Equality, diversity and inclusion

The School of Philosophical, Anthropological, and Film Studies is determined to actively support equality and fairness irrespective of race, ethnicity, disability, age, faith, gender or sexual orientation. It is working to eradicate any explicit or implicit discrimination of staff and students on the basis of these differences, and to create an environment that is welcoming and inclusive to everyone.

Issues of equality, diversity, and inclusion are addressed by the School Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion Committee.

If you have any thoughts, ideas, or concerns about equality, diversity, or inclusion in the School, please contact the EDI Officer or any member of the committee. They would be very happy to hear from you no matter what your role in the School; they value feedback from undergraduate and postgraduate students, and academic and professional services staff alike. You can also contact the University’s EDI Office at diversity@st-andrews.ac.uk.

If you are interested in joining the EDI Committee, please contact the EDI Officer. The School strives to maintain a broad, inclusive, and representative committee, and would welcome expressions of interest.

You can read detailed information about the EDI Committee’s current and planned activities (based on its Athena SWAN Action Plan).

The University's EDI Office has a useful website, which includes links to University policies, networks, and events, and further information about diversity in the University.

- Dr Leshu Torchin (EDI Director): lt40@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Professor James Harris (Head of School): pafs-hos@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Mr Graeme Hawes (School Manager): pafsmanager@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Dr Bridget Bradley (Social Anthropology): bb203@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Dr Miriam Bowen (Philosophy): msjb1@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Ms Viviane Fairbank (Philosophy and Liaison for Minorities and Philosophy SASP): vf45@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Dr Patrick Adamson (Film Studies): pa41@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Ms Camila Contreras-Langlois (Film Studies-PG Rep): ccl4@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Ms Phoebe Dobie (Student President, Social Anthropology): socanthpresident@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Ms Mariana Razina (Student President, Philosophy): philosophypresident@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Ms Sairaa Bains (Student President, Film Studies): filmpresident@st-andrews.ac.uk
Bullying is the abuse of power or position to undermine others. Harassment is unwelcome or offensive attention related to a protected characteristic: age, sex, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, or sexual orientation. The School of Philosophical, Anthropological, and Film Studies regards bullying and harassment as unacceptable and is committed to eliminating them.

Harassment is against the law, and students and staff (including professional services staff) are also protected against bullying and harassment by University policy:
- Dignity and respect at work policy
- Student harassment and bullying policy
It is important to go beyond what is legally required, and work to create a School that is genuinely respectful, kind, and embraces difference. Bullying is in the eye of the perceiver; that is, if someone perceives or experiences something as bullying, the School will respond to that thing as bullying. Power takes many different forms, and so does bullying. It is possible for staff to bully students, but also for students to bully staff; it is possible for less senior staff to bully more senior staff and vice-versa, and for academic staff to bully professional services staff and vice-versa.

In each case, the person whose actions are perceived as bullying may not be aware he or she is doing it. But if someone feels bullied then the bully's behaviour must be challenged; in the first instance that person will be politely asked to consider the impact of their actions and asked to change, and further action will be taken if necessary.

If you would like to discuss these issues or have experienced or witnessed an incident and would like to discuss or report it, either formally or informally, please contact the School EDI Director (Dr Leshu Torchin).

You are also welcome to contact someone outside your own department. In addition to other members of the EDI committee, you can also contact:
- University EDI Office: diversity@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Student Services: theasc@st-andrews.ac.uk
- Chaplaincy: chaplaincy@st-andrews.ac.uk
You can also submit any concerns regarding conduct or incidents you are aware of to Report and Support.

If you need further information, the ASC has a webpage about bullying and harassment for students which includes information that is relevant to everyone.
Advance HE's Athena SWAN charter started with the Athena Project and the Scientific Women's Academic Network (SWAN) advancing representation of women in science, technology, engineering, mathematics and medicine (STEMM) in higher education. It was expanded to include arts, humanities, social sciences, business and law (AHSSBL) and now also covers professional and support staff and trans staff and students. Levels of the award are Bronze, Silver and Gold.

The School received an Athena SWAN Gender Equality Bronze Award in May 2020. You can download a redacted version of our Athena SWAN application (PDF). Applying for an award involves assessing a wide range of data about students and staff, conducting a survey and follow-up focus group discussions, and developing a detailed action plan to address areas of gender inequality. The Award recognises that the School is working to promote gender equality and to identify and address challenges. The School continues to work on the actions identified in the action plan.

The School has an active and devoted self-assessment team who prepared the 2019 application and will continue to assess progress. The team members include academic and professional services staff, and undergraduate and postgraduate students. This team is part of the broader Equality and Diversity Committee. If you are interested in joining the self-assessment team, please contact the School's EDI Director.
See also the searchable database of University policies.

Report and support

If you or someone you know has experienced bullying, discrimination, abuse, assault or harassment of any sort, you can report such incidents anonymously using the University’s Report and Support tool, which is aligned to institutional policies. You can also choose to use this tool to report using your contact details so a member of staff can get in touch with you to help provide support. This tool can be used by students, members of staff, members of the public or visitors to the University. Find out more about how Report and Support works.

Equality, diversity and inclusion

Committee membership

Bullying and harassment

Athena SWAN

University policies

Report and support