Questions from the Racial Equity Framework
These questions have been sourced from the Racial Equity Framework and can be used as a self-assessment of your organisation and its practices. These aren’t meant to be answered definitively, and they’re not a test. They’re designed as prompts — questions that help reveal where inequities might exist, where assumptions sit, or where further reflection is needed.
REF Questions
When answering the questions, consider why that question matters, what it surfaces about practice or process and what challenges might arise.
Mission, Leadership & Direction: Organisational Vision and Anti‑Racism
REF Question: What is the organisation’s vision around inclusivity, and does this explicitly include becoming an anti‑racist organisation? How is that vision reflected in projects and services? What evidence exists that the organisation is doing, rather than just saying, the right things?
Example of Good Practice: An organisation has an explicit commitment to anti‑racism within its strategic vision, which is reflected in funded priorities, staff objectives, and decision‑making criteria. Progress is tracked through published action plans and regular reporting, rather than relying on values statements alone.
Prompt Qs:
- What is your own experience of how vision and values show up in day‑to‑day practice in your organisation?
- Where do you see gaps between stated commitments and lived reality?
- What kinds of evidence would give you confidence that change is actually happening?
- What could realistically be done at:
- an organisational level?
- a departmental or team level?
- an individual level?
Mission, Leadership & Direction: Leadership Accountability and Transparency
REF Question: What transparency and accountability mechanisms are in place to ensure senior leaders are held to account in relation to public partnerships and racial equity?
Example of Good Practice: Senior leaders have clear accountability for racial equity outcomes, with progress discussed openly, linked to performance objectives, and supported by visible metrics or regular reflective review with external advisers.
Prompt Qs:
- In your context, how visible is leadership accountability around racial equity?
- What helps leadership accountability feel genuine rather than symbolic?
- What support do leaders need in order to lead this work well?
- Where does responsibility currently sit — and where should it sit?
Sector Influence, Engagement & Communications: Participation and Influence in Research and Engagement
REF Question: How does your organisation make it easier for Black and African-, Asian- and Caribbean‑heritage people to take part in research, public involvement activities, co‑designing research, and shaping research priorities?
Example of Good Practice: Engagement approaches are designed with communities rather than for them, recognising existing expertise, addressing access barriers, and offering multiple routes for influence — not just participation.
Prompt Qs:
- Who currently finds it easiest to engage with research and public engagement activities?
- Who is missing — and why might that be?
- What assumptions about “participation” might need to be challenged?
- What actions are possible at individual, team, and organisational levels to shift this?
Sector Influence, Engagement & Communications: Communicating Inclusion and Reducing Barriers
REF Question: How does your organisation communicate opportunities in ways that reduce barriers and build trust with racialised communities?
Example of Good Practice: Opportunities are shared through trusted community networks, multiple media formats, and clear, respectful language. Communication is two‑way, with feedback loops that show how contributions influence outcomes.
Prompt Qs:
- How inclusive do current communication practices feel from the outside?
- What kinds of language or channels might unintentionally exclude people?
- What support is needed to change how opportunities are communicated?
- What could be tested or changed quickly, without waiting for a major restructure?
Learning, Systems and Processes: Learning and Development on Racial Equity
REF Question: What opportunities for learning and development on racial equity does the organisation make available to staff? How is learning encouraged, supported, and evaluated? How is learning shared with others?
Example of Good Practice: Learning on racial equity is ongoing, supported by time and resource, embedded in professional development, and complemented by opportunities for reflection and peer learning rather than one‑off training.
Prompt Qs:
- What learning opportunities exist in your context — and who takes them up?
- What gets in the way of meaningful learning?
- How is learning translated into changed practice?
- What support would help learning feel safer, deeper, or more useful?
Learning, Systems and Processes: Recruitment and Inclusive Systems
REF Question: How does the organisation ensure recruitment processes are inclusive, accessible, and equitable, and how does it understand barriers to participation?
Example of Good Practice: Recruitment processes are reviewed through an equity lens, outreach is intentional and relational, feedback is offered transparently, and data is used thoughtfully to understand who applies — and who doesn’t.
Prompt Qs:
- Where do you see structural barriers operating in recruitment or progression?
- How confident are you that recruitment processes are inclusive in practice?
- What would it take to move from intention to action?
- Which changes require organisational permission, and which can start locally?
People, Public Contributors and the Future: Challenging Racism and Microagressions
REF Question: How are individuals encouraged and supported to challenge everyday racism or microaggressions experienced by Black and African-, Asian- and Caribbean‑heritage staff and public contributors?
Example of Good Practice: Clear expectations are set around behaviour, staff are supported to intervene safely, and responses to racism are taken seriously without placing the burden on those experiencing harm.
Prompt Qs:
- How safe does it feel to challenge racism in your own context?
- What makes it easier or harder for people to speak up?
- What support is needed so responsibility doesn’t fall on individuals alone?
- What could be put in place immediately, and what requires longer‑term change?
People, Public Contributors and the Future: Valuing Public Contributors and Looking Ahead
REF Question: How does the organisation seek out diverse opinion, ensure insights are heard and acted upon, and recognise the value public contributors bring? What would you like to see the organisation doing in the next 12 months to improve its approach to inclusion?
Example of Good Practice: Public contributors are treated as partners, not participants, with clear feedback on how their insights shape decisions and recognition that goes beyond symbolic thanks.
Prompt Qs:
- How are public contributors currently valued and recognised?
- Where does feedback or influence get lost?
- What would meaningful recognition look like in practice?
- Looking ahead 12 months:
- What feels achievable?
- What feels essential?
- What support is needed to get there?