Diversity Under The Spotlight At University Of Wolverhampton

Diversity under the spotlight

Diversity and equality in education and healthcare will come under the spotlight at an event at the University of Wolverhampton tomorrow.

The Diversity in Action Conference will present findings from local research and showcase student work to promote diversity, equality and cultural competence in professional training and higher education.

The programme includes accounts of diversity in education from students, a talk about the issue of veiling and and a presentation about widening participation in higher education by the University’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Geoff Hurd.

Tomorrow’s (Friday, November 16) event at the Wolverhampton City Campus will be attended by students, staff and representatives from the police force, ambulance service, community groups, colleges and Primary Care Trusts from all over the West Midlands.

Key speakers include Surinder Sharma, who is the National Director for Equality and Human Rights at the Department of Health.

Organiser Dr Patricia Bond, Reader in Primary Care at the University’s Centre for Health and Social Care Improvement, said: “The purpose of this conference is to disseminate the findings from a research project led by Professor Mel Chevannes, former Dean of the School of Health, and Dr Patricia Bond, Reader in Primary Care, entitled ‘Mainstreaming cultural competencies and equality in the nurse curriculum’.

“In doing so, we wanted to open up a forum for discussion about cultural competency in Higher Education and use this opportunity to showcase student work. To kick-start the process of discussion we have some excellent external and student speakers.”