'As an openly gay man, I need to feel that any organisation I work for is inclusive and that I will be actively supported to be open and transparent in the workplace, with demonstrable and visible support provided through the organisation. My lived experience in a number of other organisations is varied, and at its worst, there has been ambivalence and even a low level of hostility towards me or my community and the need for us to be visible. This has been despite public pledges and statements.
While doing some research prior to my application for the post at London Met, I was struck by how clear London Met's commitment was towards equality and diversity and saw evidence of staff and students talking openly about their sexual orientation on the website. I was also impressed with the job application process, whereby I needed to articulate my own experience of proactively supporting equality and diversity in my life, whether within the workplace or not, and I felt emboldened to share work I undertook with other allies when I was a student in the late '80s/early '90s as part of the statement. I would not have openly shared such information with other employers pre-employment, but my sense was that this would not create a barrier but instead would be an asset to the organisation. This feeling has strengthened since I joined London Met. Other HE providers could learn a lot from how we operate.'
