Equity, equality, diversity and inclusion

Our commitment

We want Equity, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EEDI) to be at the core of our work at SafeLives, and at the heart of everything we believe in. We recognise that without the principles and ethos of EEDI, we cannot fully live our values. Without including all voices and experiences in our work, we won’t deliver our mission to end domestic abuse – for everyone and for good.

As an organisation we are committed to doing what we need to do to build an inclusive, respectful and transparent environment, with the conditions and culture that enable our staff and partnerships to thrive.

SafeLives has signed the VAWG sector Anti-Racism Charter. We recognise that structural racism shapes how Black and minoritised women and children experience violence, and their access to safety, support and justice. Racism and inequality exist within our sector too, and we must change that. The Charter, led by specialist “by and for” organisations and anti-racist activists, sets clear actions for change. We commit to listening, investing and being held to account so every adult and child survivor can live safe, free lives.

Our progress so far

In 2022, recognising the limits of our own skill and expertise to do things differently, SafeLives and the Drive Partnership team asked Kaveed Ali, Director of EDI at UK Community Foundations, to undertake an independent, external review of our work on anti-racism.

He met with staff and reviewed aspects of our internal practice, processes and policy to better understand our current culture, our aspirations, and the gap between the two. The review resulted in a comprehensive report and new recommendations for our organisation. 

The next steps we are taking

We knew that at this stage some transactional changes had been made, but true transformation required something different from us. The review observed that as an organisation we have a tendency to respond rapidly and go straight to action-planning mode.  Sometimes that is needed, however we recognised that in many circumstances it would be better to pause, reflect, hear all views, and consider how best to proceed.

Embracing the report findings has meant committing to strengthening our organisational culture and core. In response to the report, we recruited a new Director of People and Culture post in 2023, to lead thoughtful and thorough implementation of the recommendations, learning from what we’re heard and using that to inform how we go forwards.

Our commitment to transparency and openness remains, so we will continue to provide information and invite people to hold us to account.