When I was growing up, I was lucky enough to have been raised around a very diverse group of friends. My Mum was into musical theatre where she was surrounded by people from all walks of life and I was introduced to her queer friends at a young age. Growing up in Fife as a young lesbian there wasn’t a lot to do for the gay/queer community and I quite often fell victim to people’s small mindedness and bullying. When I turned 19 I moved to Edinburgh and this is where I learned that it’s absolutely okay to be me and grew into the person I am today.

I’ve enjoyed a very squiggly career so far and have loved the variety of roles I’ve had – gaining loads of different experiences. I started out working on the phones in business development, I trained to be a bar manager and worked in security before completing a HNC and HND in technical theatre and production arts – qualifications that enabled me to work in lighting and stage management in Edinburgh theatres and took me around the world on cruise ships.

When I returned from my time on the seas, I embarked on a new career working for Edinburgh Trams as a ticket inspector before an unfortunate accident meant I needed to move into the engineering department – something I really enjoyed until one day I felt the need for a role that had more meaningful interactions with people again.

The reason I’m telling you about my varied career is because throughout it, I really felt that I was accepted for my sexuality, however I did question how that might change when I accepted a customer facing role at Phoenix Group – a large corporate business. Friends of mine who had worked in similar office environments hadn’t felt comfortable to be their full self at work but upon arrival, those concerns quickly disappeared. On my first day I met Lee – he straight away made me feel at ease and since that moment I’ve felt totally accepted for who I am. I love being able to bring my whole self to work every day, it has a real impact on how I do my job.

My work with the Pride Network

After a year or so in role I was asked whether I wanted to be part of a photography exhibition called ‘Corporate Queer’ – a series that celebrated people in the LGBTQ+ community working in financial services. During this event I was approached by the Head of DEI, Michaela who asked whether I would like to become co-chair of the colleague network group ‘Pride’. I jumped at the chance because I knew that in this role, working with a network of like-minded people we could help the business become even more inclusive through organising events and being a sounding board for new policies that affect our community.

It's been a wonderful experience so far working with the other co-chair’s Luca and Rikita. Since being in post, I think I’m most proud of helping the network get back out into the business by being more visible – it’s being talked about so much more now. We’ve done this by setting up internal channels for communications where we regularly share blogs and news articles on topics such as transphobia and World Aids Day. We’ve seen a huge increase in interaction and engagement on these pages and are working hard on creating relevant and engaging content for our community and fostering a safe space for colleagues and allies alike to find out more.

To enable me to be part of the team that drives the Pride colleague network forward, I have to feel comfortable in my environment and I really do. It’s lovely being able to be myself and not worried about being judged or suffer any prejudice – all colleagues in the department I work in show their support and get fully involved decorating the office during Pride month. The flags on my desk stay all year round though!

I really do feel that Phoenix Group are a diverse employer and I can see that in how inclusive it is for people of differing backgrounds and beliefs and I look forward to a bright and rewarding future here.

How we support our LGBTQ+ colleagues

We aim to provide opportunities that allow LGBTQ+ colleagues to be seen, heard and valued, and for their voices to be amplified. We want to build a safe space for LGBTQ+ colleagues and allies that raises visibility and understanding of the LGBTQ+ community throughout the business - providing opportunities to educate, advocate, and share their experiences.

As well as our Pride colleague network, we have we have introduced new, and refreshed old, policies to support our colleagues at Phoenix including:

• Dignity at Work policy which sets out our commitment to diversity and inclusion, and prohibits discrimination
• Human Rights Policy
• Assisted Fertility BUPA cover for all colleagues
• Coming Soon – A new Trans Inclusion Policy which will provide support to transgender and non-binary colleagues and in conjunction with this we have partnered with Global Butterflies to provide training to colleagues across the business.