Voice actor and founder of BRAVA (Bristol Academy of Voice Acting) Melissa Thom, has become a full voting member of BAFTA.

Melissa will now have a say in the winners of the Academy’s annual BAFTA Games Awards, which are presented annually to recognise, honour and reward outstanding creative achievement in games. The Awards are voted by an expert membership of over 1200 experienced professionals and are watched by millions online.

Melissa and BRAVA’s team of master coaches have trained hundreds of people in Bristol and beyond to become professional voice actors, with many already working in the gaming industry.

BRAVA has connections with games production companies and bodies across the UK and internationally. Melissa and her team work to support those coming up in the profession, liaising with industry stalwarts and championing diversity. Melissa’s gaming work as a voice actor includes roles in ZeniMax’s The Elder Scrolls (Necrom and Gold Road) and Grand Theft Auto V.

Melissa is British, with Indian-African heritage, and feels strongly about the need for diversity in the gaming sector. Melissa said:

“The online games industry is estimated to be worth almost $28 billion worldwide, dwarfing the film and music industries. It’s thriving and has a powerful influence. As the popularity of gaming continues on its upwards march, it’s critical that people from all backgrounds see themselves represented in games.

I am thrilled to be recognised by the Academy for all the work we do behind the scenes to support and guide voice actors and improve working conditions and diversity within gaming. I’m also committed to supporting the gaming community in the South West, which is a hot bed of creative talent.”

Melissa invites any actors in the South West with significant gaming experience to get in touch with her if they need support or advice.

                                                          -ENDS-

About BRAVA

Founded by experienced voice actor and communications consultant, Melissa Thom, BRAVA brings together acting and voice experts from the UK & US to deliver best in class training and advice about the industry.

At BRAVA, all learning is done online, meaning students can learn at their own pace, wherever they are. Training is offered as personalised 1-1’s or group sessions and covers a wide range of topics, including Getting Started in VO, Corporate, Commercial and Narration, Characters, Audiobooks, Performance Techniques, Home Studio, Marketing, Vocal Health, VO & Shakespeare, Voice, Presence, Impact, Presentation Skills and more.

Find out more at www.brava.uk.com

Melissa Thom’s IMDB: www.imdb.com/name/nm10724768/

The government has started a review of the cirruculum to ensure creative subjects are part of education, Lisa Nandy said.

Speaking at the Labour Party Conference in Liverpool, the culture secretary criticised the previous Conservative administration for not supporting arts and culture, and said the new government will “reignite the imagination of the next generation because a complete education is a creative education”.

With education secretary Bridget Phillipson, she said she has launched “a review of the curriculum to put arts, sports and music back at the heart of our schools and communities where it belongs”.

The government will also, Nandy said, launch a review of Arts Council England to “ensure arts for everyone, everywhere because we will never accept that culture is just for the privileged few, to be hoarded in a few corners of the country, and we will never accept there is a trade off between excellence and access”.

Other focuses outlined by the culture secretary included “making the TV industry far more representative of the country”, working with mayors and councils to grow creative sectors such as tourism, film, and gaming, and shortly launching the BBC charter review “to ensure the BBC survives and thrives well into the latter half of this century”.

In his conference speech, Keir Starmer also referenced creativity, saying:

“Everyone deserves the chance to be touched by art. Everyone deserves access to moments that light up their lives.

“And every child deserves the chance to study the creative subjects that widen their horizons, provide skills employers do value, and prepares them for the future, the jobs and the world that they will inherit.”

The creative industries were also discussed in other parts of the conference, including in a pavilion run by Creative UK.

One panel focused on improving working class access to the creative industries, following research released earlier this year which found that in film, TV, video, radio and photography just 8.4% of people identify as being from a working-class background.

On the panel was Line of Duty actress Vicky McClure who said:

“If it wasn’t for the likes of Jed Mercurio [Line of Duty writer] and Shane Meadows [This Is England writer], working class lads from Birmingham and Uttoxeter, I wouldn’t be here.”

The panel discussed the need for funding to be targeted at underrepresented groups wanting to enter the creative industries. Watch a recording of the event here.

Bristol Creative Industries Talent Programme

A key focus at Bristol Creative Industries is boosting workforce diversity in creative businesses and helping to grow the talent pipeline for our members.

