Today’s Education in the Media blog looks at Equal Pay Day and the publication of Home Office statistics on Channel and Prevent Case Management.
Gender pay gap
Various outlets including BBC Breakfast, Telegraph, BBC, Guardian, Metro, Financial Times, Independent, Mirror, Sun and the i have reported on the Fawcett Society’s Equal Pay Day campaign launched today, Friday 10 November. The day marks the moment in the year the Fawcett Society says women stop earning money relative to men.
This shows that there is still much work to be done, and that is why the government has introduced requirements for all large employers to publish their gender pay and bonus data from April 2017. Today, Stylist published a positive piece on this ‘landmark’ initiative that made the UK one of the first countries in the world to require gender pay gap reporting.
Ensuring that women have the same opportunities as men to fulfil their potential in the workplace is a key part of building a country that works for everyone. That is why the department has introduced a range of initiatives to support women in the workplace. These include support for women returning to work through shared parental leave and helping women progress in their careers through talent management schemes such as Positive Action Pathway.
Minister of State for Apprenticeships, Skills and Women Anne Milton said:
Despite the Equal Pay Act being passed nearly 50 years ago, too many women are still held back in their careers. During that time the gender pay gap has reduced, but it has not reduced enough.
The pay gap won’t close on its own – we all need to take action to make sure we address this. That is why we have introduced a legal requirement for all large employers to publish their gender pay and bonus data by April 2018. I’m pleased that some of our top companies are leading the way and have already reported. By shining a light on where there are gaps, they can take action to address it. There are no excuses, employers now need to get on with the job of publishing their pay gap and pledge to improve workplace equality.
Channel and Prevent Duty referral stats
Yesterday, Thursday 9 November, the Home Office published its Channel and Prevent Case Management statistics for the first time. These show there were 2,539 referrals to the Prevent programme by the education sector from April 2015 to March 2016 – a third of all referrals made. This was reported on by BBC, Sky, Guardian, TES and Schools Week.
The TES ran an opinion piece from Sir Steve Lancashire, CEO of REAch2 Academy about the role of teachers and schools in safeguarding children from terrorism through the Prevent Duty, as part of the existing safeguarding responsibilities.
The latest Teacher Omnibus survey showed that 71 per cent of classroom teachers are confident in implementing the Prevent Duty in schools. A report by the Higher Education Funding Council of England (HEFCE) published in August 2017 found ‘significant progress’ in the higher education sector in working to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism, through the Prevent programme.
Yvonne Hawkins, Director Universities and Colleges, Higher Education Funding Council of England said:
Providers view Prevent in the same light as other welfare concerns and have commonly incorporated these requirements within existing welfare structures. HEFCE continues to identify and support the sharing of effective practice across the sector. Having assessed the key documents and practices of over 300 providers, we have concluded that the HE sector is fulfilling its statutory responsibilities.