Questionnaire for FE college managers

involved with making staff appointments

Succession planning and the employment and
progression of black and minority ethnic (BME) staff

We would be grateful if you would spend 15 minutes completing this questionnaire online
at www.centreforexcellence.org.uk/managers or in hard copy. It will be received in
complete confidence. No part of your response will be used in any way that will enable
your comments to be attributed to you.

The Centre for Excellence in Leadership (CEL) is working to support leaders in the further
education sector plan for and manage its staffing succession crisis. Over the coming 5
to10 years many more staff will be leaving the sector than are currently likely to join it.

This questionnaire is part of a policy research project designed to determine how the FE
sector can develop one strand of a response to the succession crisis by maximising the
recruitment and retention of black and minority ethnic (BME) staff. To do this we need to
understand the views and experiences of managers involved in staff appointments. The
project is using companion questionnaires with college HR directors and BME college
staff and prospective BME college staff. Your completion of this questionnaire will be
valued and will lead to changes in policy and practice.

If you complete this questionnaire in hard copy it should be posted to:

Emma Goreeph
The Centre for Excellence in Leadership
4th Floor
47 Mark Lane
London
EC3R 7QQ

If you would prefer to respond electronically you can access an e-questionnaire by

logging on to www.centreforexcellence.org.uk/managers

To ensure response is part of the research please complete and the return the
questionnaire by 30 January 2008.

Thank you
Your response is greatly valued
Section 1: Personal profile
1. Please indicate to which age group you belong: (Please tick one box)

Under 25 45 to 54
25 to 34 55 to 59
35 to 44 60 plus

2. Please indicate whether you are: (Please tick one box)

Female Male Transgender

3. Disability: Do you consider yourself to have a disability? (Please tick one box)
Yes No

4. Ethnic background: Please choose one section from (A) to (E) and then tick the
appropriate box to indicate your ethnic background. (Please tick one box)
A White B Mixed
British White and Black Caribbean
Irish White and Black African
Any other white background, White and Asian
please specify: Any other mixed background, please
specify:

C Asian or Asian British D Black or Black British

Indian Caribbean
Pakistani African
Bangladeshi Any other black background, please
Any other Asian background, Specify:
please specify:

E Chinese or other ethnic group

Chinese Any other ethnic group, please
specify:
5. What is your religion or belief?
Christian Buddhist
Hindu None
Jewish Prefer not to say
Muslim Other (please specify):
Sikh

6. What is your sexual orientation?

Lesbian Gay
Heterosexual Bisexual
Prefer not to say

Section 2: Work and employment

7. How long have you been employed at your college? (Please tick one box)

Less than 1 year 11 – 14 years

1 - 2 years 15 – 19 years
3 - 5 years 20 years or more
6 - 10 years

8. How long have you worked in the FE sector? (Please tick one box)

Less than 1 year 11 – 14 years

1 - 2 years 15 – 19 years
3 - 5 years 20 years or more
6 - 10 years

9. What is your position in the management hierarchy?

Senior manager First line manager

Director Other (please say)
Middle manager
10. In which region is your college located?
East Midlands South East
East of England South West
Greater London West Midlands
North East Yorkshire and Humberside
North West

11. Type of college? (Please tick one box)

General FE College Specialist College

Sixth form College Residential College

12. Working hours – are you:

Full time Fractional
Other

13. What is you employment status?

Permanent Temporary
Seconded Other (please specify)

14. What kind of organisation did you work for before coming to this college? (Please tick all
that apply)

School Private sector employer (non-education)

University Other (please say)
Private sector education provider

15. Do you have any of the following qualifications? (Please tick all that apply)

Certificate in Personnel Practice Certificate in recruitment and selection

Certificate in management CIPD Other HR/personnel qualification
(please say)
16. What is your highest qualification? (Please say)

17. Has you college provided equalities training for senior staff and those responsible for
recruitment and selection? (tick all that apply)

Race equality Sexual orientation equality

Gender equality Religion or belief
Disability equality Other equality training (please say)
Age equality

18. Did this training include a focus on mainstreaming equality in the following? (Tick all that
apply)

Recruitment and selection Coaching/mentoring

Management/supervision Other (please say)
Performance appraisal

19. Have you received training in equalities in relation to employing and managing staff?
Yes No

19a. If Yes – do you apply it to your involvement with the employment process?

Yes No

19b. If you answered Yes to question 19, at which stage do you apply it:

When making appointments I do not apply it

In managing staff Other (please say)
Developing staff

20. Do you consider addressing the staffing succession crisis in further education?
High priority Not a priority for you
 Medium priority Not a priority for the sector
Low priority

21. Do you think generally of BME staff as part of a potential solution to the succession
crisis?
Yes No

21a. If Yes, what contribution do you see them making?

22. Do you take the need to increase the number of BME staff in FE into consideration
when making appointments?
Yes No

22a. If No, please say why not?

22b.If Yes, how do you do this? (Please tick all that apply)

Mainstreaming equality in recruitment and selection and retention programmes

Placing vacancies in the BME press
Presentations at community events
College based careers events
Including welcome statements in job vacancy advertisements
Other (please say)

23. How successful were the measures used?

Very successful Successful
Not very successful Not at all successful

24. Do you take steps to equip and support BME staff to compete effectively for
management positions in the college?
 Yes No

24a. If Yes, do you do this:

As an individual By other means (please say)

As part of college policy

24b. If No, please say why not

25. If management positions are advertised, does your college seek opportunities to equip
BME staff to compete effectively for these positions?
Yes No

25a. If Yes, how does your college do this?

25b. If No, please say why not

26. Do you think it is necessary to take positive action to help BME staff to compete better
for management positions?
Yes No

27. Do you feel / would you feel, comfortable and confident making the case for positive
action in favour of BME colleagues to your staff?
Yes No

27a. If No, is this because there is a view in the college that … (please tick all that apply)

Positive action has the effect of marginalising some staff

Mainstreaming race equality in recruitment and selection would be more effective
BME staff already compete equally with other staff
 Other reason (please say)

27b. What would help you become comfortable and confident? (Please say)

28. Are you aware that there is a 100% subsidy for BME staff on all CEL programmes?
Yes No

29. Have you authorised any of your BME staff to attend CEL’s First steps to leadership
programme?
Yes No Not applicable

29a. If No, please say why not?

29b. If Yes, did their attendance lead to: (please tick all that apply)

Improved performance No difference

Promotion Other outcome (please say)

30. Do you feel confident in managing staff of a different ethnicity from yourself?

Yes No

30a. If No, please say why not?

30b. If Yes, how have you arrived at that position?

31. Do you think that BME staff have the same access to promotion as their white peers?
 Yes No

31a. If No, what do you think are the main barriers to their promotion?

31b. If No, what do you consider the contribution you can best make to overcoming
barriers to BME progression?

32. Looking at the sector as a whole, what two measures do you think would be most
effective in removing any barriers to BME progression and leadership?
 Please use the space below to provide any further comments or views relating to issues
raised by this questionnaire.

Further contribution to the research

Would you be willing to take part in an in-depth one-to-one interview or follow up focus
group discussion?

ˆ No ˆ Yes ˆ Yes, but I don't wish to identify myself here.

If you answered Yes to the previous question, please supply your details below if you are
comfortable to do so.

Name Organisation
Job title Address
Telephone
Email

If you prefer not to identify yourself here, please contact the project administrator,
Suzanne King, on email suzannekingemail@googlemail.com

Thank you for completing this questionnaire