Black Leadership Initiative

British Diversity Award for Education 2005

Mentoring

Rajinder Kaur Mann Date: 18th May 2011

Programme aims to:

• Raise awareness of barriers to progression amongst Black staff

• Explore the ways in which Institutional Discrimination impacts on black staff and organisations

• Understand the role of mentoring as part of a Positive Action programme

• Enhances listening, questioning, probing and problem-solving skills to effectively mentor Black and minority ethnic staff

• Provide skills to effectively manage, plan and review a mentoring session

• Support s mentees in clarifying their goals and career plans

BLI Mentoring Approach

• Mentoring black staff within a career development context

• Primary style is a coaching style – empower and encourage mentees to find their own solutions

• Leverages the knowledge, skills and experience of the mentor

Context for the Project

• The Commission for Black Staff in FE

• Under-representation of Black Staff

• Community cohesion, widening participation and social inclusion

• Recruitment & retention crisis in FE

• The business case for a positive action programme of mentoring for Black staff in FE

• Social and economic/moral case for equality

Commission’s Report

• Some barriers to progression identified by the report

– Under-representation of Black staff at senior level– Under-representation compounded by Black staff being more

likely to be on fixed-term contracts– Many colleges don’t acknowledge racism as an issue or know

how to tackle it effectively– ‘Glass ceiling’ preventing progression– Qualifications, experience and contributions of Black staff

undervalued– Organisational change resulting in discriminatory practices– Marginalisation of Black staff

The Black Leadership Initiative

• Positive Action Programme funded by LSIS

• Initially a pilot sponsored by the LSC (2002 – 2006)

• Funded by CEL (2004 – 2006)

• Nov 2006, BLI transferred to the NBP

• Reputable quality brand

• Highly regarded by DIUS, sector agencies, and across the public sector

The Black Leadership Initiative

• Unequivocal emphasis on BME career progression:

– Secondments– Work Shadowing inc. Ofsted– Career Development Workshops– Policy Seminars– Networking– First/Next Steps to Leadership– High Fliers

Mentoring

• The ‘flagship’ programme

– Focused on individual career development– Coaching within a mentoring framework – shared

ownership, establish a rapport– Empowering both Black and White colleagues to be

part of the solution– Winning hearts & minds, and breaking down barriers– 14.5% Principals/CEs in the FE sector are BLI-trained

mentors

Challenging

Counselling

Coaching Teaching

Advice

Sounding board

Safety valve

Mentoring arena

Types of interaction when mentoring

Knowledge of networks

Lifeexperience

Knowledge of people

Power &

influence

Technical expertise

Career options

Organisation experience

Mentor

The Mentor’s Contribution

Benefits of mentoring for mentees

• Provides impartial advice and encouragement

• Develops a supportive relationship

• Assists with problem solving

• Improves self-confidence

• Offers professional development

• Encourages reflection on practice

Benefits for the mentor

• Opportunity to reflect on own practice

• Enhances job satisfaction

• Develops professional relationships

• Enhances peer recognition

• It uses your experience, making it available to a new person

Benefits for the mentor

• It widens your understanding of the organisation and the way it works

• It enables you to practice interpersonal skills

• It provides personal satisfaction through supporting the development of others

Motivating others

A lot of people have gone further than they thought they could because someone else thought they could.

Mentoring

........ is a brain to pick, an ear to listen, and a push in the right direction.

John C. Crosby

Rajinder MannExecutive Director

Telephone No: 01902 428528Email: rajinderm@nbp.org.uk

The Black Leadership Initiative

The Network’s Professional Development and Training Services