BIID Launches New Three Year Diversity & Inclusion Strategy

The BIID is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive interior design profession. We believe that a diverse workforce will not only ensure that every talented designer is able to succeed, regardless of their background, but will make the profession itself more creative and successful. Our own research has confirmed the many public and private conversations over the past year that there are still many barriers to entry and career progression within the profession.

The strategy gives an overview of the groups we are aiming to impact – students, designers and design practices – and the key issues we would like to address which include social mobility, race/ethnicity, gender/sex, LGBT+, age, disability and religion/belief.

It outlines our priority areas for action which are:

• Provide D&I resources and training for interior designers and design practices: We will provide a range of articles, training, and resources to help designers run inclusive and diverse practices including recruitment, work experience, internships and staff development.
• Commission Research: Following on from our three recent pieces of research, we will undertake and publish research to try and provide better insights into the barriers to a diverse and inclusive profession.
• Highlight diversity in the profession: We will showcase designers, practices and projects that demonstrate diversity and inclusion in action.
• Students: We will offer information, events, and competitions for students to give all students the opportunity to showcase their talent and progress in the profession.
• Our own organisation: In addition to working with the wider profession to ensure that they are running diverse and inclusive organisations, we will review our own policies and procedures to ensure a commitment to diversity and inclusion is embedded within the BIID.

Finally, the strategy outlines how we will measure our success using research and data tracking.

This work has been led by the BIID’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee’s members including Ishia Osborne, Jane Kaula, Jo Sampson, Juan Ordaz de Torres, Michelle O'Callaghan, Sharon Simpson, Simon Hamilton and Verity Coleman

You can read the full Diversity and Inclusion Strategy in our Policy and Strategy section of the website. It is accompanied by our Strategic Plan and our Sustainability Strategy