BWL is fully committed to providing equal opportunities to all employees, potential employees, past, present and potential members and participants, coaches, instructors, volunteers and officials.

Our commitment to equal opportunities ensures everyone will be treated fairly and on an equal basis. We do not condone discrimination on the grounds of sex, age, disability, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief,  sexual orientation, pregnancy or maternity or marital or civil partnership, gender reassignment or social status.

Strategic Plan

Inclusivity is one of our core principles running through the heart of BWL’s 2017-2021 Strategic plan, as we strive to ensure our sport is accessible and attractive to the widest audience.  We encourage all connected to weightlifting to embrace diversity and we are actively seeking new partnerships to broaden our offer.   In our Strategic Plan we have committed to increasing the diversity of volunteers (including Board and committee members), participants, instructors, staff and our wider workforce.

Although we lead the World in terms of female Technical Officials, we are working on a number of initiatives to encourage more women, especially female coaches, people with disabilities and people from black and ethnic minorities to become more actively involved in all aspects of the BWL’s activities.  We have also produced guidance for our affiliated clubs on welcoming transgender participants and people from different ethnic and faith groups.

Equality Standard

To ensure the organisation remains fully compliant, BWL is fully committed to  achieving the essential levels of Equality Standard for Sport, established by the Sports Councils as a benchmark for the governing bodies to whom they provide funding.  BWL will over the next cycle demonstrate that equality is embedded throughout the organisation, its functions, policies, and all its staff and volunteers.  Key dates that the NGB has committed to are:

Level of the Standard	Target Date
Preliminary	31 October 2018  -  now achieved
Intermediate	31 October 2021

BWL will seek over this period to continue to grow the number of women and girls participating in the sport as well as making  significant changes to the corporate governance of the organisation, which has led to wide scale reform of the Board of Directors with the intention of becoming far more reflective of the sport and society as a whole.

2017 Branding Strategy

Equality and diversity was the highest priority of the 2017 BWL re-branding strategy as we aimed to ensure every individual regardless of race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, disability, gender, sexual orientation or marital status, has equal opportunity and accessibility to play a role within the sport.

BWL Events and Membership

BWL welcomes all participants, volunteers, coaches, spectators and technical officials to all BWL events regardless of of race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, disability, gender, sexual orientation or marital status and will not discriminate against any individual or group.    

Whilst BWL membership and participant entry now has an equal gender balance, we continue to work hard towards maintaining this ratio and welcoming individuals of any gender.

BWL Board Diversity

30% of the 10 active BWL board members are female, with all 10 members varying in age and background.  Two members are from a minority ethnic group and one of our Athlete representatives is disabled. 

Board Recruitment

Board vacancies are advertised openly using a wide range of media, including Stakeholder websites, Women on Boards and the Sporting Equals Leader board.  Candidates are shortlisted by our appointed Nomination Committee on the basis of their competences, knowledge, skills and experience, taking account of any skills gaps in the competences of the remaining Board members. 

Where there is more than one candidate with a similar range of skills and competences, the Nomination Committee use positive action with the aim of ensuring that, if at all possible, the shortlist includes suitably skilled women, people with disabilities and people from BAME backgrounds.

BWL Commitment and Day-to-Day Practice

BWL commits to ensuring that equality and diversity procedures, policies and practices are active at all times throughout organisation, including in internal and external facilities.  Our target is to maintain a position where a minimum of 30% of Board members are from each gender*, maintain as close to possible an equal (50/50) split in competition entries, technical officials and develop and grow the number of high quality female coaches.

Monitoring

BWL conducts regular equality monitoring of all groups (Board, staff, job applicants, members, coaches, instructors, officials, elite squads).

DOWNLOAD OUR EQUALITY POLICY HERE

DOWNLOAD OUR EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSIVITY PLAN HERE