GC EmbRace Network
This network was created to support ethnic communities' colleagues within our organisation, ensuring the voices of colleagues from diverse ethnic communities are heard at all levels of the organisation.
This network is open to all as members, allies and/or friends regardless of ethnicity. Having this wealth of knowledge and unique experiences within the network ensures it supports our business with maintaining our values in terms of racial equity within the organisation.
All ethnic community groups are encouraged to get involved with the embRace network. It has subgroups for events and solutions; and having many ethnic communities feed into this group will ensure it's events and solutions are as diverse and representative as possible.
One of the main objectives of the network is supporting the business with ethnic community colleague retention and progression – to ensure all ethnic communities are represented at all levels within the organisation. The network was instrumental in the creation of the 'Dignity at Work Policy' following feedback from members and allies.
In addition to this, GC recently committed to transforming the language used when referring to ethnic communities – allowing network members to vote and discuss alternative terms, demonstrated we needed a more inclusive and representing term as opposed to ‘BAME’.
From celebratory events, commemorative months, keynote speakers, and local sponsorship opportunities it aim to bring various ethnic communities' culture and experiences to all colleagues and the customers we serve.
Upcoming Campaign activity
More information coming soon
Our South Asian Heritage Month celebrations
We’ve just completed a month of events, activities and resources to mark this year’s South Asian Heritage Month with our colleagues,
We've celebrated and recognised the rich and diverse cultures, histories, and contributions of from South Asia – for the benefit of our colleagues and the communities and business we serve. The theme this year was 'Free to be Me'.
it's been a great opportunity to educate, raise awareness, and promote understanding and appreciation of South Asian cultures with colleagues. Our EmbRace EDI Network planned a variety of activities to showcase the music, dance, food, and traditions of South Asian communities.
Hear from the EmbRace network and take a look back at what we've achieved over the past month...
About this year's activities, Samira Jama, Triage Co-ordinator in GC Employment, and Co-Chair of the Embrace EDI Network, told us:
"It was incredibly inspiring to witness people from all walks of life coming together, sharing the creativity we infuse into recipes, dishes, inspiring pieces, and stories. This has, in turn, sparked new ideas and inspiration within our workplace.
"Through these activities, we've learned from one another, embraced diverse perspectives, and deepened our cultural awareness. It never ceases to amaze me how we all come together with open arms, fostering inclusion, showing respect for individual identities and cultures, and upholding our shared commitment and values across GC.
It's been truly uplifting and a source of immense pride to see everyone unite in celebration this month.”
Bring a Dish to Work Day
Our Salford office organised a 'Bring a Dish to Work Day'. It was wonderful to see the Restart Salford manager not only organising the event, but also inviting two other teams to participate. As you can imagine, there was plenty of food to go around!
The event beautifully highlighted how food serves as a universal way to share culture and tradition, reminding us of our shared commonalities.
The Eccles GC Employment office put a unique twist on our usual festivities. Colleague, Mark Turner, Employment Advisor, took the lead and catered for the entire office, meaning no one had to bring individual dishes. Mark, known for his amazing pies, suggested we have a pie day — and we couldn’t resist!
At Eccles, the team thrive by supporting each other's strengths and ideas, and this event was no exception. Sharing these delicious pies together brought plenty of laughter, bonding, and special memories.
Here are some photos from the Trafford Restart team, who also took part in 'Bring a Dish to Work Day' and told us that they loved it, and it was such a good way to celebrate.
As inspiration for 'Bring a Dish to Work Day', colleagues provided their inspiration for recipes:
Tasneem Adam, Employment Advisor, made Puris...
A colleague also provided an easy recipe for a mid-week, meat-free dinner, Aloo Mattar (peas and potatoes), and encouraged others to have a go at creating it during South Asian Heritage Month...
As part of the ongoing 'GC Marketing MasterChef' - Akaal Singh, Marketing Exec on the Good Employment Charter cooked-up Paneer Matar.
Read the reviews that he received from the colleague judges...
"As a recent resident of the UK, I've been pleasantly surprised by the incredible quality of Indian cuisine available here. The dish combines sweet green peas and rich, savoury paneer marinated and cooked in aromatic spices, creating a unique and delightful blend of flavours. A creamy tomato-based sauce adds a tangy and sweet taste for finishing."
"Now, this looks like the type of hearty meal that you want to come home to after a long day at work! I can just imagine the aromas around the home as this is cooking. There's a good combination of ingredients and it looks like a lot of care and attention has gone into the preparation. I'm always looking for new meat free meal options so will be reaching out to Akaal for the recipe.
Final Verdict: 8 /10
Total Score: 14.5
Check out Akaal's recipe here.
Top Tip from our Small Changes Big Impact campaign...
Food waste is a significant issue in the context of cooking, often arising from over-purchasing, improper storage, and lack of meal planning.
When ingredients are not used before they spoil, they most often end up in the bin, contributing to environmental problems and you being out of pocket.
To combat this, you can make simple changes like creating detailed shopping lists, understanding proper storage techniques to extend the shelf life of ingredients.
Where you to end up with some food waste, as most of us do at some point in the week, you can use your leftovers creatively, and they can contribute to recipes like the ones above — especially leftover veg, which can be a hearty alternative to meat in a recipe.
