills, training and employment outcomes amongst Black, Asian and minority ethnic learners, whilst also achieving an ethnically representative workforce, including in leadership and governance roles in FE.
  • An excellent tripartite partnership model of influence and lived experience featuring the Welsh Government, ColegauCymru, and the BLG co-creating and delivering foundational projects.
  • Welsh Government and BLG – a partnership of mutual respect, trust, and shared ambition for anti-racist Wales 2030.
  • FEIs and BLG – all 13 FEIs in Wales are BLG affiliated organisations.
  • DARPL (Diversity Anti-Racist Professional Learning) and BLG – a collaboration based on shared values to extend a professional learning leadership module to the sector.

The Evidence base

There is now a solid evidence base for the sector’s anti-racism work, derived from a range of sources:

  • The Anti-racism in the further education sector in Wales: scoping study | GOV.WALES, commissioned by the Welsh Government in January 2022 and co-delivered by ColegauCymru and the BLG, undertook initial work in collaboration with the FEIs to help establish a baseline for Anti-racist practice in the FE sector and help prepare for a programme of equality research, analysis and development for the further education sector that could be delivered from 2022-2023 to progress the ArWAP. The initial focus was reviewing all FEI equality policies and procedures including their Strategic Equality Plans through an anti-racist lens. The study was completed in March 2022 and the Welsh Government accepted the recommendations which provided a detailed interrelated set of actions to take the Anti-racist agenda forward within the further education sector, aiming to fully contribute to the goals and desired outputs of the ArWAP.
  • Building on the partners’ initial scoping study, a second project, co-delivered by ColegauCymru and BLG UK) and undertaken between September 2022 and March 2023, resulted in detailed institutional Anti-racist action plans in a common format across FEIs. In addition, the project provided training and coaching to support FEIs to develop best practice, ambitious plans that would contribute effectively to the Anti-racist Wales Action Plan objectives. 
  • Maintaining a keen interest in the sector’s work, the Welsh Government, provided resources and funds to support FEIs to review progress against their action plans and to update them. In Spring 2024, the Welsh Government produced a summary of the Action Plan progress updates submitted by FEIs in December 2023. 
  • The Welsh Government’s commissioned research study Towards anti-racist further education: qualitative research on the lived experiences of learners and staff | GOV.WALES. 
  • BLG research into lived experience of staff and students, and governors commissioned by FEIs or as part of projects. 

Coalition of Experts, Influencers, Individuals with Lived Experience

The Anti-Racist Wales FE Steering Group, established by the Welsh Government advised on, supported and monitored implementation of Anti-racist Wales Action Plan actions relating to the FE and adult learning sectors, ensuring a coherent and sustainable approach, informed by lived experiences of individuals. Membership included individuals from FE, ColegauCymru, Adult Learning sector, Welsh Government, Education Workforce Council, Equality & Human Rights Commission, BAMEEd Network Wales, DARPL, Estyn, BLG.

This influential coalition was led by the Chair, Robin Ghurbhurun, UK Managing Director, Jisc Further Education, Skills and FE/HE Advice & Training – national expert and influencer with lived experience – and Welsh Government officials, who provided insights and perspectives to ensure coherence of the work. 

Balance of creativity and practicality

The Anti-Racism Curriculum Materials Project provides an example of the perfect balance of creativity and practicality. Commissioned by the Welsh Government and led by Yusuf Ibrahim, Assistant Principal, Cardiff and Vale College (CAVC), the Project pushed the boundaries of what is possible in educational design, showcasing Black and Minority Ethnic talent. Outputs include:

  • Creation of anti-racist lesson content in 10 curriculum areas
  • Creation of the Anti-Racist Virtual World, an immersive environment and inspirational learning tool which is being accessed across the world
  • Perthyn Event which brought together young Welsh-speaking Black and Minority Ethnic learners from across Wales in the Senedd to engage with a shared identity. 

Challenges and Risks 

Moving forward, there are several challenges and structural, socio-economic and political risks that could impact on the sector’s progress. These include:

  • Leadership changes at the Welsh Government, sector and institutional level – a new Cabinet, several new FEI CEOs, and a new Chair and CEO at ColegauCymru. In August 2024, a new regulatory body became responsible for oversight of FE and the wider tertiary education sector in Wales – Medr: The Commission for Tertiary Education and Research. 
  • The sector wishes to pursue ‘a more integrated approach to equalities planning across all protected characteristics, with a greater focus on intersectionality’ (Anti-racist Wales Action Plan – A Year On: Annual Report 2022 – 2023). Whilst the sector acknowledges the need to keep up the momentum on antiracism, it is seeking ‘a balanced approach’ which recognises the wider context that institutions work in, and the full diversity of their learner populations. This is easier said than done as FEIs are still at different stages of their journey. It is important that momentum is maintained and even accelerated, if the sector is going to contribute to Wales’s ambition of being an anti-racist nation by 2030. 

Understanding learners’ and staff experience of racism and their views on what effective anti-racist practice looks like in FEIs, is still at an early stage and so is embedding anti – racism into the curriculum.

FEIs should continue to develop expertise in evidence-based planning using quantitative and qualitative data to inform targets and outcomes and ensuring metrics in plans are about outputs, outcomes and impact. Follow up is needed on efficacy of plans in a) advancing Anti-racism and tackling racial disparities in each institution and b) contributing to the government’s Anti-racist actions and goals for the sector.

  • Identification of ethnic minority staff working in FE continues to be a challenge as well as securing their release to attend professional learning activities. This must be addressed. A forthcoming needs analysis of a group of these staff, aims to identify barriers and attitudes to help FEIs with action planning.
  • Economic realities impose financial constraints. However, resources to support anti-racist professional learning remains critical for success.

In conclusion

Within the FE sector, there is a high level of commitment to the overarching ambition of an antiracist Wales. FE Institutions are at different stages of the journey; however, each institution should be able to demonstrate a measure of impact through active implementation of their anti-racist action plans to achieve improved outcomes for ethnic minority people. This requires a relentless focus on implementation, monitoring and reporting at institutional and sector level, with the Welsh Government, Medr, ColegauCymru, and FEIs each playing their part, as well as working actively to become anti-racist organisations. 

There is a sense in which the sector stands at cross-roads as it transitions into new leadership and structures. In the next phase of its anti-racist journey, focused action is key and the critical success factors identified above remain relevant, even more so now than ever. BLG UK and BLG Wales stand ready to continue the journey alongside the sector as trusted partners.

In summary, it’s a journey and we haven’t arrived yet. 2030 may sound afar off, but there is still so much more to be done to address racial disparities, structural and systemic racism, and to become an anti-racist nation, an anti-racist society, creating culturally inclusive communities, with success, and Cynefin’ – belonging, for all. FEIs have an important role to play in this.

I close with this quote: 

‘Anti-racism is an active process – not a single event or a checklist of actions – to identify, challenge, and change the values, structures, and behaviours that perpetuate systemic racism wherever they are found’.

 UK Amnesty International

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