The Tipper Group

Launched in 2016 to improve employee experience and employer perception throughout the National Structural Integrity Research Centre, TWI and The Welding Institute, The Tipper Group also endeavours to promote diversity and inclusion to wider audiences.

The group, named after female Cambridge fracture engineer, Constance Tipper, encourages and supports both the creation and promotion of an inclusive culture, which inspires, attracts, recruits and supports career development irrespective of gender, ethnicity, sexuality, age, (dis)abilities, beliefs and socio-economic background, through focalising on the recognition and development of skills and competencies.

To achieve this, The Tipper Group supports career progression and peer-to-peer learning, improving work/life balance, providing mentoring and peer support programmes and developing confidence and an awareness in unconscious bias. The group additionally organises events, attended by industry and academia, promoting and supporting the promotion of diversity and inclusion.

The group operates as a fully inclusive body to enable opinions to be shared and problems to be solved, irrespective of age, gender, sexual orientation, neurodiversity, race, (dis)ability, spiritual belief or any other potentially divisive factors. Through this basic foundation, and in conjunction with their diversity and inclusion activities, The Tipper Group aims to develop a culture of openness, respect and tolerance.

Tipper Group Highlights and Achievements

In 2018, via The Tipper Group, TWI took a seat at the Royal Academy of Engineering’s diversity and inclusion progression framework implementation steering group.

Additionally, the group has led the creation of a Diversity and Inclusion Working Group to explore and lead a culture transformation strategy at TWI, which includes the launch of a ‘Living Our Values’ campaign within TWI to embed inclusivity values.

Their work has also enabled three Women in Leadership programmes, engaging over 60 TWI female employees.

All of the group’s work is supported by both internal communications and external engagement, including with our Institute Members and across our Branch activities.

Further details about The Tipper Group