As well as our groundbreaking Bristol Creative Industries Internship Programme with social enterprise Babbasa and Bristol-based agencies, we provide opportunities for members and have committed to an annual programme of round tables with key post 16 education providers in the region including colleges, academies and universities.

Our aim is to promote creative careers to staff and career advisers, drive applications to our internship programme and explore how we can promote the creative industries to students already studying.

By joining the Bristol Creative Industries Talent Programme as a partner, you’ll help to fund all of our activities that support  underrepresented groups entering the creative industries. Your support is vital to ensure we have a healthy and diverse talent pipeline.

For more details, contact Alli Nicholas, BCI membership and operations manager, at [email protected], or Lis Anderson, BCI co-chair, at [email protected]  

An estimated 20,000 women left the tech industry in the first half of 2023. With caring responsibilities being one of the leading reasons why women leave, non-profit initiative HeyFlow and reproductive health inclusion experts HeyFlow “The Reality of Mums in Tech”: a state-of-the-nation research project to gain a deeper understanding of the lived experiences of working mothers in UK Tech.

The initial findings of the report uncover alarming statistics about the lack of support for working mothers in the tech industry and urge immediate action to prevent further losses. These losses can be attributed to poor communication during maternity leave, lack of training for managers, and structural barriers within organizations that hinder working mothers from advancing.

Sophie Creese, Founder of MotherBoard commented on the results:

“Our report’s initial findings highlight that while efforts to retain women in tech are improving, the progress is not sufficient to see gender gaps close.

If we want to see a breakthrough for gender balance within tech and ensure more women are in senior positions, organisations must pick apart and scrutinise how they can do better in supporting mothers.”

This report was powered by HeyFlow, the female reproductive health inclusion business that helps remove the disadvantage many women face at work. Their co-founder Nick Dean further addresses that the report is just one aspect that may be causing barriers for women in tech:

“Some of our findings are alarming, yet not surprising. Lack of parental inclusion is a known barrier to many women’s progression within the tech industry and it is one of the main reasons why we see capable women being forced to exit the workforce. Alongside our wider research across all industries, we hope this report will inspire change and address not only the impact of motherhood and pregnancy, but also other impacting factors such as menopause and menstrual health.”

The report is part of an ongoing study, and MotherBoard invites more mothers working in UK tech to share their experiences. These contributions will help inform future initiatives, including the City of London’s ‘Women Pivoting to Digital Taskforce,’ where MotherBoard’s founder, Sophie Creese, is a subject matter expert.

You can download the report over on MotherBoard’s website: https://motherboardmovement.co.uk/community/reality-of-mums-in-tech-results

The survey remains open here: https://forms.office.com/e/r3kJ007tTb

Key Findings from the report

Of Mums in Tech in the UK:

 

About MotherBoard

50% of women leave the tech industry before age 35. Let’s change that.

MotherBoard is a Business Charter, Community, and Event Series driving tangible change for mums working in the tech industry. We are on a mission to transform the industry to be more inclusive of women & mothers by tackling stigmas and supporting employers who want to create real change.  Powered by ADLIB.

About HeyFlow

Ending disadvantage for women in the workplace.

Through insight, learning and action for female* reproductive health inclusion in the workplace, HeyFlow empowers businesses to create change and build a truly inclusive company and break the taboo from menstruation to menopause.

Female reproductive health at work platform to expand as pre-seed funding sought. 

10.09.24: HeyFlow, the female reproductive health inclusion business, which aims to end disadvantage for women in the workplace, has become the founding investment client for Aer Venture Studios, the new SaaS impact-driven venture arm from Aer Studios. The £235,000 investment will support the build and architecture of HeyFlow’s tech platform and employee insight product, enabling it to reach even more enterprise clients. 

A majority-female start-up, HeyFlow aims to create meaningful change for women at work globally, at a time when 31% of women experience severe reproductive health symptoms every year: 85% of women face at least four reproductive health conditions and mothers see a 60% drop in earnings following their first child, compared to fathers. HeyFlow transforms organisations through employee experience insight that reshapes workplace behaviour and fuels meaningful change for women’s inclusion, resulting in organisations retaining talent, promoting talent, boosting profitability, and creating an equitable future.   

Aer Venture Studios has been launched by creative technology firm, Aer Studios, to help early-stage SaaS tech businesses with funding and creative tech expertise to accelerate their time to market. It aims to create meaningful digital experiences that have an impact on people and planet. It’s set up to deliver the financial backing that early stage ventures need, tech expertise required to develop products to a launch-ready stage and partnerships required for future investment rounds. HeyFlow marks its first investment client. 

