Our Commitment

We are committed to addressing our gender, ethnicity and disability pay gaps and to creating a fair, inclusive and transparent reward environment for all colleagues. This work forms part of our wider People Plan ambition to build a future-ready workforce and deliver a great employee experience, where colleagues are supported to develop, progress and perform at their best.

The University has introduced a range of initiatives over recent years to address gender, ethnicity and disability pay gaps. Building on this work, and informed by our most recent pay gap analysis, we have adopted a more targeted, high-impact approach designed to accelerate meaningful and measurable change. Alongside addressing structural barriers, this approach focuses on creating an inclusive working environment that enables colleagues to thrive at every stage of their career.

A focused, university‑wide approach

There has been a significant shift from broad, dispersed activity to a focused set of six strategic priorities, supported by clear governance and accountability. This approach combines university‑wide initiatives with context‑specific actions where required, ensuring consistency while recognising local needs.

This approach supports Imperial’s wider ambition to attract and retain world-class talent by strengthening leadership capability, supporting career development at key stages, and fostering an inclusive culture aligned with our values. By improving transparency, development opportunities and ways of working, we aim to ensure colleagues feel empowered to innovate, collaborate and contribute to Imperial’s continued leadership in research, innovation and education.

Strategic Priorities

Our six strategic priorities are:

  • Improve EDI data disclosure: Increase EDI data disclosure rates through targeted campaigns and by leveraging the ERP system launch. This includes using welcome messaging and prompts to encourage colleagues to update their personal details—reassuring them that disclosure will not result in any detriment. These efforts aim to enable more effective support and informed decision-making.
  • Increase representation in senior and higher‑paid roles: Establish organisational goals to increase the representation of women and BAME staff in senior and higher-paying roles across all job families, implementing inclusive, targeted recruitment to attract underrepresented groups.
  • Strengthen internal talent pipelines: Advance representation in senior level roles by embedding succession planning to strengthen internal pipelines—particularly at Associate Professor levels 1 and 2 —and supporting participation in initiatives such as WHEN- ILEAD to accelerate progression for underrepresented groups.
  • Embed inclusive recruitment practices: Ensure inclusive recruitment practicesby requiring all panel members to be trained in inclusive and unbiased selection methods.
  • Improve transparency and equity in progression: Enhance transparency and equity in career progression by reviewing promotion processes to remove barriers, while strengthening progression and retention pathways for women at Associate Professor Levels 1 and 2 to reduce gender disparities and close the professorial pay gap.
  • Support early‑career progression: Collaborate with the Early Career Researcher Institute (ECRI) to establish a mentoring scheme for Postdoctoral Research Associates from underrepresented groups, strengthening retention and progression for the future academic talent pipeline.

We recognise that addressing pay gaps is an ongoing process and forms part of our broader commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. We will continue to review our progress, listen to feedback from colleagues, and refine our approach to ensure our actions deliver meaningful and lasting change. By creating an inclusive environment where all colleagues are supported to develop and succeed, we aim to ensure Imperial remains a place where everyone can contribute and thrive.