UK Investor Group

Investing

Investing in change

We are the UK investor voice on diversity and inclusion.

 

The 30% Club UK Investor Group was established in 2011 and brings together more than 40 investors with £11 trillion AUM to drive change with companies on inclusion and diversity.

Our members are asset owners, asset managers and investment intermediaries such as financial advisers who want to drive change with the companies they own.

Our targets

We want UK Plc to represent the diversity of our society.
Members of the 30% Club Investor Group are committed to achieving the 30% Club targets. 
The information below outlines what those targets are and how the campaign will achieve them.

One
  • Beyond 30% representation of women on all FTSE 350 boards, to include one person of colour by 2023
Two
  • Beyond 30% representation of women on all FTSE 350 Executive Committees, to include one person of colour by 2023
*We advocate for gender balance with half these seats going to women, creating 175 executive committee roles for women of colour.
Three

Beyond 30% of all new FTSE 350 Chair appointments to go to women between July 2020 and 2023

Four

Beyond 30% representation of women at senior management level of FTSE 100 companies
(ExCo + direct report levels).

Our work

We are the place where UK investors passionate about diversity and inclusion can meet,
learn and take action to drive change with the assets they own.

We follow a three-pillar approach. 

  • Build investor knowledge and awareness on diversity
  • Engage firms on the 30% Club’s new targets
  • Drive gender diversity globally with our investments

As asset owners and asset managers we are responsible for the stewardship of the
investments we make on behalf of our members and clients. Part of that responsibility
includes the assessment of the boards and senior management teams of our investee companies.

DOWNLOAD THE FULL STATEMENT OF INTENT

We’re taking action to tackle the race inequity in the UK market with our members working with the recently established 30% Club UK Race Equity Group. 

Collaborative engagement

We will shortly be publishing an investor statement on race equity and writing to FTSE 100 laggards yet to respond to the Parker Review which called on them to have at least one person of colour at board and executive committee level by the end of 2021.

We are also embarking on data provider outreach to six major data providers to create a comparison of available data and research on race equity to encourage improvement as data remains weak. We will also deliver research to underpin our engagement campaign and support members in identifying data providers.

Equipping members

We’re sharing research resources on race equity (document updated and shared quarterly) and have developed a member training programme that will launch in spring 2022.

We’ve also partnered with Diversio to produce a FTSE 100 database on race and gender diversity data.

Individual commitments

We strongly encourage members to commit to updating their voting policies to ‘walk the talk’.

We equip and communicate

Our knowledge workstream aims to drive change in the industry and beyond by empowering more investors to engage on the issue of diversity and inclusion and speak out publicly to make sure our voice is heard. Examples of our activities:

  • Our Toolkit for Engaging Boards on Diversity. Click here
  • Industry insight related to the investment case for corporate gender and race equity
  • A best practice guide for companies to diversity and inclusion reporting. Click here
  • Group statement on addressing racial inequality and call to action. Click here.
    You can read the accompanying press release here.
  • Exclusive analysis with Diversio on how the FTSE 100 compares to the S&P 500 and TSX 60 for diversity and inclusion.
    Click here.

We encourage any investor located in or investing in the UK to get involved.

Membership of the 30% Club UK investor group is free.

It provides significant benefits including:

  • the change to be actively involved in shaping the diversity of the UK corporate landscape
  • be part of the industry leading voice on gender and race equity in the UK
  • and get access to diversity and inclusion insights, analysis, training and expertise.

If you’re interested in hearing more, please register you interest here.

Our current members include:

abrdn, AMP Capital (UK), Astarte Capital Partners, Aviva Investors, AXA Investment Managers, Baring Foundation, Barrow Cadbury Trust, BlackRock, BMO Global Asset Management, Border to Coast Pensions Partnership, Brunel Pension Partnership, Castlefield Investment Partners LLP, Church Investors Group, Eco Advisers Ltd, EdenTree Investment Management, Environment Agency Pension Fund, Fidelity International, Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF), Hermes Investment Management, HSBC Investment Management, J.P. Morgan Asset Management, Jupiter Asset Management, Legal & General Investment Management, LGPS Central Ltd, LGT Wealth Management, Liontrust Investment Partners LLP, Local Authority Pension Fund Forum, Local Pensions Partnership, M&G Investments, NEST, Newton Investment Management, Northern Local Government Pension Scheme, Old Mutual Global Investors, Quilter Cheviot Investment Management, Resona Asset Management Co., Ltd., Robeco, Royal London Asset Management (CIS) Limited, RPMI Railpen Investments, Sarasin & Partners LLP, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management, TPT Retirement Solutions, T. Rowe Price International Ltd, The Health Foundation, UBS Asset Management and West Midlands Pension Fund, West Yorkshire Pension Fund.

Marte and Diandra

The UK investor Club is co-chaired by Diandra Soobiah, Head of Responsible Investment at Nest Corporation, and Marte Borhaug, Head of Sustainable Outcomes for the International Equity Team at Morgan Stanley Investment Management.

They are joined by Mais Callan, Senior Responsible Investment Manager at Nest Corporation – who is currently on maternity leave.

Get in touch the UK Investor Group by emailing Marte Borhaug here