It’s Civil Service Allies Week

This week is Civil Service Allies Week. From 29 October to 2 November, we’ll be recognising the important role of allies in making our workplaces more diverse and inclusive.

As LGBT+ people, we are in a very small minority. That’s also true in the Civil Service. Based on responses to the Civil Service People Survey, we estimate up to 20,000 civil servants are lesbian, gay, bisexual or ‘other’¹. We see and hear about LGBT+ civil servants doing fantastic work to make things better for people like them at work every day, but we also know that they couldn’t do all of that without support from people who don’t identify as LGBT+.

So we’ve set up Allies week, to thank those doing their part and to encourage more colleagues to step up and be active allies in their organisations.

Civil Service Allies Week posts

We’ll be posting new blog posts and resources all week. Keep checking this page for updates.

Updates so far

• Civil Service Allies Week posters

  We’ve created these posters for you to display in your office to help highlight Allies Week.

  Published 29 October 2018 by Civil Service LGBT+ Network

• Allies in Action: Elaine Radburn

  Elaine works for the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government. Here's what Elaine is doing do be a brilliant ally.

  Published 29 October 2018 by Elaine Radburn

• Allies in Action: Karen Notaro

  Karen works for the Ministry of Justice. Here's why being an ally is important to Karen.

  Published 29 October 2018 by Karen Notaro

• Allies in Action: Phil Blunden

  Phil works for the Ministry of Defence. Here's Phil's thoughts on why allies are important.

  Published 29 October 2018 by Phil Blunden

• Allies in Action: Raymond Jenner

  Raymond works for the Ministry of Defence. In this post, we asked Raymond to share some thoughts on why allies are important.

  Published 29 October 2018 by Raymond Jenner

• Allies in Action: Caroline Hendrix

  Caroline works for the Department for International Trade. In this post, we asked Caroline tells us what being an ally means to her.

  Published 30 October 2018 by Caroline Hendrix

• Allies in Action: David Neale

  David works in the Ministry of Defence. In this post, David shares why he thinks being an ally is important.

  Published 30 October 2018 by David Neale

• Allies in Action: Isobel Lowe-Zinola

  Isobel works at the Department for Education. In this post, Isobel shares why being an ally is important to her.

  Published 30 October 2018 by Isobel Lowe-Zinola

• Allies in Action: Keri Murphy

  Keri works for the Department for Work and Pensions. In this post, we asked Keri shares what she's doing to be an ally.

  Published 30 October 2018 by Keri Murphy

• Allies in Action: Sam Forster

  Sam works in the Ministry of Justice. In this post, he talks about his role as an ally.

  Published 30 October 2018 by Sam Forster

• Allies in Action: Jacky Lawrence

  Jacky works in the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal. In this post, Jacky shares what being an ally means to them.

  Published 31 October 2018 by Jacky Lawrence

• Allies in Action: Nick Pett

  Nick works at the Ministry of Defence. In this blog post, he tells us why allies are important.

  Published 31 October 2018 by Nick Pett

• Allies in Action: Pamela Rowlands

  Pamela works for HM Courts and Tribunals Service. In this post, Pam shares some quick thoughts on her role as an ally.

  Published 31 October 2018 by Pamela Rowlands

• Allies in Action: Sam O’Neill

  Sam works for the Department of Work and Pensions. Here, Sam shares their thoughts on being an ally.

  Published 31 October 2018 by Sam O’Neill

• Allies in Action: Tom Read

  Tom works for the Ministry of Justice. In this post, he shares some of his work as an LGBT ally.

  Published 31 October 2018 by Tom Read

• Allies in Action: Joanne Osborne

  Joanne works for the Department of Work and Pensions. In this post, Joanne shares some of her work as an LGBT ally.

  Published 1 November 2018 by Joanne Osborne

• Allies in Action: Paul Wilson

  Paul works for the Ministry of Defence. In this post, Paul shares his experiences as an LGBT+ ally.

  Published 1 November 2018 by Paul Wilson

• Allies in Action: Sara Daunton

  Sara works for the Ministry of Defence. In this post, Sara shares some insights being an ally in the RAF.

  Published 1 November 2018 by Sara Daunton

• Allies in Action: Ian Moore

  Ian works for HM Prison and Probation Service. Here, Ian shares his thoughts on being an LGBT+ ally.

  Published 1 November 2018 by Ian Moore

• Allies in Action: Matt Baugh

  Matt is a Director at the Department for Exiting the European Union, and an LGBT+ ally.

  Published 1 November 2018 by Matt Baugh

• Allies in Action: Naomi Diver

  Naomi works for the Environment Agency, and in this post, tells us about why she took part in Pride as an ally.

  Published 1 November 2018 by Naomi Diver