Food chain Greggs has been awarded the National Equality Standard (NES) in recognition of its efforts to improve diversity and inclusion across the business.
To achieve certification, an organisation is assessed against criteria and best practice standards, and must meet a minimum of 25 out of 35 competencies.
According to Greggs, which employs 25,000 people, receiving NES accreditation was a key part of its commitment to embracing diversity, which is one of its 10 pledges to “help make the world a better place by 2025.” It has also committed to enhancing diversity and inclusion across the business to ensure its staff reflect the communities it serves.
The assessment highlighted that Greggs established a diversity and inclusion steering group comprised of individuals from different areas of the business, developed and enhanced diversity and inclusion training for all levels, and commissioned third party research into the barriers faced by potential applicants from ethnic minorities.
It also reviewed its policies to ensure they were inclusive, introduced workplace policies around the menopause and transitioning, with the latter reviewed with its LGBTQ+ colleague network, joined the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower Scheme and provided training on non-visible disabilities, and signed up to the British Retail Consortium’s Better Job Diversity and Inclusion Charter, the Business in the Community Race at Work Charter, and the Valuable 500, a global business collective that works on disability inclusion.
Roisin Currie, chief executive officer of Greggs, said: “I am extremely proud of our collective efforts from colleagues across the whole business to achieve this fantastic recognition. However, the work does not stop here, while the accreditation is a significant milestone for us we need to keep this momentum and continue to work hard together to embrace diversity and inclusion across all areas of our business.”
Simon Feeke, lead NES assessor, added: “We were particularly impressed by their strong culture of learning and development, proactive approach to accessibility focus and the newly formed colleague network groups.”