This year's theme – Reclaiming narratives
The theme for Black History Month this year is reclaiming narratives which focuses on correcting historical inaccuracies, showcasing untold success stories and highlighting the full complexity of Black heritage.
Our NTU community is proud to support Black History Month by hosting activities and initiatives that are open to our students and colleagues. We are also pleased to share our educational resources with our community as part of our commitment to becoming an anti-racist institution.
We recognise that the Black history experience is not limited to one month each year and have committed to work year-round to host a diverse programme of events and resources to help create a more equal future for everyone.
Events and initiatives
We're excited to host a range of events and initiatives in celebration of Black History Month.
In addition, we will be making menu changes at NTU Food outlets across our campuses throughout the month where a range of international dishes will be available to purchase to celebrate the diversity of Black heritage.
Monday 30 September, 1 pm – 2 pm
History and Context of Racism webinar
- Audience: NTU staff
NTU's Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) team is collaborating with Inclusive Employers to deliver an eight-part webinar series for staff beginning with the History and Context of Racism.
Tuesday 1 October – Thursday 31 October
Black History Month Creative Competition
- Audience: Students
The Race, Ethnicity and Cultural Heritage (REACH) network is excited to sponsor a competition offering NTU students the chance to showcase their creativity and knowledge. To participate, we're asking students to submit a piece of writing of less than 1,000 words, or a piece of multimedia creative output such as a video or podcast.
Your submission should highlight the impact of a Black individual on society, either in the UK or globally. Send your work to reachnetwork@ntu.ac.uk by Thursday 31 October.
The two winners will each receive a £25 Amazon gift card and a signed certificate recognising their achievement.
Friday 4 October, 1 pm – 2 pm
- Audience: Students and NTU staff
- Location: NTU Global Lounge, City Campus
Get involved in a quiz, games and cup giveaway at our Global Lounge.
Wednesday 9 October, 2 - 4 pm
Crafternoon – Kente Cloth crafting
- Audience: Students and staff
- Location: NTU Global Lounge, City Campus
Join the City Global Lounge team for an afternoon of Kente Cloth crafting.
Friday 11 October, 2 - 3 pm
- Audience: Students and staff
- Location: NTU Global Lounge, City Campus
Join the City Global Lounge team for another chance to get involved in a quiz and cup giveaway.
Various dates throughout the week at different locations
Show Racism the Red Card Roadshow
- Monday 14 October, 11 am - 2 pm, The Lawn, Brackenhurst Campus
- Tuesday 15 October, 11 am - 2 pm, NTU Mansfield
- Wednesday 16 October, 11 am - 2 pm, Union Square, NTSU, City Campus
- Thursday 17 October, 11 am - 2 pm, The Point, NTSU, Clifton Campus
Join the Nottingham Trent Students' Union (NTSU) for a fun-filled and educational day at our Show Racism the Red Card event, where we come together as a community to tackle racism through sport and information.
Event highlights include: Outdoor inflatable goal: Test your skills at our inflatable football goal and see if you can score the winning shot; Information stands: Learn more about the ongoing fight against racism in football and beyond.
Tuesday 15 October, 3 - 4 pm
Meet Jackie P – Radio Presenter and Community Advocate
- Audience: Students and staff
- Location: NTU Global Lounge, City Campus
Jackie P has been a radio DJ and presenter for over seven years for Nottingham’s music scene where she presents The Breakfast Show on Kemet FM. Kemet FM represents the cultures of the African and Caribbean communities in the media.
Tuesday 15 October, 1 - 2 pm
Webinar: Impact of Inappropriate Behaviours: Subtle to Overt
- Audience: Staff
NTU's Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) team is collaborating with Inclusive Employers to deliver an eight-part webinar series.
This second webinar focuses on the impact of inappropriate behaviours.
Wednesday 16 October, 2 - 4 pm
Crafternoon – Kente Cloth crafting
- Audience: Students and staff
- Location: NTU Global Lounge, Clifton Campus
Join the Clifton Global Lounge team for an afternoon of Kente Cloth crafting.
Wednesday 16 October, 5 - 7 pm
Collaborative MBLC and NTU EDI Networking Event: Building Social and Cultural Capital for Black Communities
- Audience: Staff
- Location: Lecture Theatre 1, Newton Building, City Campus
The Majority Black Led Churches (MBLC) and NTU's EDI team have organised a joint conference to celebrate this year’s Black History Month. The event aims to strengthen the relationship of the Black churches with NTU and build socio-cultural connections with organisations that are championing the causes of the Black communities in our region.