Following its launch in 2023, HeyFlow has worked with progressive companies including Hitachi Vantara, BIMA and Digitas UK, providing insight into their female employee experiences, management’s ability to support at all levels, informing leadership gender inclusion strategies and empowering them to create change. The funding will enable the development of its technology platform to deliver on a national and global basis, as well as providing progress measurement and on-demand industry benchmarking.      

HeyFlow is now actively seeking an additional pre-seed investment of £250,000, to allow the firm to take the employee experience and diagnostics platform to market. A future roadmap introduces Artificial Intelligence (AI) to provide on-demand learning solutions and delivering against mandated gender pay and ESG reporting, globally.   

“We’re honoured to secure Aer Venture Studios’ investment and trust in HeyFlow’s vision. Its backing is a testament to our early success and powerful validation of our mission to champion reproductive health inclusion and close workplace gender gaps. At a time where only a small percentage of investment goes to female-founded companies, Aer Venture Studios’ belief in HeyFlow sends a clear message that innovative, women-led start-ups are worthy of investment. Their support strengthens our ability to scale globally, and together, we’re set to shake up the future of work,” comments Sophie Creese, Co-Founder, HeyFlow. 

Geoff Wells, director, Aer Venture Studios; “Our mission is to help organisations realise their vision for digital experiences that have a positive impact on people and planet. Our ambition and values are perfectly aligned with HeyFlow’s, making it the ideal collaboration and partnership. We are excited at the opportunity to bring the full force of our creative and technical talent in Aer Studios to realise HeyFlow’s vision and accelerate its impact.”  

HeyFlow is a majority female-founded and owned business, launched by Sophie Creese, Nick Dean and Sabrina Walls, with Kate Thompson, an applied behavioural scientist and co-founder of businessfourzero, recently joining as NED. With financial backing by ADLIB Recruitment, the team brings together many years of expertise in gender equality work and talent solutions. Aer Venture Studios’ Directors Geoff Wells and Tom Harber will play active roles in the future of HeyFlow, with Wells taking a seat on the board. Wells and Harber bring extensive expertise in delivering award winning creative technology solutions for organisations including BBC, Breast Cancer Now, Diabetes UK and Women’s Aid.  

 

For media enquiries, please contact Sabrina Walls on [email protected] / contact Jess Morgan on [email protected] or on 07947 008 071. 

 

About HeyFlow   

Ending disadvantage for women in the workplace. 31% of women experience severe reproductive health symptoms every year. If not supported properly they can have a massive impact in the workplace and become a hidden burden leading to a lack of inclusion, increased absenteeism, and reduced retention.   

Through insight, learning and action for female* reproductive health inclusion in the workplace, HeyFlow empowers businesses to create change and build a truly inclusive companies.  

https://heyflow.co.uk/ 

 

*We actually mean people with internal reproductive health organs, it’s just not as catchy.   

You can read our full inclusion statement here: https://heyflow.co.uk/inclusion-statement 

 

About Aer Venture Studios 

Aer Venture Studios works with impact driven founders and their teams, bringing creative technology expertise and financial backing to progress their concept to MVP and launch. Aer Venture Studios’ mission is to create meaningful digital experiences that have an impact on people and planet. Launched by creative tech firm Aer Studios, Aer Venture Studios bring financial backing that early stage ventures vitally need and combine this with the expertise required to develop the product to a launch ready stage, as well as partnerships required for future investment rounds to scale fast.  

www.aerventurestudios.co.uk 

 

  1. https://www.nobelprize.org/uploads/2023/10/popular-economicsciencesprize2023.pdf 

Werkshop Weekender (formerly known as Werkhouse) is finally back! This year they’re changing it up, and the torch for hosting has been passed on to Halo

The weekend, where future designers, copywriters, and strategists are given the chance to connect with the industry and get a taste for agency life first hand through a real brief, is happening in Bristol on 16th and 17th November 2024.

Breaking down barriers

As Halo takes over the mantle, they are continuing to dial up the focus on diversity and inclusion. The weekend is open to anyone over 18, no matter their previous experience or education, and all applications are being judged blind. 

