As part of TECSA’s ongoing efforts to improve the diversity of its panel of adjudicators, TECSA has recently signed up to the Equal Representation in Adjudication Pledge, which has been put forward by the Adjudication Society (the ‘Adjudication Pledge’).
The issue of improving the diversity of adjudicators has been brought to the fore over recent months with the launch of the Adjudication Pledge, and whilst this is an issue which TECSA has been endeavouring to address prior to this, signing up to the Adjudication Pledge signifies in a public way TECSA’s ongoing commitment to this.
Some, but not all, Adjudicator Nominating Bodies (‘ANB’s’) have signed the Adjudication Pledge too.
Unlike some ANB’s, TECSA does publish a list of its adjudicators on its website and we hope that other ANB’s will do so too, as an initial step to improve transparency.
Whilst it appears from the 2022 King’s College, London and Adjudication Society Report that TECSA has more female adjudicators than other ANB’s who publish details of their panel, we still have a long way to go to improve the diversity of the panel. TECSA also recognises that diversity is not simply limited to gender diversity, and that the industry as a whole needs to attract more high calibre applicants from ethnic minority backgrounds and also those with other protected characteristics including but not limited to people with disabilities.
TECSA will be engaging with its panel of adjudicators and others at its Annual Adjudication Conference and considering steps to address the issue which could include mentoring, training, and targeted outreaching to under represented groups.