CLCH secures Stonewall’s silver award for leading LGBTQ+ inclusive employers
Today (16 February) Stonewall - Europe’s largest charity for Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans and Queer rights – published its widely anticipated Top 100 Employers List, and we pleased to announce that our Trust has achieved a silver accreditation for the fantastic work we are doing to support our LGBTQ+ staff to be themselves at work.
The Stonewall Workplace Equality Index is a ranking and accreditation of UK employers based on how well they are supporting LGBTQ+ staff and making the workplace an inclusive place to work.
Over the past year, as a Trust, we have undertaken significant strides towards creating an inclusive working environment and has managed to achieve a silver award and a ranking of 127th out of all organisations involved.
James Benson, Chief Executive said: “I am pleased to hear from Stonewall that we achieved a silver award after the work and effort put in by various colleagues within the Trust as part of the submission.
“Through the work we have implemented in the last year, such as improving the inclusivity of our recruitment, introducing a pronoun feature on the hub, alongside the work that already existed within services that we were able to highlight, we have moved closer to creating a more inclusive place to work for staff as well as being in a better place to support the communities that we serve.
“Colleagues involved in the submission have already begun looking at some of the gaps in the previous submission to make improvements next time round and it will be exciting to see how far we can go next year.”
Cathy Walker, Chief Operating Officer and Rainbow Network Exec Sponsor, added: “After taking over the role of Executive Sponsor for the Rainbow Network in 2022, it is wonderful to see the progress that has been made in making CLCH a more inclusive space for LGBTQ+ staff. I look forward to seeing how much further we can go in the next submission period following the feedback from Stonewall.”
Alex O’Sullivan, Rainbow Network Chair, said: “"We are delighted to see the progress CLCH has made towards LGBTQ+ equality and inclusion and welcome the recognition Stonewall has given us.”
