Support resources for Black, Asian and ethnic minority (BAME) colleagues

• The NHS is the fifth largest employer in the world, with one in five workers of BME heritage.  
• Black people make up 6.5 per cent of NHS staff. The proportion has increased but currently, only 10 per cent of NHS board members are from BME backgrounds.
• White staff are still 1.5 times more likely to be appointed for a job than BME staff.
• 5.2 per cent of the medical workforce and 6.6 per cent of the non-medical workforce in the NHS are from a black background
• 1.3 per cent of very senior managers working in the NHS are black
• 2.5 per cent of Band 9 managers identify as black
• 3.6 per cent of senior doctors, 7.1 per cent of junior doctors and 3 per cent of other doctors are from black backgrounds

Figures taken from the NHS Workforce Statistics (March 2020 data). Learn about the NHS Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) and how NHS organisations can address race equality issues.

• To report a crime that isn't an emergency, call 101 or you can report a hate crime online here.

• Resources to tackle racism and discrimination - NHS Employers has collated a range of useful resources which can be used to help aid conversations and to implement change.
• Tackling racism in the workplace (recruiting and retaining our mental health workforce) - The Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych) has published new guidance and resources to help mental health employers tackle racism in the workplace. It includes 15 actions designed to help employers implement meaningful change at a strategic and systemic level.
• Mind website has useful information about terms and concepts surrounding racism, such as racial gaslighting. 
• Citizens Advice Bureau can help with issues such as employment claims or taking legal action against perpetrators
• Stop Hate UK can help with reporting hate crimes in boroughs.
• Stand Against Racism and Inequality (SARI) can help with reporting, and offer free and confidential support for anyone who is a victim of hate crime.
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Current evidence throughout the Covid-19 pandemic shows that those from a Black and Asian minority ethnic background have been disproportionately impacted, with age and specific underlying conditions also associated with more severe illness. NHS Providers published a report here to improve understanding of the factors.

• Protection of staff: NHS Employers published guidance for NHS organisations to take appropriate measures to protect staff and mitigate the risk of Covid-19, including taking ethnicity and age into account alongside other factors.
• WRES and Covid-19: Some examples from NHS organisations, highlighting practical ways in which diversity can be achieved.
• Supporting loved ones overseas: There are many colleagues working in the NHS, health and social care sector who come from or have loved ones overseas. Here is some advice on how you can be supported, click here.​​​​​​​
• Leaflets and translated resources: The South Asian Health Foundation created translated guidance resources about transmission, mortality, prevention and protection can be found in: Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu, Bengali and Gujarati
• Unequal impact of COVID-19 report: A report published by the NHS Confederation on research into the impact of COVID-19 on people with protected characteristics, with recommendations for health and care systems.
• How NHS organisations are supporting black and minority ethnic staff through Covid-19 and beyond: This report published by the NHS Confederation includes examples of how NHS organisations and integrated care systems have supported BME staff, following COVID-19 risk assessments.
• Perspective from the Frontline: The Disproportionate Impact of Covid-19 on BME Communities: A short piece published by the NHS Confederations' BME Leadership Network.

This section includes some advice which may be helpful when talking to a colleague who is dealing with racism at work. It is not intended to offer a failsafe formula. 

There are no easy solutions, and the range of potential experiences that may trigger this kind of conversation is almost infinite. But the hope is that these ideas will help you approach the situation in supportive, sensitive way and with some confidence that you are helping.

Please note the below scenarios assume that the supporter in the conversation is white and a colleague, friend or manager to a BAME employee who has experienced racism. It should be noted that that the supporter may not be white and may also feel discomfort about engaging in this kind of conversation.

Be a helpful listener and ally in the conversation

• Dont let your frustration get in the way – e.g. your sense of powerlessness at not being able to resolve all the issues raised.
• Don't shy away from parts of the discussion you cannot immediately relate or respond to 
• Don't let your fear of saying the “wrong” thing, get in the way of your curiosity about what has happened and what should be done

Remember that your own discomfort is minimal compared to what your colleague is experiencing, and that where you experience that discomfort or lack of understanding, it is a strong signal that you would benefit from educating yourself about racism, its manifestations and impact.

Create space for safe conversations

• Always maintain confidentiality. While the content and themes may be helpfully shared to inform organisational action to combat racist discrimination, it is critical to agree that the detail of discussions will remain confidential with nothing that is said attributed to individuals.
• Acknowledge different perspectives. Recognise that individual worldviews are shaped by the experiences of the individual, many of which are determined by culture, race, gender, sexuality, country of birth, among other things. 
• Acknowledge fear. It’s likely that people will worry about reactions, responses or reprisals. 
• Acknowledge the likely discomfort felt by those involved, but communicate the importance of pushing through in pursuit of greater mutual understanding, learning and agreed actions.
• Exercise humility. Admit mistakes and accept that positive intent may not always be enough.
• Accept that you have learning to do. There is always learning from listening to new perspectives; acknowledge that this is a journey for you. 

