Stonewall campaign group gives Derbyshire thumbs up

National campaign group Stonewall has ranked Derbyshire County Council as one of the best places to work for lesbian, gay and bisexual employees.

The council features in this year’s ‘Top 100 Employers’ list ranking 15 out of 369 public and private sector entrants, last year the council was ranked at 74. And this year Derbyshire is ranked as the second best council.

Derbyshire County Council’s Leader and champion for equality and diversity, Councillor Anne Western said: “I am pleased that all our hard work has been recognised by Stonewall, and that we have moved so far in the Top 100 Employers list.

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People perform better at work if they can be themselves and this award helps us to know that we are creating a positive working environment for all our employees.”

The council’s LGBT Employee Network has been recognised for their contribution by being categorised as one of Stonewall’s Star Performer Network Groups.

The LGBT Employee Network support the council’s work by sharing their experiences so the council can make sure its services are appropriate for the LGBT community.

Alison Boyce, who co-chairs the LGBT Employee Network, said: “All of our network members will be delighted at this achievement.”

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Joint chair of the network Rob Bounds added, “Derbyshire is a great place to work and this award shows how the organisation recognises and values the contributions of all its employees.”

Stonewall works with employers to promote equality for lesbian, gay and bisexual employees and publishes an employers’ performance index every year.

It measures how successful organisations are in providing confidence, support and security for lesbian, gay and bisexual employees to be open about their sexuality at work.

This is done by assessing employers across eight areas of good practice including training and development, monitoring, employee policies and how they work with their lesbian, gay and bisexual community.

Actions taken by the council over the past year included:

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* Delivering LGBT awareness training to managers and employees

* Developing a guide for managers on supporting LGBT employees

* Hosting a joint event with a national gay walking group at one of our country parks to mark IDAHO

* Organising an event to promote LGBT history months to highlight the continued discrimination against LGBT people outside the UK