Showcasing colleague stories from South-Asian heritage backgrounds
During South Asian Heritage Month, we showcased colleague stories from South-Asian heritage backgrounds.
We spoke to Naveed Ahmed, Service Manager on the Refugee Employability Programme (REP) in our Employment service. He shared that a career journey doesn’t have to follow a straight line to find an employer and a role that’s perfect for you.
Read the full article from Naveed here.
We also spoke to Nadir Sultan, Social Value Specialist from our GM Business Growth Hub, who shares his career journey, and explains his GC role and the best things about his heritage.
Read the full article from Nadir here.
Former colleague shared her inspiring journey to India
Olivia Redfern, formerly Internal Recruitment team leader at GC, recently moved on to pastures new in London. Before she left, to help us celebrate South Asian Heritage Month, she kindly shared her inspiring journey to India which she undertook last year as part of a sabbatical.
You can read Olivia's blog here.
Bolly-fusion session
On Wednesday 24th July, we held a hybrid Bolly-fusion event. Bollywood fusion dance is a contemporary dance style that combines elements of Bollywood with Western and other Indian dance forms. It emphasises creative choreography, storytelling, and a fusion of diverse dance techniques.
There was no prior dance experience required – as with our previous Bollywood dance events, you just needed to bring along your enthusiasm!
Once gain, the session was hosted by our GC colleague Anushka Parekh, who is a Bollywood dancer and teacher, who has a love for Bollywood dancing.
You can watch the recording of the session here or by clicking on the image below.
Tips for pronouncing your colleagues names correctly
To mark the month, and to help educate and inform colleagues, EmbRace network Member, Joyce Due - Skills Development Tutor, pulled together some useful information to help colleagues pronounce names. Pronouncing your colleagues' names is important for feelings of inclusion because it demonstrates respect for individuals' identities and cultures and helps us to maintain and promote Dignity at Work at GC. Find out more here.
Refugee Week
It was Refugee Week (17th June-23rd June), the world’s largest arts & culture festival celebrating the contributions, creativity and resilience of refugees and people seeking sanctuary. Established in 1998 in the UK, this annual festival aligns with World Refugee Day, celebrated globally on 20th June. The theme this year is ‘Our Home’: from the places we gather to share meals to our collective home, planet earth: everyone is invited to celebrate what ‘Our Home’ means to them.
To mark and celebrate Refugee Week, our EmbRace EDI Network hosted a colleague virtual event on Wednesday 19th June. This was part of the network’s ongoing commitment to bring various ethnic communities' culture and experiences to our colleagues.
The event with colleague, Mohammed Adeel, Employment Advisor - Refugee Employability Programme (REP), Employment Advisor, Refugee Employability Programme (REP), who shared their experience of arriving to the UK as a refugee.
Their guest speaker Erinma Bell, who has extensive experience supporting migrant families and connecting communities, delivered a presentation on the imminent needs of refugees on arrival, trauma informed practice and dynamic ways to support refugees into education, employment and entrepreneurship. Learn more about Erinma here.
Throughout the session, they feature colleague and client stories to reflect the diversity of experiences within the refugee community, with a message from EmbRace SMT Sponsor, Michelle Leeson.
Click here or on the image below to watch the recording of the event.
International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery
We marked International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery - Monday 25th March, and reflected on our organisation's policies to help minimise the risk of modern slavery in our supply chain.
Race Equality Week is from 5th - 11th February
The theme for this year is #ListenActChange.
At the EmbRace Network's live webinar on Tuesday 6th February 2023 at 11am, they explored GC's commitment to racial equity, and the actions we'll be taking to support the inclusion, progression and retention of colleagues from diverse ethnic communities and what we can do as, managers, colleagues and allies.
You can access the slides from the event here.
You can let us have your feedback from the event by competing this form.
The EmbRace Network closed the event with by unveiling of their updated 'Racial Equity Framework' and a brief look at their planned events for 2024/2025 – including 'Refugee Week', 'South Asian Heritage Month', International, 'Day for Human Solidarity', 'Holdomor' and many many more.
Safety at Night-time event
On Tuesday 28th November we held a a virtual 'Safety at Night-time event', with guest speaker, Candida Turner - Community Safety Policy Specialist at Manchester City Council.
The purpose of the session is to to equip our colleagues with the knowledge and resources to stay safe on the streets at night – and to educate us all on what bystanders can do to help diffuse situations.
The event is a collaboration between three of our EDI Networks: Women's Network, EmbRace and LGBTQ+
National Holodomor Awareness Week
'National Holodomor Awareness Week' is w/c 20th November and this year commemorates the 90th anniversary of the Holodomor.
The Holodomor, also known as the Great Ukrainian Famine, was a man-made famine in Soviet Ukraine from 1932 to 1933 that killed 7 millions of Ukrainians.
Mariana Mazur - key worker on our United for Ukraine initiative - and formerly from Ukraine told us more.
We celebrated South Asian History Month
Catch up on the captivating content and activity that took place over the past month and read all about how we commemorated, marked and celebrated South Asian cultures, histories, and communities.
More information
To find out more about the Embrace Network, or to join as a member, email embracenetwork@growthco.uk