Equality and Inclusion in our Work

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion is woven throughout all that we do at St Anne’s and is a core part of how we work together for our employees and the people we support every day.
Staff
Our workforce is as diverse and talented as the people we support. It is our policy to treat everybody fairly and we don’t discriminate on the basis of ethnicity, gender, disability, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, age, domestic circumstances, working pattern, trade union activity, mental health, HIV status, religion, nationality or class.
We all have a part to play in creating an inclusive environment in which everybody can be themselves and succeed without fear or harassment. We have a Zero Tolerance approach to bullying, harassment and discrimination and robust procedures to prevent these issues from occurring in the first place.
We want people from underrepresented groups such as disabled, Black and Minority Ethnic, Lesbian, Gay, Bi and Trans communities to succeed at St Anne’s and our policies and procedures ensure that this can happen. Our Diversity Action Group is a dedicated equality forum for staff to check and challenge all that we do in this area and ensures that our voices are heard.
Clients
Everybody is welcome and encouraged to be themselves when accessing our services. We support and care for people from all walks of life and our staff go the extra mile to find out who you are and what is important to you as an individual.
You can find our Equality and Inclusion Policy, which applies to everybody at St Anne’s here
Diversity and Inclusion Milestones at St Anne’s
2015
- Became a Stonewall Diversity Champion
- Supported the ‘Time to Change’ campaign to end mental health disability discrimination
2016
- Appointed a full time Equality and Diversity Officer
- Participated in training for working with the Gypsy and Traveller communities
- Enhanced our Equality and Diversity Policy
- Founded an LGBT employee network group
- Published our internal guide for supporting trans and non binary employees
- Re-trained staff on Gender Identity and LGBT awareness
2017
- Refreshed and extended the training we provide on equality, diversity and inclusion
- Launched a new Equality and Inclusion Strategy and Diversity Calendar for every St Anne’s service
- Changed our Dress Code Policy to be more inclusive
- New “Family Friendly” Policies on Maternity, Paternity, Adoption and Surrogacy for our Staff
- Joined Leeds Pride in the annual parade for the first time
2018
- Celebrated our first Black History Month Party with Clients
- Launched our Equality in Procurement guidance for suppliers
- Joined the Mindful Employer Network in Leeds
- Supported National Testing Week and World AIDS Day
- Joined the DWP’s Disability Confidant programme
2019
- Trained a network of qualified Mental Health First Aiders to assist staff

Eleanor is our Equality, Diversity and Client Involvement Officer
Do you have a question or need to get in touch with anything related to equality, diversity or inclusion? You can contact me by email here