Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
At the National Epitaxy Facility we are committed to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I).
We have an active ED&I Committee with representation from all staff and student groups across all three of our sites, chaired by our ED&I lead, Prof Rachel Oliver. We hold quarterly meetings aimed at improving ED&I not only within our team and Universities, but also within the broader semiconductor research community.
The EPSRC National Epitaxy Facility is a team of scientists, engineers, technicians and professional staff and students based across three universities: Sheffield, Cambridge and UCL.
We are proud of our diversity, demonstrated by over 35% of us being female, over 35% being from BAME background*, and almost 40% coming from outside the UK. We are committed to fostering an inclusive work environment and empowering everyone to realise their potential by providing opportunities to all.
*Statistics based on a 2024 internal ED&I survey
Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I)
- Enabling all individuals to express their opinion freely
- Ensuring our recruitment process is inclusive throughout
- Aiming for equity in opportunities to develop and progress for all
- Embedding ED&I in all projects, procedures and the wider business
We aspire to:
- provide an environment where everyone can be their authentic selves
- increase recruitment and retention of minoritised people in the sector
- become a beacon of good practice in the semiconductor sector
Our initiatives to improve ED&I
- Identifying opportunities for improvement at quarterly ED&I meetings, with representation from all staff and student groups across the Facility
- Including ED&I in the agenda of other Facility meetings
- Working with our Universities’ recruitment teams to ensure post descriptions are inclusive and advertised to diverse audiences
- Celebrating staff and students’ success and encouraging everyone to engage with our Universities’ training and promotion initiatives
- Implementing ED&I surveys for our staff and users to obtain anonymous statistical data and highlight any areas for improvement
- Making our online resources and events as accessible as possible
- Ensuring the UK Semiconductor Conference reflects our ED&I ethos, by implementing a Code of Conduct, reviewing the diversity of the organising committee and speakers, and creating opportunities for open community discussions on issues facing the semiconductor sector
Event Accessibility
We have created an Accessibility Checklist for planning our events, such as the UK Semiconductors Conference and PhD Open Days. This checklist is a great tool to ensure our events are inclusive and accessible to all. We hope that it can be useful to others within the community and we welcome any feedback/comments you may have.
We have created a Code of Conduct for our annual UK Semiconductors Conference to set out the expectations of behaviour that all attendees are expected to adhere to:
Screen Reader Technology
Our website and epitaxy database have been tested for compatibility with screen readers based on advice.
Please contact us if you require a screen reader recommendation.