How can we make not break black and minority ethnic leaders in higher education?

This stimulus paper was commissioned by the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education to inform ongoing debate and practical actions on equality in the leadership of UK higher education institutions (HEIs). Although significant advances in staff and student equality and diversity have been made under widening access and human resource policies, there is substantive, wellestablished evidence on the stark under-representation of staff from black and minority ethnic (BME) backgrounds at senior leadership levels. The good news is that that the sector as a whole is beginning to realise that the status quo is no longer tenable. For example, the Equality Challenge Unit (ECU) Race Equality Charter Mark is currently being piloted in 24 UK HEIs with the expressed aim of inspiring a strategic approach to continuous cultural and systemic change. This will also involve ECU working with HEIs to evaluate the effectiveness and impact of the Charter Mark, including the impact on the careers and conditions for staff in member institutions1.