Three Lancaster University departments have achieved Athena SWAN Bronze Awards in recognition of their commitment to advancing the careers of women.

Lancaster’s Engineering Department successfully submitted for its first award, whilst the Lancaster Environment Centre and the Department of Psychology have achieved renewals of their existing awards. The latest awards means that all departments within Lancaster’s Faculty of Science and Technology have achieved at least a Bronze Athena SWAN awards.

The Athena SWAN Charter was formed in 2005 to challenge the under-representation and inequalities of women within science at higher education and research levels; more recently it was broadened to include the Arts, Humanities, Business and Law, as well as looking at issues around gender equality more broadly.It is a scheme that is strongly supported by Lancaster University, with all disciplinary areas now actively engaged. The University won its first institutional Bronze Award in 2008 and this was renewed in 2012 and 2015.

Dr Sam Riches, Athena SWAN Lead at Lancaster University, said: “It is a huge step forward to have all our STEMM departments covered by Athena SWAN awards, and this sets up a really positive basis for moving on with this project in Lancaster University Management School and the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. There are some excellent Action Plans to promote gender equality in place, and we look forward to seeing their impact in the next couple of years.

For more information about Lancaster University’s work on gender equality and the Athena SWAN awards, see lancaster.ac.uk/edi/diversity-groups/gender-equality/