Grŵp Llandrillo Menai achieves Leaders in Diversity status

Grŵp Llandrillo Menai has been successful in achieving the Leaders in Diversity award.

Awarded by the National Centre for Diversity, the much-coveted accreditation recognises the Grŵp’s commitment to encouraging equality, diversity and inclusion among staff and students at its colleges.

 Dafydd Evans, Chief Executive of Grŵp Llandrillo Menai, said:

“We are extremely proud to have been recognised as an inclusive workplace, and we take pride in ensuring that our colleagues feel valued and respected.

“The Leaders in Diversity award is great testament to the hard work that we all carry out here at Grŵp Llandrillo Menai.”

Grŵp Llandrillo Menai comprises Coleg Llandrillo, Coleg Menai, Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor and its work-based learning arm, Busnes@LlandrilloMenai.

Solat Chaudhry, Chief Executive at the National Centre for Diversity, said the Grŵp is one of only 80 organisations in the UK to hold the much sought-after Leaders in Diversity status.

He said: “Congratulations to all the teams and leaders at Grŵp Llandrillo Menai who contributed to the successful completion of Leaders in Diversity – they are leading lights. 

“The college clearly evidenced its processes and was able to win the hearts and minds of the teams and change behaviours. This captures the essence behind our accreditation and the college’s achievement is inspirational. 

“Grŵp Llandrillo Menai is one of only 80 organisations to be given the prestigious accreditation.”

The award recognises the strides made by the Grŵp in implementing the values of FREDIE (fairness, respect, equality, diversity, inclusion and engagement).

Mr Chaudhry said: “Working towards gaining the assessment over the past year involved a survey of the attitudes of all of the staff and managers and included some of its suppliers.

“We all know that FREDIE is not just about doing the right thing – it is now a compelling subject for students and college staff.

“Organisations that achieve this award recognise there is a compelling case to be made for valuing FREDIE in the workplace. Operating in a challenging environment marketplace means organisations like Grŵp Llandrillo Menai succeed by making the best of all their skills and talents, irrespective of their background.”

He added: “By engaging wholeheartedly with the Leaders in Diversity programme, they have demonstrated a real and tangible commitment to FREDIE and to continuous improvement in this area.

“We are confident that staff and students at Grŵp Llandrillo Menai will continue to work on improving and adapting and look forward to working with them in years to come.”

The report from National Centre for Diversity highlighted positive strides made by the Grŵp, including:

• Establishing an LGTBQ+ staff support group
• Holding a Black Leadership Induction event, which led to affiliation with the Black Leadership Group and the development of an Anti-racist 10-Point Action Plan
• Training of employees in Racism Awareness, Transgender Awareness, Supporting LGBT+ Learners, and Menopause Awareness
• The development of a Staff Wellbeing Hub and steering group
• Physical adaptations to make the college accessible to all, including accessible toilets, a high dependency toilet and automated entrance doors.
• Disability Confident Employer status, with findings from a disability focus group presented to the Grŵp’s Equality Panel
• Progress towards achieving Autism Aware Organisation status

The report also said the Grŵp is expected to again appear in The National Centre for Diversity’s annual list of the top 100 most inclusive employers, which will be announced later this year.

Grŵp Llandrillo Menai was established in 2012 as a result of mergers between Coleg Llandrillo, Coleg Menai and Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor. It employs 2,000 staff and delivers courses to around 21,000 students, including more than 1,500 higher education students, across Anglesey, Conwy, Denbighshire and Gwynedd.