This event offers opportunities to network with key stakeholders, with the view to creating collaborative partnerships to develop inclusive policies around racial inequality issues. It will also give you the chance to learn of the progress represented organisations have made on race inequality issues.
Contact mblcnottingham@gmail.com if you have any questions about this event.
Wednesday 16 October, 5 - 7 pm
Writing Workshop for Black History Month
- Audience: Students
- Location: Knowledge Café, Boots Library, City Campus
Book your free place for this writing workshop inspired by Black writers offered as part of NTU Arts' Writing, Reading and Pleasure (WRAP) programme. You don't need to have any experience, and it's a great opportunity to explore creative writing and meet new friends.
Tuesday 22 October, 3 - 4 pm
Meet Jackie P – Radio Presenter and Community Advocate
- Audience: Students and staff
- Location: NTU Global Lounge, Clifton Campus
Jackie P has been a radio DJ and presenter for over seven years for Nottingham’s music scene where she presents The Breakfast Show on Kemet FM. Kemet FM represents the cultures of the African and Caribbean communities in the media.
Wednesday 23 October, 12 - 1 pm
Black Women in Prison and The Pains of Impression Management
- Audience: Students and staff
- Join via MS Teams
Dr Angela Charles is a Senior Lecturer in the Criminology department at Northampton University. Join Angela for an insightful online talk on 'Black Women in Prison and The Pains of Impression Management' and learn about her groundbreaking research exploring the intersections of race, gender, and imprisonment. Don’t miss this opportunity to engage with crucial discussions on systemic inequalities.
Thursday 24 October, 1– 2 pm
Webinar: Anti Racism and Allyship in Action
- Audience: Staff
NTU's Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) team is collaborating with Inclusive Employers to deliver an eight-part webinar series
This third webinar explores the evolution of anti-racism and its application in the workplace.
Nottingham Trent Students’ Union (NTSU) and NTU Societies
Alongside Nottingham Trent Students’ Union (NTSU), we are firmly committed to sustaining a highly effective learning and working environment characterised by fairness, equality of opportunity and diversity.
Our African Caribbean Society aims to educate and unite diverse students from NTU and the University of Nottingham.
The Eastern African Society celebrates culture and empowers community through fun and memorable activities throughout the year.
Vote for your most inspiring scientist
We are encouraging NTU students and staff to vote for your most inspiring scientist with Black, Asian or minority ethnic heritage.
Voting is open until midnight on Thursday 31 October 2024, with the winners announced on Monday 4 November 2024.
What's more, by voting and entering their student number, NTU students will be entered into the draw to win Amazon vouchers. They’ll also be able to get involved in other diversity linked projects throughout the year with fellow students and colleagues.
Creative Changemakers student competition – for Nottingham School of Art & Design students
Creative Changemakers is an exciting competition for Nottingham School of Art & Design students which celebrates work that generates a sense of community and belonging to the school.
The awards – Focus Award, Climate Justice Award and Influencer Award – aim to inspire students to celebrate their heritage, explore diverse perspectives and incorporate inclusive practice and social justice into their projects.
For each award, students have an option to submit:
- Five images of their visual work (jpeg or png under 300kb in size)
- Five slide presentation summarising a written project (pdf)
- A link to audio-visual work up to two minutes in length (YouTube or social media content etc) plus a 30 second clip to be used on the showcase showreel.
In addition, students will also be asked two questions relating to the competition criteria. The max word count for each of these is 150 words.
Students must submit by 5pm on Friday 7 February 2025 for their project to be considered.
Learning resources
To celebrate Black History Month, our Libraries and Learning Resources team has curated a collection of 30 e-books and audiobooks by Black and minority ethnic background authors.
NTU students and colleagues can access this collection for free with their NTU username and password.
There are also displays up in our library spaces featuring relevant works by Black writers.
Black Leadership Programme
NTU's Black Leadership Programme is a collaboration between Nottingham Trent University (NTU) and Nottingham Trent Students’ Union (NTSU). The programme is designed to empower students to gain confidence and become resilient leaders through a series of hands-on events and community-building activities.
Successful applicants get access to valuable events and opportunities, building the skills to become effective leaders.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at NTU
NTU is dedicated to working to strategically advance equality, diversity and inclusion, and to support a culture of engagement underpinned by respect.
