The Gambling Commission: building EDI into how we work
Almost a year ago, we launched the Government Communication Service (GCS) Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan. The plan had two clear goals: to build a diverse, inclusive GCS where everyone can reach their potential, and to ensure that the GCS understands and communicates effectively with every community it serves.
Today, the Gambling Commission communications team shares how they have implemented the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Action Plan within their team to enhance collaboration and communication strategies.
The Gambling Commission exists to licence, regulate, advise and provide guidance to the individuals and businesses that offer gambling in the UK. Our communications consists of 15 members, with skills across public affairs, internal comms, press and digital communications. We are an award-winning team, based in Birmingham and we are committed to taking an active role in promoting EDI by sharing our own stories and empowering others to do the same.
Last summer we launched our Diversity and Inclusion Strategy at the Commission. The Strategy aims to create meaningful change, so that our colleagues feel comfortable to bring their whole selves to work. As communicators we have a key role in the strategy by ensuring that our communications, both internal and external, are accessible and inclusive.
In our team we created a dedicated working group to look at what we do well in and what we could improve. We created a team charter which focuses on how we can promote diversity and inclusion through our roles, empower our leaders to do the same and make sure the communications we produce are accessible. As an organisation we have also introduced diverse interview panels as standard practice, which has received very positive feedback from candidates.
Our team charter has also resulted in various outputs to ensure that diversity and inclusion is front of mind when delivering our day-to-day roles. We have introduced a monthly slot at our team meetings which is dedicated to sharing information related to diversity and inclusion, considering what we have learnt in relation to working together and developing communications. We have also completed CIPR training on how to produce inclusive communications to ensure that we are following current best practice and connect with our audiences in an authentic way.
By embedding inclusion into our ways of working we support our team, organisation and any external or stakeholder communication.