20 years of making the Civil Service better for LGBT+ people

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the founding of the two cross-government LGBT+ networks: the Civil Service LGBT+ Network (formerly, the Civil Service Rainbow Alliance) and a:gender. What started as a small band of people keen to engage socially and seek personal support has now expanded into a membership of thousands, underpinned and led by dozens of civil servants who give up their time and skills to make the Civil Service better.

For 20 years, these two networks have worked to make the Civil Service a diverse, inclusive and more equal place to work for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex people. We’ve helped raise awareness of the barriers LGBT+ civil servants face at work. We’ve represented the authentic voices of LGBT+ staff to ensure our employers meet our needs. We’ve supported those who are coming out or transitioning to be their authentic selves. We’ve created new career and development opportunities. And we’ve created a community of people like us, for us.

This summer, we’re marking our ‘birthday’ with a series of activities – some looking back, some looking forward, and some just for fun.

Find out more

You can find all of the events, and everything we publish over the next few of months, on our new 20th anniversary topic page.

Get involved

We’re also encouraging everyone to get involved to help us create the unofficial history of LGBT+ inclusion in the Civil Service. A time capsule, of sorts.

Photos of old pride events. Memories of socials and networking events. The poster you saw in your office that made you think differently.

Whatever you remember most vividly, write it down or send it to us and we’ll be adding it to a new section of our website in the coming months. Find out more in our recent blog post.