Keys to an effective, supportive conversation

• Active, empathic listening is essential.  As your colleague gives vent to their feelings and shares what happened, it is enough just to listen to them.  Don’t interrupt, don’t put words in to their mouth, and don’t feel the need to rescue them -  let them speak. Active, empathic listening helps establish a space that is non-judgmental, compassionate, and safe. It says “I am here for you.”

• Validate. Very often when people encounter racism, they can experience self-doubt – not least because of the social narrative that BAME employees are “oversensitive”, “too ready to take offence” or “blow things out of proportion.”  It is important to validate and not question your colleague’s experience, so make sure they hear from you a clear acknowledgement that that what happened to them was wrong, unfair and not their fault.   To be sure, not everyone will need this kind of validation, but even then there is value in your acknowledgement and support.

• Seek to empower, not rescue.  The great majority of us, when we hear someone describing a personal problem, will naturally have a strong desire to help.  This often leads to well-intentioned advice and offers of intervention, which can be disempowering.  It could well be that what your colleague wants and needs is your active support, but it is usually best to start from the principles that:

  • They know best how they want to handle the situation
  • They have the ability and access to the resources they may need
  • Your role is to help them think through their options, and decide on the best course of action for them.

• Be an ally and be prepared to be an active advocate. An ally is any person that actively promotes and aspires to advance genuine inclusion through intentional, positive and conscious efforts.  As an ally, you want to understand how you can help to redress inequalities, working alongside those who experience unfairness.  

  In practical terms there are many ways in which you can be an effective ally, and in this instance – when responding to a report of a racist experience – you may be most effective if you take an active role and advocate for your colleague.  This may mean:

  • Helping to document and report the incident 

  • Accompanying them to interviews or meetings

  • Signposting or helping them research resources that may be helpful

  • Being a continuous source of support through what may be a drawn-out and draining process

• Stay in touch. It is rare for situations like this to have a quick fix. So one supportive conversation is unlikely to be the extent of what your colleague needs from you. As a genuine ally, you should:

  • Check in to see how your colleague is coping
  • Follow up on actions and communications to ensure that headway is being made – this is particularly important as it is very common for reports of racism to be assigned to the “too difficult” pile
  • Maintain an interest in the welfare and maybe even the career progression of your colleague.

Looking After You Too: Coaching for NHS staff from ethnic minority backgrounds

• Looking After You Too (LAYT) coaching is a one to one wellbeing support offer for staff from ethnic minority backgrounds working in the NHS (clinical and non-clinical).
• The coaching service is provided by trained coaches from ethnic minority backgrounds who will help you develop practical strategies to manage and maintain your health and wellbeing.
• LAYT coaching is confidential and free. No details are shared with employers and the coaches are external to the NHS. It can provide you with a safe and judgement-free space to deal with difficult conversations and build resilience.

Support for Nurses recruited from Jamaica

The Nurses Association of Jamaica (NAJ) provide support, advice and guidance to new nurses coming to the UK from Jamaica. NAJ provides emotional, social and professional support to these staff through webinars, telephone and face to face contact. Contact info@naj.org.uk for more information.

Filipino Nurses Association

FNA-UK is committed to equality, diversity, tolerance and inclusivity. They welcome every Filipino nurse in the UK from the different regions of England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland of whatever gender, religion, faith and sexual orientation.

Black Minds Matter UK

The aim of Black Minds Matter is to ensure that black people in the UK can access mental health support. The organisation does this by helping black people and families across the nation to find professional mental health services, in addition to raising money to help cover the cost of such services.

BAATN - The Black, African and Asian Therapy Network

Home of the largest community of Counsellors and Psychotherapists of Black, African, Asian and Caribbean heritage in the UK.

Inspirited Minds - support to those from Islamic faith with mental health illness

Inspirited Minds is a faith based, grassroots mental health charity located in London that launched in 2014 with the aim to raise awareness, combat stigmas and provide professional, non-judgemental, confidential support to those with mental health illnesses. 

• Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) - Since 2015 all NHS organisations have been required to demonstrate how they are addressing race equality issues in a range of staffing areas.
• Shattered hopes - The NHS Confederation's report into black and minority ethnic leaders’ experiences of breaking the glass ceiling in the NHS. It shares reflections on the lived experience of senior black and minority ethnic leaders in the NHS.
• Addressing shattered hopes blog - Rob Webster and Fatima Khan-Shah share their aspirations for addressing race inequality in the NHS, and the steps that are being taken in the West Yorkshire Health and Care Partnership.
• Health on the Line: To be more representative means doing things differently - A podcast featuring Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation and Ifti Majid, chief executive of Derbyshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and co-chair of the NHS Confederation’s BME Leadership Network.
• The NHS Race and Health Observatory (RHO), which is hosted by the NHS Confederation and supported by NHS England and NHS Improvement, has been set up to investigate the impact of race and ethnicity on people’s health. The RHO has published an infographic highlighting ethnic health inequalities in the UK, to coincide with Black History Month. 
• Ethnic health inequalities and the NHS – This report published by NHS Race Health Observatory argues that the NHS has not made significant progress in reducing ethnic health and more needs to be done.
• Strengthening NHS board diversity - This report overview published by the NHS Confederation explores the steps needed to strengthen the diversity of NHS boards in England.