Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

EDI Action Group

The EDI Action Group was formed in early 2022. It is chaired by Debbie Spencer (University of Chester) and Julia King (Sheffield Hallam University). The group’s Terms of Reference will be regularly reviewed to ensure its currency and that it is still meeting the needs of the ALN community.

The group plans to liaise closely with other existing ALN CoPs and SIGs and build an especially strong link with the ALN Accessibility Group. It has begun establishing connections with other EDI focussed groups within the wider library community such as the SCONUL BAME group, RLUK, WHELF and DILON to help inform its focus and prioritize activities.

Activities of the group include:

scanning current activity across ALN libraries and developing case studies for wider sharing to support development of best practice
supporting the work of the Staff Development Planning Group by providing suggestions and ideas for a regular cycle of EDI focused events as part of the wider programme
exploring and scoping opportunities for focused projects to increase confidence, awareness or familiarity with specific EDI issues for the benefit of all ALN members
exploring and identifying how inclusive practices can be fully embedded within ALN activities in the future

EDI Innovation Fund

Innovation Fund Projects 2026-2027

In May 2026, we funded 4 projects:

Increasing engagement with a university library book – demystifying; widening participation & wellbeing. Aim: To develop new ways of promoting and demystifying a ‘Book Club’ and gain an insight into the reading habits of our students. (Bradford and Bradford Public Libraries)
SCONUL Access Scheme – Measuring the impact. Aim: To find out the demographics of the students who use the SCONUL Access scheme, where they are going and why, who is coming to us and how students feel it benefits them. The scheme is often underutilised particularly by hard-to-reach groups of students not knowing that it might benefit their studies e.g. students on placement, distance learners, part time students. (Bradford and Open)
Sensory Mapping. Aim: To enhance the accessibility and inclusivity of library and associated study spaces. Each institution will design and implement both physical and digital sensory maps that identify high-stimulation spaces (e.g., bright, loud, open or high-traffic areas) and low-stimulation spaces (e.g., quiet, calm, adjustable-lighting or low-traffic environments). (Chester, Hull, Teesside)
Creating a Family-Friendly Inclusive Study Zone. Aim: To transform a dedicated area within the Information Commons into a Family-Friendly Zone. By reimagining our physical space, we aim to dismantle barriers for student-parents, ensuring they feel a genuine sense of belonging and are empowered to utilise library resources alongside their children. (Sheffield)

Outputs for all the projects will be shared as soon as they are available (for most, by the end of the project lifetime in May 2027).

Innovation Fund Projects 2025-2026

In May 2025, we funded 4 projects:

Calm Spaces. Aim: To evaluate and develop calm spaces at the University of Huddersfield and Sheffield Hallam University. It is hoped that the results of the project will have a positive impact on student wellbeing. (Huddersfield and Sheffield Hallam)

Inclusive Academic Reading Project. Aim: To investigate the habits, preferences, and motives of undergraduate and postgraduate students regarding university reading lists and academic reading preferences; and to develop an evidence base to enhance retention, progression, and completion rates, with a particular focus on students from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds. (Manchester Met and Sheffield Hallam)

Accessible Library Induction Guides. Aim: To investigate offering basic library services guides in different formats: print, large print, audio, video, and online to make library guidance more accessible to students. The project teams will work with students in the creation of the guides and students will review the content of library induction sessions and create a list of “library essential facts”. (Chester)
Outputs: Best practice in accessible library guides and Dos and don’ts accessibility checklist and Print accessibility checklist

Reducing barriers and supporting people seeking sanctuary in realising their academic potential. Aim: To evaluate, expand and evolve the University of Hull’s Sanctuary Associate Membership scheme, utilising UX research methods, for example, customer journey mapping, card sorting, creating user personas and user benchmarking to evaluate the use of our current provision and identify user challenges. (Hull)

Outputs for all the projects will be shared as soon as they are available (for most, by the end of the project lifetime in May 2026).

You can see all the projects ALN has funded since the Innovation Fund began here.

Applications

The application process for this year’s ALN EDI Innovation Fund is now closed! Thank you to everyone who submitted a bid. We will be looking at them over the next couple of weeks and will get back to you with a decision by Friday 24 April.

Key dates indicative timeline:

EDInspiration Event (sharing and celebrating 2025 projects)
Ideas Bazaar (bring your ideas and find a collaboration partner)
Deadline for bids: Giving 4-5 weeks for applications
Successful bids informed by: Usually 2-3 weeks after deadline
Projects start: TBC
Projects duration: 9-12 months
Funds allocated: Up to £1000 per project (for example, £500 each to two collaborative partners)

Successful projects will be expected to share information about their projects at the end of the project period in the form of, for example, a report, a conference presentation or an online resource. We run an event at the end of the projects to celebrate the successes, share information on the type of projects that were funded and to give inspiration to those hoping for funding for their project. We hope that recipients of the funding will be available to present their research, findings and outcomes at the event.

Criteria for funding

The following criteria are used to assess the bids:

Is it a collaborative project including 2 or more ALN members? Or does it outline how the work of the project will enable collaboration?
Does it outline what the expected impact of the project will be?
Does it demonstrate how the outputs and learning of the project will be shared and disseminated across the breadth of the ALN community, e.g. a conference presentation, an online resource etc?
You can apply for up to £1000 for your project (but you can also apply for less if you don’t feel you’ll need the full £1000). Please ensure you know how the money will be spent and your costs are fully explained in your submission.

Please note: we are not able to fund physical materials (eg for rooms etc) as this falls outside of the remit of the funding. As an example, funding can enable research (amongst students and other stakeholders) to find out what furniture works for a specific space, for example by holding focus groups and paying students for their time, but not for the purchase of the furniture itself.

Case Studies

The EDI Action Group is interested to hear about what ALN members have been doing to support their institutions’ EDI aims. If you have a case study to share, please complete this form with all the details and a member of the group will be in touch to discuss next steps.

The group is pleased to share some case studies of activities across the ALN membership:

Decolonising curriculum and diversifying reading lists