Role clarity
What a coordinator is for, and where the boundaries are.
Case study · Luton Council · 2023 to 2026
Building a confident, influential network of EDI Coordinators
How a series of practical workshops helped Luton Council's EDI Coordinators define their role, build influence with senior leaders and turn staff concerns into evidence.
2023
first commissioned, and still working together
3
facilitated workshops for the coordinator network
11
service areas represented at the workshops
4th
workshop requested by the council in 2026
"Thank you to Sultan for facilitating another engaging and informative workshop."
The challenge
Luton Council has EDI Coordinators in directorates across the organisation, including its airport company, Luton Rising. Coordinators were passionate and committed, but needed a clearer role, more confidence and better tools to make a difference. Colleagues often bring them concerns about fairness and career progression, and coordinators needed ways to turn those conversations into evidence senior leaders would act on.
Time
Coordinators do this alongside their day jobs.
Influence
Getting EDI onto the agenda of Service Directors and management teams.
Evidence
Turning informal concerns into evidence leaders act on.
A long-term partnership
2023
Away day
A full day on the role, successes, team culture, data and a Q&A with the Chief Executive.
2024
Planning
Worked with the Head of Social Justice on what the network needed next.
May 2025
Champions 2.0
A reset workshop with a new EDI lead in post, redefining the modern EDI Champion.
Oct 2025
Workshop 2
Leading the conversation with Service Directors, raising the network's profile, using data.
2026
Invited back
Asked to lead a deep-dive on Integrated Impact Assessments.
Two workshops, one growing network
May 2025
Equality Champions 2.0
What we covered
- Redefining the coordinator role: "What does a modern EDI Champion look like?"
- Why career progression stalls, including intersectionality
- "Watercooler to Evidence", turning informal concerns into reportable themes and checking them against HR data
What came out of it
- A shared definition of the modern EDI Champion
- A dedicated Teams channel
- A coordinator action plan with a theme tracker template and an EDI survey
- Agreement to record evidence of the time the role really needs
October 2025
Leading the conversation with senior leaders
What we covered
- A consistent way to open conversations with Service Directors, based on the council's Fairness Strategy
- Raising the network's profile
- Using staff survey data together
- The top five things to check when reviewing an impact assessment
What came out of it
- Coordinators planning one-to-ones with their Service Directors, tracked against programme KPIs
- A communications campaign with coordinator profiles
- Survey analysis built into team meetings
- A new quality audit for impact assessments being developed by the council
What a modern EDI Champion looks like, in the coordinators' own words
- An advocate for others
- Non-judgemental
- A good listener
- Visible
- Transparent
- Influential and collaborative
- Accessible
- Trustworthy
- Challenges professionally
- Proactive
- Passionate about change
- Voice of the unheard
Key messages coordinators took away
Data opens doors.
You can't change what you don't measure.
Don't tell Service Directors how you can help. Ask them.
Progress is the goal, not perfection.
Lessons for other organisations
Champions need support, not just a title
A clear role, peer support and protected time make the difference between a name on a list and real influence.
Build over time
A series of linked sessions, each with an action log, keeps momentum going.
Evidence beats anecdote
Grouping staff concerns into themes and testing them against data gets senior leaders' attention.
Do your EDI champions need a boost?
We design and facilitate workshops, away days and development programmes for EDI champions, staff networks and equality leads.