Chairs' Challenge: A vision for change

The leadership of Chairs is crucial for driving and embedding equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI).

Our insights showed that many boards don’t have a clear understanding of their role in setting the right culture and behaviours for equality and diversity to thrive. The below resources, developed in partnership with Altair, aim to support chairs to work with their boards to create their own vision and roadmaps to success.

Even if you have another board member assigned to be the lead on EDI, it is the Chair who has the power to maintain momentum and set expectations for behaviours and culture.

The Chairs’ Challenge is a public commitment to take your board on a journey to understand how diverse and inclusive you are now, and then develop a vision for the future.

By adding your name to this list, you are stating that you will create a vision for your board to become more equal, diverse and inclusive, and that you will take active steps towards fulfilling this vision.

What does the challenge comprise?

1. Use our EDI Data Tool to understand the current make-up of your housing association’s workforce, including all staff, executives and board members, and to measure future success.
2. Run a workshop with your board to co-create a vision.
   1. Download resources to support this below.
3. Prioritise diversity in your succession planning:
   1. Apply the Inclusive Recruitment Toolkit.
4. Read our Succession Planning for Inclusion report and consider running your own associate board member programme.
5. Request for EDI to be included in your annual appraisal              

The Chairs’ Challenge will not have an end date, and is not audited by the NHF. Instead, it should be self-monitored through annual reporting, and utilising the NHF EDI data tool to assess how representative your board are of the communities where your housing association has homes.

Chairs are encouraged to hold themselves to account by inviting annual appraisals of their progress in creating a culture of inclusion and encouraging a more diverse and equal board.