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The social enterprise has been supported and assessed by Manchester Pride’s All Equals Charter to strengthen its equality, diversity and inclusion practices.
A not-for-profit social enterprise, The Growth Company, have achieved ‘Good Practice’ for the All Equals Charter following a reassessment six months after achieving the ‘Foundation’ level.
The All Equals Charter is Manchester Pride’s programme to help businesses and organisations understand, recognise and challenge any form of discrimination in the workplace. The charter aims to make the workplace inclusive, diverse and equal for marginalised people.
Over the six months since the initial assessment, The Growth Company continued to advance its commitment to becoming an LGBTQ+ inclusive organisation and ally to the community. The Company has been working on an action plan which includes the broader gender identity work covering the use of pronouns and advanced data collection. The organisation listened to the feedback relating to a greater need for trans and non-binary training and invested in an all employee thought leadership session and commissioned a training module on this topic which can now booked via the learning platform.
Vicky McDonald, Director of HR & OD from The Growth Company said: “I’m really pleased with our achievement of ‘Good Practice’ level. Our progress is in recognition of the hard work and contribution from all of the senior management team and colleagues who are fully committed to driving equality and inclusion across The Growth Company. Our achievement reflects the determination to build an inclusive workplace for all colleagues and we continue to challenge ourselves and celebrate when our ideas become a reality.”
Nick Shepherd, Business Development and Partnerships Manager and Co-Chair of the LGBTQ+ EDI Network at The Growth Company, also stated: “I am delighted with our ‘Good Practice’ achievement with the Manchester Pride’s All Equals Charter. Across our organisation, we have a number of employee-led equality, diversity, and inclusion networks where members can help to shape the change, they want to see within The Growth Company. I am proud to see that the hard work driven across all of our networks and the changes we have implemented have been recognised through achievement of the ‘Good Practice’ level accreditation. We are committed to building on an inclusive workplace culture where diversity is both celebrated and educated upon so colleagues can come to work each day and bring their WHOLE self.”
All Equals Charter members strive towards accreditation from Entry Level up to Role Model Level. The members are invited to follow a set of commitments and principles, they are then regularly assessed to ensure their workplace, services and company promotes and embeds equality and diversity for all members of marginalised communities.
Dr Christopher Owen, Manchester Pride's Inclusivity Development Manager said: "I am so inspired by the incredible progress The Growth Company has made to improve their LGBTQ+ inclusion initiatives this year. Their tireless work to implement changes in a short time is highly commendable, and I am so impressed with how thorough they have been in their efforts.
With initiatives like various LGBTQ+ staff training offers, EDI staff network groups and the promotion of LGBTQ+ inclusion internally and externally, the Growth Company demonstrates a clear 'Good Practice' standard for others to learn from. I am so excited to see where they'll go next!"
The feedback provided by the All Equals Charter facilitates organisations to develop an action plan to further improve equality in the workplace and services for the LGBTQ+ and other marginalised communities living in Greater Manchester and further afield.
To join the global Pride movement and find out how we can support your business in developing intersectional inclusivity in the workplace, email Amanda.
