A celebration of diversity
16/12/2009
One of the Diversity Week stands at Haywards Heath
Diversity Week 2009 was celebrated at the College during November and December, with over 2,800 staff and students attending events at the Crawley and Haywards Heath campuses throughout the two week programme.
Staff and students at the Sixth Form Haywards Heath campus kicked off the activities in November. The aim was to give students and tutors a chance to participate in fun yet thought-provoking activities, and get them talking about a range of, citizenship, equality and diversity issues. Over 800 staff and students attended events throughout the week at the Haywards Heath campus alone!
The overall theme of the week was 'respect', which encompassed respect for the opinions of others, respect for minority lifestyles and beliefs, and respect for our own and others' human rights.
Highlights of the week included Crawley Interfaith Network's question and answer session on Islam, Buddhism, Christianity and Sikhism as part of National Interfaith Week and Ava Vidal's candid talk on her struggle with self-image as she was growing up, and how she has turned her life around to become a successful stand up comedian.
Groups were also invited to attend talks on subjects ranging from wellbeing to victim support, to getting involved in volunteering projects around the world. "What was great this year," said Judith Field, Equality and Diversity Officer "was that several sessions were organised and run by members of College staff, alongside members of the wider community. The College has a strong commitment to promoting equal opportunities, and Diversity Week was a great chance to demonstrate that. We were very lucky to be able to welcome speakers from a wide range of backgrounds such as religious organisations, charities and self-help groups. The whole week has been a huge success!"
Diversity Week activities at the Crawley campus were held from 30 November to 4 December, where over 2,000 staff and students attended events. Two important events were marked as part of the week's programme - World Aids Day on 1 December and the UN International Day of People with Disabilities on 3 December. Each day of the week had a focus - human rights, disability, sexual orientation, ethnicity or culture - underpinned by the central theme of 'respect'
Many activities and sessions had been organised by College staff and students and included cookery, human rights, henna painting, wheelchair driving, sign language, sexual orientation equality, disability cricket and the cultural roots and languages of our local Crawley community. Displays were put together by the Faculty of Foundation Learning, Learner Support Services and the Faculty of Skills for Life.
Many outside organisations and individuals also got involved with Diversity Week activities including MIND, Amnesty International, Outset Youth Action, the Sussex African Communities Project, West Sussex County Council, Crawley Interfaith Network, and Allsorts Youth Project. Members of the local Muslim and African communities also hosted activities, as did athlete Seb Trezise.
