Leadership for All
Leadership for All
Leadership Live is the NHS North West Leadership Academy’s podcast, dedicated to bringing you thought leadership and insights from expert guests and those leading the North West’s health and care system. Earlier this year, Senior System Lead, Lorna Krisson, was joined by Ayo Barley, Director of the NHS North West Race Equity Assembly, for a powerful discussion on the lived realities of racism within our health service. Ayo traces the roots of her leadership journey back to her childhood, growing up as a mixed-race young woman in a socially deprived area of Bradford. “I was aware from a very young age that racism exists in society. I had an awareness of my own difference and feeling marginalised, insulted and less than.” As her career progressed, this sense of responsibility to speak up became a defining thread. While working in higher education, Ayo describes recognising the stark lack of representation: “I was working for a university and was very aware of the lack of representation of Black colleagues. I had some conversations with colleagues and students who were also from racially minoritised backgrounds and felt that I had to speak up about it because I saw it and recognised the inequality of what I saw.”
In reflecting on why racism persists, Ayo is clear and pragmatic: “I think that the reason that racism prevails in the NHS is because racism prevails in society. We’re made-up of people from a wide variety of backgrounds that are all socialised in the same communities and the same societies that lead us to believe that certain groups might have certain characteristics that might lead to stereotyping, that might lead to racism or biases. That’s not to say that it’s a lost issue and a lost cause, because it’s not. we see that when we actually put focused effort on naming the fact that racism exists within our organisations and committing to a long-term plan to deal with it, we can see that organisations can start to make progress. We have to absolutely commit to action on it, but we also have to acknowledge that because this is such a long-standing, structural, systemic issue in society that it’s going to take time to actually see progress.”
“That actually led to forming a network for Black minority ethnic staff, which then led to a lot of change within that particular university around acknowledging the impact of racism within the curriculum, but also in relation to people’s experience of being able to get promotions.” Ayo highlights the enduring legacy of a workforce built on global migration, while confronting the uncomfortable realities faced by ethnic minority colleagues: “The NHS has been around since the 1940s and a big part of the formation and foundation of the NHS was the fact that people from the Windrush generation came over here to support the NHS. And not only the Windrush generation, many other racialised communities from different parts of the globe. But sadly, our staff both then and now have experiences of racism. If anyone is interested in finding out about what Black, Asian and racial minority staff are saying within their trust, do refer to the latest Workforce Race Equality Standard reports. They are very difficult reading year on year sadly, and they really highlight disparities, particularly around bullying and harassment. Our racially minoritised colleagues tell us year in, year out that they are more likely to experience bullying and harassment from patients, but also from colleagues and even managers. More staff from racial minorities backgrounds are coming into the NHS and we can see that we are making progress in relation to representation, but what we also see is that there isn’t an equitable path forward in terms of career progression into more senior roles.”
LEadership live: anti-racist leadership
To hear the full conversation including practical insights on what anti-racist leadership looks like in action, and how leaders at every level can drive meaningful change, listen to this episode on Spotify.
open.spotify.com/episode/0gJ8ENS9QbK 7FD4JASjCCL?si=M2Kb2Q8jTb2JDNs3REEcEQ
nw.leadershipacademy.nhs.uk | Leader
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