Acevo and V4CE launch survey on BAME charity workers' experiences of racism

09 Aug 2019 News

ACEVO and Voice4Change England are launching a survey to record Black, Asian and minority ethnic workers' experiences in the sector from today.

The partnership will explore recruitment, personal development opportunities and incidents of racism.

Dr Sanjiv Lingayah, research lead on the 'Making Diversity Count' project told Civil Society News: “At the heart of the project is a call for inputs from different actors in the charity world.”

He added: “[The survey] is an effort to centre the diversity debate around BAME voices and experiences.

“We do so as a matter of principle and because BAME people who know the charity sector are well placed to shape its future.”

'Making Diversity Count'

The project will also involve in-depth interviews and roundtable events with charity leaders, funders, recruiters and regulators, to be carried out in the autumn.

A report will be published in spring 2020 and “will help to generate an honest and ‘unveneered’ conversation about 'race', racism and race equality in the charity sector”.

Lingayah said: “Making Diversity Count is a response to an evident lack of a focus on race equality, diversity and inclusion in the charity sector.”

More than numbers of representatives

The project is aimed at more than charities having greater numbers of representative staff teams or trustee boards, said Lingayah.

He said: “That is part of the equation, but deep down diversity changes how organisations operate and what they do in the first place.

“It helps them to redefine the 'public good'.”

He added: “Given that everyone says diversity is such a good thing, there is surprisingly little of it around in the charity sector.”

The survey can be found here until 30 September.

It is open to Black, Asian and minoritised ethnics who have worked in the sector in the last five years as volunteers, interns, employees, associates, freelancers or trustees.

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