“We know that university isn’t accessible, or even the right route, for everyone but yet there’s still such a heavy onus on having a degree when trying to move into the Creative Sector. We don’t think this should be the case. Creativity is open to everyone, and always should be, no matter where you are in life or what you’ve been (or are going) through. “ ~ Bryony Greenwood, People & Studio Coordinator at Halo

Werkshop Weekender

Werkshop Weekender brings together professionals from some of the best studios in Bristol and Bath, with curious individuals looking to enter the creative industries. Participants are divided into squads to tackle a real life brief from a client in the charity sector, developing ideas and communicating their concepts, with the support of assigned team leaders and on hand professionals. 

Studios that so far have signed on for the weekend are:

How to apply

Applications open on 2nd September and close on 1st October, but if you for any reason need more time to finish, please contact Halo at [email protected] and they’ll do what they can to accommodate you. 

The Werkshop Weekender team has made it clear; the weekend isn’t for those with experience. It’s for those with an interest in communications, design, and commercial creativity. They aren’t looking for professionals, they’re looking for those with a curious attitude and drive, who want to gain insight into agency life.

“If you’re passionate, if you have ideas, if you’re curious, we want to hear from you. Good ideas come from every aspect of life, and the experiences and the way people perceive life right from day one are what forms rounded ideas. We know life isn’t linear, and your journey into the creative space may not be either (mine wasn’t), so if you have even an inkling to apply, please do!” ~ Bryony Greenwood, People & Studio Coordinator at Halo

Go to the Werkshop Weekender website to find out more and to access the application when it opens.

We want to take a moment to acknowledge that many of our members may feel vulnerable as a result of the distressing events which have happened in our community recently.

The riots and disorder remind us of the work that must be done to create a truly inclusive and equitable society.

However, the large crowds who gathered on Wednesday to protest against the violence show us what can be achieved when the city and our communities pull together in true Bristol spirit.

As a membership organisation, we would like to signpost to groups and resources that can help to support the safety and wellbeing of those impacted.

If you have your own recommendations, please share them in the comments so that others can benefit too.

Let’s continue to support one another and stand together as a united sector.

Stay safe and take care.


 

Local charities:

Other support:

Race Equality Matters has shared some ways you can ensure safety and support for ethnically diverse colleagues.

Stand Against Racism & Inequality has resources on its website explaining what you can do if you encounter or witness a hate crime. You can report a hate crime here.

An act of togetherness: Walking from Bath to Bristol

On 26 August, Bristol Creative Industries internships programme manager Clare Leczycki joined other people from the creative and culture sectors for a walk from Bath to Bristol.

The walk was an act of togetherness and to raise money for Hope Not Hate and SARI (Stand Against Racism & Inequality). Over £4,800 has been raised and you can still donate here.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Clare Leczycki (@followthefootprints)

Sir Peter Bazalgette is one of the most influential figures in the UK’s creative industries. 

As the former chairman of Endemol UK and creative director of Endemol Group Worldwide, he was responsible for some of the most successful and recognisable television shows of the past 25 years, including Big Brother, Ready Steady Cook, Ground Force and Changing Rooms.

Sir Peter, who was also chairman of Arts Council England and non-executive chairman of ITV, was recently appointed as the new chancellor of the University of the West of England (UWE Bristol).

In an interview with Dan Martin, he discusses his career, the support needed from the new government to grow the UK’s creative industries, how to improve the sector’s diversity, and why he has taken on the role of UWE Bristol’s new chancellor. 

For an extra insight, read to the end to discover Sir Peter’s favourite TV show of all time! 

Sir Peter Bazalgette officially took up his role as chancellor of UWE Bristol at the university’s graduation ceremonies in July, which were held for the first time at Bristol Beacon following a new partnership between the two organisations.

You’ve been in the TV sector for over 40 years. How has it changed?

“Until 1955, there was only the BBC, and until 1982, there was only the BBC and ITV. Then there was Channel Four, and then Channel Five came along in the 90s. So even by the 1990s, there were very few channels. Sky Television and Virgin weren’t there at that point, but subscription TV came along when they arrived.  

“Fast forward to recently and when I was chairing ITV, we launched ITV X and to be listed we had to negotiate with more than 30 platforms. 

“In terms of production, that has changed a lot too. We used to just have public service media putting money into television production, but now we’ve got Netflix alone spending more than a billion in the UK, not to mention Apple, Amazon, Disney and so on. 

