On 17 January 2022, Sussex launched its participation in the national pilot of Union Black, an online antiracism learning programme. The programme has been developed by Santander, in partnership with the Open University and its aim is to focus on how individuals can make a positive difference, exploring black cultures in Britain and dispelling myths in order to inform, challenge and contribute to the antiracism agenda. 

All Sussex staff and students have the opportunity to enrol in Union Black and offer their feedback to Santander to help shape the future content of the course. Feedback from Sussex staff and students will be anonymised and made available to the University so that we can understand its potential as a longer-term learning package for our community. 

Developed by leading academics including Professor Marcia Wilson, Dean of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at The Open University, the programme includes contributions from (amongst many others):

• David Olusoga, BAFTA-award-winning film-maker
• David Lammy MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Justice
• Baroness Shami Chakrabarti, human rights activist
• Kwame Kwei-Armah, artistic director of The Young Vic
• David James MBE, former England goalkeeper

The presenter of the course - Union Black: Britain’s Black cultures & steps to anti-racism - is TV host and former Blue Peter presenter Ayo Akinwolere.

In November last year we launched our Antiracist Pledge and made a commitment to improve racial literacy and competencies in staff and student bodies. This course supports our ongoing work towards inclusion and antiracism in our community and we urge everyone to get involved by completing the training.

David Ruebain, PVC for Culture Equality and Inclusion, said: “This is a great opportunity for our community to be involved in a pilot to shape training to create a truly anti-racist culture within our organisation. It follows on from the work we are doing toward out Race Equality Charter and builds upon the Antiracist Pledge we launched last term. We are encouraging everyone to do the course and please share widely amongst your community.”

As this is a pilot, there will also be an opportunity to provide feedback on the process, so we can contribute to shaping the training for other institutions. Further initiatives will also be launched over the coming months to complement the training.

About Santander Union Black:

What is the course?
The course is intended to support staff and students to increase their understanding of Black British history, race, and racism, and how individuals can make a positive difference.

Santander Universities UK have developed the course in partnership with The Open University and leading social learning platform, FutureLearn. The programme responds to Universities UK’s ‘Tackling racial harassment in higher education’ report which shone a stark light on the racial inequalities that exist across the higher education sector. The report called on universities to improve racial literacy among senior leaders, staff and students and issued a set of recommendations for institutions to implement including “training developed from an anti-racist perspective”.

How long is the course open for?
The course is open for registration from Monday 17 January – Monday 2 May 2022. It is six hours in total and can be accessed online at any time. It can be completed in stages at your own pace.

How do I access the course?
Access to the course is via the Santander Scholarship platform. Once you have registered you will receive an email from FutureLearn with the link to access the course within 24 hours.

What will I get at the end?
Everyone who completes the course will receive a digital certificate. Students completing the course by 2 May 2022 also get the opportunity to enter a scholarship draw.

Our ongoing work to tackle racism
Anti-racism work is a marathon, and we will continue to work on other initiatives, but we hope that we can make a difference by taking part in courses like this.

We are dedicated to becoming a truly anti-racist body of students and staff and we all need to be part of the solution.

How can I find out more?
Information about the course is now available online on our OD page and if you have any questions about the course please contact the OD team.