GC Parents & Carers Network
Creating a positive and supportive environment for our colleagues who are parents and/or carers is important to us at the GC and although not a defined protected characteristic, we recognise the impact that caring responsibilities can have on colleagues’ lives and we also recognise that every colleague brings something unique to their role and we’re committed to supporting them throughout their time and career with GC.
Our colleagues’ time with GC will be intertwined with their caring responsibilities and we want to enable colleagues to have a work/life balance. Caring responsibilities can present high-stress and emergency situations and colleagues can also become carers at very short notice. Caring responsibilities, whether as a parent, carer or both can often present challenges, uncertainty and generate questions for colleagues. Our Parents & Carers in our workforce helps us have a balanced approach to understanding the impact of caring and how we can offer a flexible and balanced culture to our colleagues.
Our colleagues need to know we’re here for them as Parents & Carers at GC, especially when caring becomes more challenging:
- SCHOOL TRANSITIONS – supporting parents with children starting primary and secondary school, networking with other colleagues, sharing advice, creating support networks.
- SUPPORTING CHILDREN WITH additional NEEDS – signposting to resources, events co-hosted with other networks, creating support networks, signposting to financial support and partner organisations.
- RETURNING FROM PARENTAL LEAVE – offering a buddy for those retuning from parental leave, creating support networks, offering advice on childcare and financial support.
- BECOMING A CARER – managing work around caring, relationship highs and lows, mental health problems, physical health concerns and illness, death and bereavement, money worries, networking with other colleagues, sharing advice, creating support networks.
- FLEXIBLE WORKING REQUESTS – supporting colleagues with advice and guidance and a place to be heard.
Our goal is to provide our people managers with the tools and the confidence to support their teams with the right support and guidance around caring responsibilities.
Upcoming Campaign activity
Join the 'Choose Your Own Journey' bitesize event during National Inclusion Week
As part of our National Inclusion Week activities during 23rd - 29th September, our Women, Parents & Carers and Age EDI networks will host this event to discuss the challenges that can impact career progression. This will be a moderated, virtual panel event.
It’s open to all colleagues to attend - and there'll be something that everyone can take away from it. Regardless of our roles, personal commitments or lifestyle choices, we will all have struggled with something at work at one time or another - and will likely encounter some challenges in the future, which could potentially impact our confidence, or even derail our career plans.
This session is about how you can overcome these challenges – be better prepared and have a level of comfort and a safe place, no matter what comes your way down the line.
The panel discussion, moderated by Virginie Fayolle – Organisational Development Lead and chair of our Womens Network, will last around 45 minutes, and include Angelina Harrop, Business Advisor – GMBGH, Ali Tanvir, Underwriter – GC Business Finance and Rachel Hardy, Personal Assistant – Chief Execs Office.
This’ll be followed by an open Q&A session, where you can share your questions and thoughts with the panel and other attendees.
Attend this event to:
- Get better prepared for the curve-balls and challenges which could potentially knock you off course
- Hear some colleagues’ real-life stories and tips to help become more robust at work
- Hear about approaches to balance caring responsibilities and the impacts at work
- Understand how to combat the pressure and expectation of fitting in with an established team culture
Recent Campaign activity
Back to School: Our Parents & Carers EDI Network help with your planning for September
We're now in the summer holidays, and although September might seem a while away yet, there are some things that you can do now that can make starting or returning to school that bit easier. Here are some ideas from our Parents & Carers EDI Network.
We've renewed our Working Families membership
Working Families is the UK’s work-life balance charity. Their mission is to remove the barriers that people with caring responsibilities face in the workplace. They provide the tools and benchmarking to influence policy and advise employers on best practice.
We originally signed-up with Working Families in 2021, and GC has now renewed its membership for a further 12 months.
Find out more here.
This Carer’s Week we held a Q&A with carer colleague, Suzanne
To mark Carers Week (10th - 16th June) and its theme of ‘Putting Carers on the Map’, we met with GC colleague, Suzanne Grange, Regional Account Manager, Sales & Recruitment in our GC Employment team. Suzanne has caring responsibilities for her husband’s 92-year-old grandmother, Dorothy (Gran), who raised her husband and is like a mother to him. Gran has advanced dementia and now lives with Suzanne and her husband. Dorothy lives in their front room, and her condition now requires round-the-clock care as she’s unable to support herself. You can read Suzanne's story here.
EDI Network event with the Carers Trust
Creating a positive and supportive environment for our colleagues who are parents and/or carers is important to us at GC. Although not a defined protected characteristic, we recognise the impact that caring responsibilities can have on colleagues’ lives. We also recognise that every colleague brings something unique to their role and we’re committed to supporting them throughout their time and career with GC.
Created in 2021, the Parents & Carers EDI Network supports members and wider GC colleagues to cope with caring responsibilities and the effect of trying to balance them with work and the impact they can have on our colleagues’ lives.
We know that a huge proportion of our colleagues are parents and the numbers of those who care for a family member, friend or disabled child are growing all the time. We have an ageing workforce and it’s recognised that 30% of women and 20% of men over 50 will be caring for someone. Without our colleagues with caring responsibilities, our organisation couldn’t function. Everyone has a valuable experience to share and must feel supported, which is why the Parents & Carers Network exists.
In advance of Carers Week ( 10th – 16th June), our Parents & Carers EDI Network held a virtual event with representatives from the Carers Trust to recognise, celebrate and support our caring colleagues – and bring to life the theme of this year’s Carers Week: 'Putting Carers on the Map'.
The session covered:
- An introduction from the Parents & Carers network and find out more about how they can support colleagues with caring responsibilities
- Learn about the many challenges unpaid carers can face in the workplace
- Understand how people managers and colleagues can recognise and support caring colleagues
- Hear from a carer about the challenges of caring and working
'Babyloss Awareness Week': 9th - 15th October 2023
Baby Loss Awareness Week is a special time for us to come together in remembrance of all the much-loved babies who died too soon, while raising awareness of the thousands of families affected by loss each year.
1 in 4 people in the UK experience pregnancy or baby loss. However, stigma and silence can often mean families feel isolated in their grief. The charity, Tommy’s, offer support for those who have experienced Baby Loss. You can find out more here and you can also contact our Employee Assistance Programme.
National Adoption Week: 16th - 22nd October 2023
The National Adoption Week campaign aims to find homes for those children who so desperately need them.
Through the course of the week, supported by the Department of Education, organisations working for the adoption of children bust adoption-related myths. Using real life stories, it highlights the qualities and attributes that make a great adopter and the joys and challenges they face.
In 2022, our GC colleague Russell wrote a blog sharing his experience of adoption.
More information
To join or speak to the Parents and Carers network, please email ParentandCarerNetwork@growthco.uk.