First Bus launches new company-wide initiative to advance equality, diversity and inclusion plans

Credit: First Bus

First Bus has announced that it has launched its first Month of Inclusion in November 2022, in a bid to progress company-wide equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) plans and accelerate its journey towards a place where all employees feel welcome, can be their true selves and succeed.

The month-long initiative, which aims to celebrate differences between colleagues and build knowledge and awareness of EDI across the company, will include a range of educational workshops and resources for all levels of staff.

Throughout the month, First Bus will release a number of short, 60 – 90 second videos sharing the individual stories of some of its staff. In total, 15 colleagues have chosen to take part to help increase the visibility of diverse colleagues and promote an understanding of their experiences.

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Gareth Hind, Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion at First Bus, said: “The Month of Inclusion is the next step in our journey towards a truly inclusive, diverse, and progressive culture at First Bus. This year (2022) we’ve made storytelling a key focus, and through the release of our short video case studies, we hope staff across the business take the time to listen to their colleagues and understand their journey. With First Bus colleagues sharing their lived experiences, and offering advice and guidance to us all, we can build our own knowledge and awareness in EDI, and all learn how to be better allies.”

First Bus is also developing plans for a reverse mentoring programme entitled, ‘A Day in My Life’, and has created a ‘Celebrating Differences’ inclusion programme, a series of bite-sized learning modules designed specifically for senior leadership within the business. Furthermore, each member of the First Bus Executive team is responsible for sponsoring an inclusion network within the business, devoting their time and resources to championing a particular area of EDI.