Diversity, Equality and Inclusion

We are delighted to be working in partnership with Safer Communities Alliance (SCA) to bring you this event. SCA have many years’ experience of working with diverse and marginalised communities in North Kent and have recently been awarded funding from the KCC Infrastructure Support Fund to extend their help for the voluntary sector across Kent through their new Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion (DEI) support initiative. They will be leading sessions on what DEI is, why it’s important and how to put it into practice. There will be opportunities to think about and discuss with other participants what barriers there may be to implementing DEI and to take away some ideas and strategies for overcoming these barriers. We’ll also be providing lunch, with plenty of time for networking.

Bali Rodgers is the Manager of Safer Communities Alliance (SCA) and Co-Manager/Co-Founder of Refocus, a crime prevention and early intervention service. With over 15 years of experience in fundraising, procurement, and partnership development, Bali is a skilled life coach specialising in behavior management, community engagement, and breaking negative cycles.

She has 20 years of experience in substance misuse work, including roles with the NHS, Turning Point, Bromley Community Safety, and the Kenward Trust. Bali developed and managed a women’s therapeutic residential community and contributed to a detoxification centre. Her extensive background includes working as a youth worker, managing community development projects, and developing family and carer services.

As a qualified diversity trainer, Bali has lectured at the University of Kent and worked with Bromley Metropolitan Police. She is passionate about improving services, fighting injustice, and empowering young people and communities to reach their full potential--

Joanna Oliver has a diverse background, underpinned by BA (Hons) Advertising, Media and Marketing, MA Therapeutic Child Care, MA Education, professional qualifications in vocational assessment, youth work, professional supervision and FE teaching. Research experience includes MA research race and ethnicity in therapeutic work, Doctoral research in collaborative working: children, young people and families and current Doctoral research: black young men with autism; experience of the criminal justice system, narrative research with black and brown women, who have experienced the removal of their children to local authority care.

Joanna has taught on a BA (Hons) programme in Counselling, Coaching and Mentoring, including Therapeutic Work with children and young people and MA level in Equality and Social Justice. Joanna’s experience includes working with care leavers, delivering professional training, including culture, race and identity with foster carers and DEI training for a recruitment agency and DEI infrastructure support for Safer Communities Alliance. Joanna is Co-Lead for Racial Justice at the London ACEs Hub, recently headlining at an ACEs conference in Wales, representing the London voice.

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