KMT's Commitment to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion
At KMT, our mission is to support education for a better world. We are dedicated to creating a teaching profession that is equitable, diverse, and inclusive, and we are passionate about breaking down the systemic barriers that prevent talented individuals from entering this rewarding profession.
Why EDI matters in education
The persistent gap between the ethnic diversity of the teaching workforce and the student population is a significant challenge. For instance, in England, while 38% of pupils are from a minority ethnic background, only 11.4% of teachers are.
While Kent overall is less ethnically diverse (21%) than the national picture, there is more variance between districts: the highest proportion of children with global majority backgrounds are in Dartford (44%) and Gravesham (37%) while the lowest are in Dover (11.5%), Folkestone/Hythe (12%) and Swale (12%). In terms of the teaching workforce in Kent, just 5% of teachers are from global majority backgrounds and 1% of headteachers.
A diverse teaching staff provides powerful role models and enriches the educational experience for all students, not just those from underrepresented groups. As the saying goes, “You can’t be what you can’t see.” We believe that a teaching workforce that reflects the communities it serves is essential for a truly equitable and effective education system.
"The teaching workforce should reflect the communities they serve. A diverse workforce brings diverse perspectives, enriches the educational experience, and provides important role models for all pupils." — NFER, 2024
Our actions to overcome barriers
As one of the oldest and largest school-centered Initial Teacher Training (ITT) providers in the South East, KMT recognises its responsibility to use its influence to drive meaningful change. We’re actively working to address these barriers through several key initiatives:
- Inclusive recruitment and selection: Our recruitment processes are designed to give every candidate an equal chance. All interviews are conducted by our central team, who have completed unconscious bias training. We also provide tailored, pre-interview ‘Insight Sessions’ to give guidance based on an applicant’s unique circumstances, addressing specific concerns like overseas qualifications or visa restrictions.
- Comprehensive training programmes: Our training programmes prepare and educate all our trainee teachers to be inclusive educators. We train them to understand barriers to learning, teach in an accessible way, and create collaborative and open classroom environments. A core part of our curriculum is training trainees to confidently discuss topics of race and racism and to actively address discrimination, bullying, and harassment.
- Proactive recruitment: We proactively seek opportunities to promote and expand teacher training for individuals from underrepresented groups, ensuring greater diversity, equity and inclusion across the teaching profession. Our hub model ensures we have a deep awareness of the communicates that we serve, and know how to reach them.
Our ongoing commitment and learning
We are proud to have been selected for the Diversity in Initial Teacher Training (ITT) project, a collaborative initiative with the Chartered College of Teaching, Chiltern Learning Trust, and Being Luminary, funded by Mission 44. This project is a crucial part of our commitment to continuous improvement.
Through this initiative, we are receiving targeted coaching support to enhance our recruitment and training practices. We are also integrating into a network of providers dedicated to tackling inequities in ITT recruitment and retention. This collaborative effort will help us grow a more diverse and representative teaching workforce.
What’s next
We recognise that this is an ongoing journey, and there is still much more work to do. We are committed to actively seeking support, listening to feedback, and continuously learning to do better.
Over the next months and years, and with the support of our diversity coach, we’ll be constantly assessing and refining our processes, programmes and support mechanisms to make sure people from marginalised groups are treated fairly and that our education workforce represents every child.
We’re also making seemingly smaller, but vital changes like providing an overview of the types of questions asked at interview in advance, and offering support pre-interview with our Course Programme Leads. We know this makes a difference to those with anxiety to help people feel better prepared. Many of these changes will benefit everyone.
We will continue to regularly evaluate the diversity and inclusion on our programmes to identify room for improvement. We also need to further our understanding of the problem and what works, and we are working towards this by engaging on ongoing, whole team training to challenge ourselves as leaders to create systems for all to thrive.
Polly Butterfield-Tracey
SCITT Director
This project aligns with our commitment to creating a more inclusive and equitable environment for aspiring teachers. We look forward to working with the Chartered College of Teaching and other partners to make a real difference across the region we serve.
Sefika Sakalli
Head of Recruitment
Every applicant matters to us. We aim to make contact with every applicant to offer a pre-interview chat that covers everything from eligibility and degree equivalents to offering tips for writing a strong personal statement for those thinking of applying, helping to ensure your best possible chance at a successful interview.
