Allies in Action: David Neale
This week, we’re celebrating the allies making the Civil Service a great place to work for LGBT+ people. David works in the Ministry of Defence. In this post, David shares why he thinks being an ally is important.
What’s your job role and where do you work?
I am the Provost Marshal (Army) and Commander of 1st Military Police Bde.
How long have you been an ally?
Officially for about a year, but I consider I have been an ally all my life. I have been particularly active in promoting LGBT+ matters across the Royal Military Police since 2007 when I attended the first Army LGBT Forum, the year before uniform was first worn at PRIDE.
Why do you think it’s important to be an ally, and to have allies within an office?
It’s more important than just being in the office. It is really important that senior leaders are identifiable as allies: in the office, on exercise or on operations. Through active promotion across our social media outlets, the setting of aggressive targets for my commanders and a ‘constant conversation’ of diversity matters across the regular, reserve and retired communities this is something that I try to build into the muscle memory of the organisation. I am hugely lucky that we have no problem recruiting talent into the Royal Military Police but we want to continue bringing in the best, removing barriers and making sure that the many external agencies that we work alongside recognise us as a forward-thinking, employer of choice which values diversity and maximise talent.
Civil Service Allies Week is a chance to highlight the important role of LGBT+ allies in the Civil Service.
Find out more about Allies Week