Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI)

We began collecting baseline data on governance of maritime welfare charities in accordance with Principle 6 of the Charity Governance Code

We began offering grants of £5,000 to support and enable maritime welfare charities to carry out an independent external review of their organisational governance.

We awarded the first £5,000 grant for an external review of organisational governance.

Following the death of George Floyd, the Leadership Team supported staff to set up an EDI working group (the Diversity group) as a way of pooling our ideas, experiences and thoughts about what more we as individuals, and our charity as an organisation, could do in the fight for racial justice and for diversity, equity, equality and inclusion more broadly.

The Diversity group held their first meeting on 5 August 2020 followed by regular monthly meetings. The Diversity Group now have a regular bi-monthly meeting schedule.

We signed up to the Maritime UK Diversity Pledge (under our previous name of Seafarers UK).

We held a webinar for beneficiaries to share the charity’s new grant-making strategy and explain why we are focusing on good governance and diversity.

First appointment of Mental Health First Aider within staff team.

We held a staff training session on Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Essentials which was delivered by Equality and Diversity UK.

We recruited Kian Goodsell from the 2027 Programme - a programme which aims to diversify grantmaking by 2027.

The organisational policy statement was updated to an EDI policy which includes all forms of diversity and the intersectionality between them.

We developed information on ‘Mental Health and its Impact on Different Communities’ to understand the intersectionality of mental health on different communities - a live working document.

We held a staff training session on Mental Health Awareness delivered by Equality and Diversity UK.

Kian Goodsell represented The Seafarers’ Charity on the panel at the Maritime UK Pride in Maritime Day (28 February).

We awarded grant funding to Fighting with Pride and for Women in Cargo Ships research.

Our staff took part in the London Pride Parade with Maritime UK and others on 2 July 2022. We sponsored the Pride t-shirts for the participants who joined the parade with us.

We developed a Coming Out Toolkit which has been shared widely within the maritime sector and beyond.

We held a staff training session on Unconscious Bias delivered by The Diversity Trust.

The Seafarers’ Charity applied for and completed a panel interview to become a Diversity in Maritime Charter Organisation.

• We developed and delivered a collaborative Equity, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EEDI) presentation at the Maritime Charities Group Conference.
• We designed and distributed Diversity in Maritime badges.
• We shared a list of books around diversity in delegate packs at the Conference.

We recruited Mtonya Jarrett, our second 2027 Associate. The 2027 programme aims to diversify grantmaking by 2027.

Deborah Layde, The Seafarers' Charity CEO was announced as the new Chair of the Women in Maritime Network.

We hosted the Maritime UK Diversity Book Club.

• We held a staff team lunch ‘n’ learn for Black History Month.
• We shared a list of activities and books around Black History.

Our staff took part in a guided Black History Walk in London - walking from St. Paul's to Bank.

• We held a staff team lunch ‘n’ learn around disability.
• We shared a list of activities, films and books around disability.

Second appointment of Mental Health First Aider within staff team.

• On 1 March, we held a staff team lunch 'n' learn around Fairtrade.
• We tasted different Fairtrade products.

The work of our EDI team was recognised at the Maritime UK Awards 2023 where we were among the finalists for the Diversity and Inclusion Champion Award.

We began collaborating with the All Aboard Alliance which has been established by the Global Maritime Forum to bring together senior leaders from the maritime industry to improve EDI. The most recent meeting focused on sexual violence at sea and also bias/discrimination.

We were shortlisted for the Safety4Sea's Crew Welfare Diversity & Inclusion Award for focusing on the welfare needs of women on cargo ships.

On Wednesday 20th April 2023, The Seafarers’ Charity and the International Christian Maritime Association held a webinar to begin the discussion on what more can maritime welfare charities do to support the safety and welfare needs of women working at sea.

• On 25 May, we held a staff team lunch ‘n’ learn around Windrush.
• We shared a list of activities, films and books around Windrush.

• On 30 August, we organised a lunch-n-learn session for South Asian Heritage Month to honour the rich heritage of people with roots in South Asian countries and celebrate the contributions these communities have made to the UK as well as their continuing impact.
• We shared a list of South Asian books.

On 11 September, we organised a Lunch 'n' Learn to explore what makes an organisation feel inclusive. We had a constructive discussion on how to improve meeting accessibility and brainstormed ideas for making these sessions more inclusive and engaging for all. As a follow-up, we plan to send out a staff survey to gather further insights and ideas from our team members.

During London International Shipping Week (LISW) we attended the Ethnicity in Maritime Roundtable and were lucky to hear a presentation from Surgeon Commander Manish Tayal MBE who shared his experiences of Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) in the Royal Navy.

To mark Black History Month, our staff had a very educational walk with Black History Walks learning about Sarah Parker Remond, John Henry Smythe, Learie Constantine, Una Marson, and Harold Moody, who all contributed so much to our diverse & varied history which is often not known Black History.

We also shared a list of books about black history.

In celebration of World Menopause Day, we shared ideas about what some organisations are doing to create a Menopause-Friendly Workplace, highlighting the importance of supporting women through this natural life phase.

On 8 November, we attended an Effective Communication training, led by Eileen Browne, a training consultant at the Directory of Social Change. During the training, we focused on gaining insights into various communication styles and the art of active listening.

On 16 January, Dr. Lateesha Osborne from The Diversity Trust delivered the "It's about Race" training at our offices which was also attended by members of other organisations. An opportunity for thought-provoking conversations and language awareness around Race.

On 24 January, Professor Carole Davis, Menopause Hub Lead at Maritime UK, conducted a Menopause Workshop for The Seafarers' Charity team. It sparked discussions on creating a Menopause-Friendly Workplace, emphasising the importance of supporting women through this natural life phase.

On 5 March, we enjoyed a lunch 'n' learn session around UNESCO’s International Mother Language Day, created in 1999. It is within UNESCO’s mandate for peace that it works to preserve the differences in cultures and languages that foster tolerance and respect for others. It was also interesting to learn more about the many mother tongue languages spoken by our diverse staff team.