About our research

About our research

Our intersectional research explores the role of gender and diversity within the conditions that support - or constrain - decent work and productivity.

We focus on demographic diversity within the workplace and consider the effects on performance, productivity, wellbeing and more.

And we have expertise in human rights and discrimination law that allows us to influence policy, particularly in discrimination at work.

We are named in honour of Manchester School of Art alumni Sylvia Pankhurst. Activist and feminist researcher Prof Helen Pankhurst is a member of our centre - Helen is the great-granddaughter of Emmeline Pankhurst and granddaughter of Sylvia Pankhurst.

Our research themes

We have an international reputation for engaged feminist research in business and law with a focus on:

Gender, diversity and entrepreneurship

Our areas of expertise include self-employment, entrepreneurship policy and small business support.

We are interested in the dynamics of the informal economy, business ownership, and the role of entrepreneurship as a route for social mobility.

And our members lead on the national Women’s Enterprise Policy Group.

Gender, diversity and the workplace

We explore how social class, gender and race interact within organisations.

Areas of focus include leadership and mentoring, career progression, those working in non-traditional environments, and sectors such as healthcare and education.

We are home to Generating Routes for Women’s Leadership (GROWL) - an initiative that helps businesses embed practices to develop and retain women for leadership roles.

An evolving focus of GROWL is Black and minority ethnic leadership and workplace progression.

And we are developing expertise on emerging aspects of diversity, including its role in wellbeing-related issues such as stress and health.

Gender, diversity and the law

We explore how law and legal change intersects with gender, race, sexuality and other characteristics - with particular expertise in equalities and human rights law.

Our collaborations with different stakeholders explore sexual orientation and gender identity rights in the UK and honour-based violence, caste discrimination, and shared parental leave internationally.

We also have strong research connections and collaborations exploring the impact of caste discrimination on employment and other opportunities both in the UK and internationally.

Emmeline, Christabel and Sylvia Pankhurst at Waterloo Station, October 4, 1911
I know we will create a society where there are no rich or poor, no people without work or beauty in their lives, where money itself will disappear, where we shall all be brothers and sisters, where everyone will have enough.
Sylvia Pankhurst
A woman smiling on the quayside at Salford Quays in Manchester, UK

Changing the future for women

We are founders and active members of GM4WOMEN, led by Helen Pankhurst. GM4WOMEN are a coalition of change-makers committed to advancing gender equality across Greater Manchester.