Windrush 76th Year: Leaders’ Inspiring Progress

Audience

Open to all Business in the Community (BITC) members and non-members. This event is designed for HR and people management managers/practitioners, diversity and inclusion managers/practitioners and senior managers.

Background

Windrush Day takes place on 22 June every year, to tribute the HMT Empire Windrush ship which arrived at Tilbury Docks, Kent in 1948. It carried people from across the various British Commonwealth Caribbean islands, who had been invited to work in the UK to help rebuild its infrastructure and provide their expertise, following the devastating impact of the second world war. This migration was to span 20 years.

The importance of Race Equality

At Business in the Community, we mark this day every year. This is part of our ongoing campaign championing Race Equality in the workplace.

Action by employers could boost the UK economy and lead to increased productivity and returns in the workplace.*

However, these potential gains are stifled by the barriers faced by ethnically diverse talent in the workplace. ‘At this rate, it would take over 50 years to reach proportional representation of Black talent in finance and professional services’. Moreover, representation figures from 2022 Office of National Statistics UK population data show that the pace of change has slowed: 50 years could become up to 70 years.’**

About the event

Following on from last year’s successful event, which marked the 75th-anniversary celebrations, we spoke to three fantastic women and BITC Race Leadership Team that descended from the Windrush Generation. They are in the top table of key industries in the UK in our Windrush at the Top: The Black Talent Scorecard event.

This year’s event will have an all-male panel of senior leaders, who are in the top table of key industries in the UK. By joining this event you will:

• Learn practical tips on increasing the rate of recruitment, retention, and progression of talent from diverse ethnic backgrounds at senior levels.
• Recognise the contributions of the Windrush generation, 76 years on.
• Hear the stories of senior leaders, descended from the Windrush Generation, who have progressed to the top table of key industries in the UK.
• Discover the early insights of the ‘Leadership, employees, and procurement’ survey, in collaboration with YouGov, which promotes diverse and inclusive supply chains.

Speakers

• Richard Iferenta, Partner and Vice-Chair, KPMG and Chair, BITC’s Race Equality Leadership Team
• Justin Onuekwusi, Chief Investment Officer, St James’s Place (SJP), and on BITC’s Race Equality Leadership Team
• Roland Ilube OBE, SVP Finance – Mobility, Shell, and on BITC’s Race Equality Leadership Team
• Sandra Kerr CBE, Race Equality Director, BITC 

Booking, contact details and further information

• Contact Florence Hughes, Events Manager at BITC, for any further questions.
• Full joining instructions will be sent before the event.

Find out how your organisation can become a member of Business in the Community

References

*Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy, (2017) Race in the workplace: The McGregor-Smith Review

*McKinsey & Company, (2020) Diversity Wins: How Inclusion Matters

**Bain & Compant, (2024) Why We Need to Pick up the Pace of Black Representation in Finance and Professional Services in the UK