Leeds City Council named one of Britain’s most inclusive employers by LGBT charity

Leeds City Council has been named one of the most inclusive employers in Britain by lesbian, gay, bi and trans equality charity Stonewall.

The ‘Top 100’ list showcases employers who have demonstrated their commitment to LGBT workplace inclusion and Leeds City Council is ranked at number 62.

This year was the Stonewall index’s biggest yet, with 503 organisations making a bid to be featured.

The council’s LGBT+ staff network has also won the Stonewall award for Network Group of the Year for the Yorkshire and the Humber region.

Leeds City Council has a number of staff networks that represent staff on issues or topics they identify with. They help promote increased understanding and awareness around their theme and act in a 'critical friend' role to support ongoing improvement in the organisational development and cultural change work.

Councillor Hannah Bithell, Leeds City Council’s LGBT+ champion, and Councillor Jonathan Pryor, executive member for learning, skills and employment at Leeds City Council said:

“We work very hard to ensure that everyone is made to feel welcome and valued in the council, so we are really pleased to retain our position in the Stonewall Top 100 Employers Index for another year, and also to receive recognition for our LGBT+ staff network. This is a testament to the hard work of many colleagues across our organisation and a reflection of our continued support for our LGBT+ staff and the LGBT+ community in the city.”

Kat Denvir, co-chair of Leeds City Council’s LGBT+ staff network, said:

“We’re thrilled with our position in the Stonewall top 100, which serves as recognition of the huge amount of fantastic work that is being done within all areas of the council in order to ensure equality for all our LGBT+ colleagues, the community and the city as a whole. Being awarded the Network Group of the Year for Yorkshire & the Humber by Stonewall also serves as wonderful recognition of the work done by our amazing network members over the last year. However we’re not resting on our laurels – there is always more work to be done and we look forward to continuing to drive forward progress, critically challenge and provide support to ensure that Leeds City Council is a place where all employees can be their whole, vibrant selves.”

Sanjay Sood-Smith, Stonewall’s executive director of workplace & community programmes said:

“We are delighted to name Leeds City Council as one of our Top 100 Employers this year. All the organisations in this year's Top 100 Employer's list are playing a huge role in improving the lives of LGBT people, and should be very proud of their work.”

Ends

Notes to editors:

Stonewall’s Top 100 is compiled from submissions to the Workplace Equality Index, a powerful benchmarking tool used by employers to assess their achievements and progress on LGBT equality in the workplace, as well as their wider work in the community and on service provision. Each organisation must demonstrate their expertise in 10 areas of employment policy and practice, including networking groups, senior leadership, procurement and how well they’ve engaged with LGBT communities.

To see the full list, please visit: https://www.stonewall.org.uk/full-list-top-100-employers-2020

For media enquiries:

Becky Stubbs, Leeds City Council press office

Tel: 01133786199

Email: rebecca.stubbs@leeds.gov.uk