Diversity and Inclusion Calendar
“We will make St Andrews a beacon of inclusivity, placing diversity and equality at the centre of everything we do and creating an environment in which all can flourish and realise their potential.”
The University of St Andrews recognises that one of our greatest strengths is our diverse cohort of staff and students. We are committed to creating an inclusive study and work environment for all and we recognise that, in order to achieve this, everyone has a part to play.
The Diversity and Inclusion Calendar webpages are designed to bring together and promote diversity initiatives, projects and information from across the University. Each monthly theme will provide key resources to enable each of us to foster a culture of understanding and inclusion in our work and study environments. This information can also be used to raise awareness of equality and inclusion and to help plan events and initiatives in an inclusive way.
The present theme is:
April / May – LGBTQI+ EqualityThe themes listed for each month have been chosen to represent the diversity of our community and key areas of activity, but are not exhaustive. We recognise the intersectionality of protected characteristics and acknowledge differences in the lived experiences of individuals.
Future themes will include:
- Race Equality (October / November)
- Religion and Belief (November / December)
- Health and Wellbeing (December / January)
- Gender Equality (February / March)
- Accessibility and Disability (June / July)
- Community Building (August / September)
If you would like to suggest a date, event, or resource to be included in the calendar, please contact [email protected].
The University has been making a determined shift in its culture to ensure all our students and staff can thrive in St Andrews. The Diversity Calendar provides a platform to bring together resources, projects and events supporting EDI organised by and for our community. I encourage everyone to take a look, engage with the information provided, and learn more about the great work going on across the University to celebrate diversity and help create an inclusive environment for all of us.
Downloadable Calendars
We are working to create and gather a range of calendars to help increase staff and student awareness of key dates which reflect, respect and celebrate the diverse population of our University.
These calendars can be used to:
- Promote a culture of inclusion
- Support the scheduling of appointments and activities
- Support the organisation of diversity and inclusion campaigns and events.
Information on each of the calendars will be added below, including how to download them directly into Outlook.
It is recognised that not all faiths, and not all dates, are represented in this calendar. In line with the purpose of the calendars, there has been an emphasis on including;
- dates which are connected to ‘faith communities’ who live and worship in Scotland as outlined by Interfaith Scotland
- major religious festivals
- smaller religious observance dates which may have an impact on study or work life (for example, restrictions on use of electrical equipment, restrictions on driving).
It is important to note that individuals will practice their faith in different ways and therefore it is best practice not to make assumptions about how individuals observe their faith and what support they may require.
Some holidays follow the Gregorian calendar and therefore fall on specific dates and are celebrated over the full day. However, other dates follow the lunar calendar, and may begin or end at specific times of the day (e.g. start at sundown). We have provided further information where relevant in each event description (click on specific calendar events to view this).
Please also note that many religious dates change from year to year and this calendar will be updated every July.
For further information on religious dates and festivals, please see the Chaplaincy website and the Kaleidoscope Alumni Network pages.
To download the calendar into your Outlook, click here.
Each year, Fife Council publish school holiday dates, and these are available to add directly to your Outlook calendar by pressing the ‘Add’ button beside each date.
Please note, for staff who do not live in Fife, that each local authority may have different school holiday dates. Edinburgh Council, Angus Council, and Dundee Council dates (as with all council areas) are also published on their websites.
Contact Us
If you have any questions or feedback on the Diversity Calendar, please email [email protected]