Research
Race Equity in Education Group: A community led exploration of race equity in education
For decades, educational inequality has been measured in data points. But what happens when you listen to lived experience?
For decades, educational inequality has been measured in data points. But what happens when you listen to lived experience?
What does equity really look like in schools?
For decades, educational inequality has been measured in data points – attainment gaps, disciplinary rates, exclusion figures. But what happens when you listen to lived experience?
REEG flips the script.
Led by young people, families, educators, and community stakeholders in Lambeth & Southwark, this project brings together powerful testimony, practical insights, and actionable recommendations to challenge racial inequity in schools and imagine something better.
Why this project?
Lambeth & Southwark has long been celebrated for its cultural and ethnic diversity. But this diversity does not always translate into equity in education.
Commissioned by Royal Borough of Lambeth & Southwark and developed by the Paradigm Project in collaboration with a cross-sector steering group, REEG places racial equity at the heart of how we design, lead, and experience education.
This is about systems change rooted in local voices.
“We’re not hard to reach. You’re just not reaching us in the right way.”
– Parent participant, REEG community event
What the report reveals
- Identity-based discrimination is widespread: from microaggressions to outright bias, young people and parents report not being seen, heard, or supported.
- Exclusion remains a racial justice issue: Black Caribbean and mixed-heritage students continue to be disproportionately excluded.
- Teachers feel the gap too: Many want to do better, but face barriers around training, time, and whole-school alignment.
- Community matters: True equity can’t happen without co-creation and accountability that centres the voices of those most affected.
A new approach to engagement
REEG isn’t just a research project. It’s a place-based, people-led process. Across a year of community events, creative sessions, surveys, and workshops, the project surfaced hopes, concerns and bold ideas for an anti-racist, equitable education system.
With participants aged 8 to 80+, it’s one of the most inclusive, intergenerational educational equity projects ever delivered in Lambeth & Southwark.
Key recommendations
The report outlines clear steps to embed racial equity across the education system, including:
- Establishing a borough-wide racial equity framework and inclusive education strategy
- Embedding youth and community voice into decision-making structures
- Improving data transparency around exclusions and teacher diversity
- Supporting staff training grounded in cultural humility and anti-racism
- Prioritising safe spaces and mental health support for students facing discrimination
Who should read this
- Local authorities building equity into education strategy
- School leaders and governors ready to move from policy to practice
- Teachers and youth workers seeking to create safer, fairer classrooms
- Parents, carers and students who want to see change
- Equity advocates and community organisers working across the UK
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