FOI_26-174 Hiring of staff and EDI considerations
Date of response: 26 August 2026
We have considered your request of 07 August 2026 for the following information:
I would be grateful if you could provide the following information relating to your university's Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI/DEI) recruitment and hiring practices in the last two academic years
Please provide:
Question 1. Any requirements or guidance for recruitment panels regarding EDI considerations.
Our response:
Yes. The University’s Human Recourse Services provide a range of resources to support those involved in recruitment and selection, including guidance on recruitment processes, EDI considerations, unconscious bias, avoiding unlawful discrimination, and making reasonable adjustments for disabled candidates. Staff on recruiting panels are also directed to relevant EDI policies and are expected to complete Recruitment and Selection and Diversity in the Workplace training before undertaking recruitment activities.
When a vacancy is made live (i.e. advertised), Hiring Managers (recruitment panel members) receive a system generated email with attached guidance on EDI considerations when recruiting members of staff to the University. These guides are:
Recruitment and selection guidelines (FOI_26-174 Appendix A)
Avoiding unlawful discrimination (FOI_26-174 Appendix B)
Making adjustments for applicants with disabilities (FOI_26-174 Appendix C)
Unconscious Bias (FOI_26_174 Appendix D)
Question 2. Any requirement or expectation that applicants demonstrate a commitment to EDI principles as part of the recruitment process.
Our response:
Yes, there is a requirement and expectation that applicants demonstrate a commitment to EDI principles.
Job descriptions, person specifications and interview questions are developed by the Hiring Manager, with templates available which provide guidance on inclusion, equality and diversity principles which can aide a recruitment panel in their selection process.
Question 3. Any requirement for applicants to submit diversity, equality or inclusion statements.
Our response:
No.
Question 4. Any EDI-related criteria used in assessing or selecting candidates.
Our response:
There are no central or specific EDI-related criteria in assession or selecting candidates, however, there may be person specifications and interview questions set by the Hiring Manager relevant to the role which address EDI-related criteria for the role.
Question 5. Any positive action measures used in recruitment under the Equality Act 2010, together with the relevant policy or guidance.
Our response:
All positive action measures are used inline with our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion policies.
The following text has been taken from our 'Positive Action at UEA' webpage on staff internal webpage:
'Positive Action in Recruitment
Positive action in recruitment encourages applications from underrepresented groups where workforce data shows imbalance.
It broadens the applicant pool while keeping selection merit-based, helping remove barriers and promote inclusivity. Tailored statements in job adverts signal the University’s commitment to advance equality of opportunity and ensure opportunities are accessible without giving automatic preference.
Requesting Positive Action Statements
Hiring managers can request that positive action statements are added when advertising a vacancy. This triggers a request to the Resourcing Team, who then ask the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Team to review quarterly snapshot data and provide a tailored statement for the specific role.
Positive Action Template Statement
The positive action statement we currently use is:
We value diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive culture where everyone can thrive. We particularly welcome applicants with the protected characteristic of [X] for this post, as they are currently underrepresented [at this level/at senior levels/in this type of role] within the [School/Faculty/Department]. Appointment will be made on merit and all applicants will be scored against the same criteria.
The Resourcing and EDI Teams will adapt this wording for job adverts.
Examples in Practice
• Encouraging applications from men in some professional services roles, where sector and local workforce data show persistent underrepresentation.
• Encouraging applications from women in senior academic posts, where both our HR data and national benchmarks confirm underrepresentation.
• Encouraging applications from BAME candidates in certain roles, even if our representation is higher than the local population, because our benchmark is the wider HE sector and national workforce patterns.'
Question 6. Any time the quality of academic achievements have been lowered for the purposes of more diverse hiring.
Our response:
It is not procedure or policy to lower the quality of academic achievements for the purposes of more diverse hiring. This would be positive discrimination, and hiring someone solely because of protected characteristics is unlawful. Positive action is encouraging applications from underrepresented groups where data shows gaps, but all appointments are still made on merit using the same criteria and hiring is not based on diversity.