The University currently holds and is continually advancing our work in the Race Equality Agenda, Athena Swan Bronze Award (gender equality), Stonewall Diversity Champion (LGBT) and as a Disability Confident Employer.
The Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) team recognises that learning is vital to ensuring that our students and colleagues understand and are equipped with skills and competence to support inclusion and fairness. A dedicated space for self-education resources has been developed for our NTU community to benefit from. This online platform features educational videos, information articles, recommended reading lists and more, encouraging students and colleagues to continue to make informed decisions and continue to make an active contribution to making NTU an inclusive environment for all.
NTU colleagues have access to an Anti-Racism and White Privilege learning module as part of their essential learning, and an 'Understanding Racism' learning module is available to all NTU students. Both offer the opportunity to explore and build an understanding of what racism is and how it can be positively combated.
If you have a general question for the EDI team at NTU, please email us.
Re:search Re:imagined podcast: BHM special
Last year, as Black History Month drew to a close, we invited Panya Banjoko and Professor Sharon Monteith from NTU’s School of Social Sciences onto the Re:search Re:imagined podcast to reflect on the significance of Black History Month and their research into black legacy and heritage.
Their remarkable efforts include revealing untold narratives of Black Activism, both in the United States and closer to home in Nottingham. By bringing to light heroic stories of lecturers, poets, and orators, Panya and Sharon are working to preserve their histories and inspire the next generation.
Listen to the episode: Preserving our legacy: Black History beyond October.
Spotlight on...
Professor Veronica Pickering
To celebrate Black History Month, we’re pleased to profile Professor Veronica Pickering. Read more to learn about her remarkable career and achievements and how she feels about making history as the first black female to be appointed to the position of High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire.
Chinyere Williams
Chinyere Williams, Lecturer in Forensic Toxicology, is a member of NTU’s University Shadow Executive Team (USET).
To mark Black History Month (BHM) last year, we spent 5 minutes with Chinyere to find out more about her thoughts on the BHM theme and who has inspired her the most in her life.
Deladem Ohenewaa Mensah
Deladem Ohenewaa Mensah is a PhD student at NTU’s Nottingham Law School focusing on restorative justice. To mark Black History Month last year, Deladem shared more about what inspired her studies and how she’s overcome the challenges she’s faced along the way.
Our Research
Our NTU community of researchers aim to break down barriers and tackle society’s problems. Meet some of our researchers who are working to celebrate, give agency and create a legacy for the Black community in Nottingham.
Panya Banjoko is a lecturer in NTU’s School of Social Sciences. Her thesis is around Politics in Poetry and the Role of African Caribbean Writers and Networks in the 1970s and 1980s. Panya is a key figure in Nottingham’s arts and culture community, establishing Nottingham Black Archive, which aims to collect, research and preserve Black history and heritage in the region and is the first organisation of its kind in the city.
Patricia Francis is a PhD Researcher working across our School of Art & Design and our School of Social Sciences. Her research is a creative-critical analysis of the muting of dissenting women’s voices focusing on the women involved in the 1984-1985 miners’ strike and those involved in the Black Lives Matter movement.
Dr Dung Jidong is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Psychology. His research areas include mental health issues among BAME (Black, Asian and minority ethnic) people, African cultural perspectives on mental health issues and Black and cultural psychology. His study has highlighted the significant gaps in support available to African and Caribbean communities struggling with their mental health in the UK.
Sharon Monteith is Distinguished Professor of American Literature and Cultural History in NTU’s School of Social Sciences. Professor Monteith's interdisciplinary research focuses on literary activism, African American and Black British print and visual culture, the American South, the US civil rights movement and massive resistance to civil rights in the 1950s and 1960s. It also focuses on African American and Black British history, American literature and culture, feature film, documentary and art cinema, journalism and media cultures. Sharon’s most recent book is SNCC’s Stories: The African American Freedom Movement in the Civil Rights South (University of Georgia Press, 2020) which won the C. Hugh Holman Book Award.
Get involved
Tag us with the following hashtags to share your involvement in Black History Month!
#BlackHistoryMonth #BHM2024
As a university, we are proud to be progressive and inclusive as we all have a part to play in tackling racism. For anyone who would like to self-educate themselves, we recommend these articles that may help you as part of your journey.
If you would like to advertise an event, please contact EDI@ntu.ac.uk.