2024 Annual review
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
The RSPCA’s EDI Annual Review highlights our efforts to improve animals lives through making us more inclusive, and representative of the communities we serve. It is one year since we launched our first EDI Plan in 2023, and this has been the springboard to encourage many inclusion-themed platforms, voices and initiatives.
A message from our former Chief Executive
I am delighted to introduce the RSPCA’s first Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Annual Review, which follows our trajectory over 2024. The Review’s release is timely, as it coincides with the RSPCA’s 200th anniversary.
A message from our Head of EDI
You will read about the projects our colleagues are working on, as we embrace our EDI journey. Some of these projects may have fixed delivery dates – for example, the Year One priorities in our EDI Plan regarding improved data collection – but our ideas on how to achieve and sustain these priorities are evolving. For this reason, the Review also references the things we could improve upon and developments we would like to see.
The contributions in this Review are varied. They are from a range of RSPCA teams, volunteers and branches, and encompass a diversity of styles. EDI can also be an emotive subject. Part two in particular resounds with the message that EDI has to ‘feel’ authentic and ‘properly lived’, in order to be meaningful. We hope you will feel inspired by the practical efforts of our colleagues, as well as their thoughts, on how to make the RSPCA an even better place to be, share, and learn.
We are working hard to make the RSPCA an inclusive organisation that is also representative of England and Wales, but we know there is still a way to go. Although our efforts have contributed to a 100 percent increase in the number of Asian/Asian British employees, and an 11 percent increase in employees sharing their disability status, the bare numbers hide our low proportions relative to the UK as a whole. We also need to strengthen relationships with our branch network, and to continue to support ‘psychologically safe’ spaces for all colleagues.
From a personal perspective, the poem Shine is what EDI is all about: a journey of hope and belief in the progressive and empowering nature of inclusion, and what a difference this can make to animals' lives.
Patrick Ismond Head of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Our EDI goals
Diversity and inclusion at the heart of what we do
We believe diversity and inclusion are essential to driving transformational change. That's why our movement for animal welfare will be built of widely diverse people from across all communities of England and Wales.
Build a more inclusive culture
We will create a culture built on the foundations of openness, inclusivity and trust, enabling us to attract and develop talented and empowered people from a broad cross-section of society, all committed to making a positive difference to animal welfare.
Develop more inclusive leadership and governance
We will seek to increase diversity and inclusivity within the senior management team, senior leadership team, our trustees, the regional boards and branch affairs committees.
Explore our EDI areas
Part one
Our EDI journey
Projects we have developed to embed inclusion, each of which align with the short- and medium-term priorities of our EDI Plan.
Part two
What EDI means to us
Colleagues highlight what EDI means to them personally and reflect on what matters from their areas of work.
Part three
Teams and RSPCA Assured
We highlight examples of the processes, activities and initiatives that have taken place, to make the RSPCA a more inclusive place to work and volunteer.
Next Page: Foreword