“It’s changed massively, and people are consuming their TV when they want and how they want.”

What’s your advice to small production companies in today’s TV landscape?

“As much as documentaries are wonderful things, try to have a repeat series, whether it’s factual or fictional, but one that can be repeated and can come back again because that gives you certainty and turnover. 

“You should also have a range of clients among both the streamers and the public service media.”

When you launched Big Brother in the UK, did you know how big it would be?

“None of us ever know the night before a show goes out for the first time whether it’s going to be a complete flop or a big hit. 

“Big Brother had already become a massive phenomenon in Germany, Spain and Holland before it came to the UK, but not every format works in every country. For example, Survivor has never really taken off in the UK, but it has been a hit in America since the 1990s.

“When Big Brother launched, it was like trying to ride a bucking bronco. It got bigger and bigger. It was on the front page of every newspaper every day, and we had the press on our doorsteps. 

“In most of the early Big Brother houses in other countries, the key talking points were two housemates getting amorous with each other. But true to form in Britain, we instead had a class struggle, with working class Craig defeating middle class Nick, who became known as Nasty Nick. Lots of people couldn’t believe we hadn’t set the whole thing up, but we had no idea any of that was going to happen, none at all.” 

What impact do you think Big Brother had?

“It was massively controversial wherever it was broadcast. People thought it was exploitative and invasive, but actually it was interesting in that it had a transsexual woman, a gay man, someone who suffered from Tourette syndrome, and all sorts of extraordinary people who at the time were demonised. But they won because people saw their lovely character shining through, and so it did have a positive element. 

“It was also an example of early fusion technology because it was on TV as an edited programme, it was on the internet, people watched it live, and you could vote on the telephone. It represented a convergence of media, and it was part of the process of the generation, who today on their mobile phones shoot and edit videos, becoming media literate. They used to watch the live transmission, and then watch the edited programme, before complaining we hadn’t put certain bits in, or we’d been unfair to certain characters. 

“They then realised that the programme was an edited piece that was entirely subjective and what the director thought the story was. There was a big element of the viewer developing media literacy which was groundbreaking.”

How do you think the new government should support the creative industries?

“The creative industries, as they say on The X Factor, have been on a journey. We were the first country in the world in 1997 to define an industrial sector called the creative industries, but we then had to catch up because we didn’t have any data about our GVA, our employment etc. In time we had the Creative Industries Council, and we then established an advocacy body that is now called Creative UK, but in many ways, Britain is still playing catch up with the creative industries. With the new government, I hope that the journey and process will continue.

“The creative industries are 6% of the UK’s GVA, but we get 1% of public investment. Clearly that is not aligned with the creative industries as a priority sector for growth which we have been told is the case by both the former Conservative government and the Labour Party. 

“Private investment is currently not good enough. The British Business Bank, which encourages investment in small and medium sized enterprises, is not really attuned to the way the creative industries run, the way small creative businesses work, and the criteria by which they have to be judged and invested in. We need to make progress on public and private investment. 

“We also need to make progress on research and development tax credit definitions. The UK has a narrow definition of R&D, which is different to the one in other countries in Europe which includes the creative industries so creative businesses can claim tax credits for the innovation that they carry out. 

“We need a more flexible apprenticeship scheme because small companies find it difficult to use the apprenticeship levy.”

You have done a lot of work on encouraging creative clusters around the UK. What more do you think needs to be done in that area?

“The creative industries are naturally and organically arranged into clusters. When I made a proposal for public investment in clusters in 2017, which was enacted in 2018 in the creative industries sector deal, it was going with the flow of where clusters typically are. For example, there’s the fantastic screen cluster in Bristol, an advertising cluster in Manchester, fashion in Leeds and games in Dundee. All of those things were happening organically and I suggested that we got behind it. 

“The investment was £56m in nine creative clusters and each of them had an anchor partner of a university which could feed the value of applied research into local SMEs. It was fantastically successful over five years. It was matched by about £260m from industry and other sources. It’s a very good example of how you use small amounts of public money to generate growth and investment. It connected applied research with more than 2,500 SMEs, and created lots of new jobs, products and services. 

“We found it incredibly difficult to get clusters two funded, despite the extraordinary success story which underlines my point about public investment not being aligned with the national policy to grow the creative industries. 

“In the end, we did get it funded, but it still depends on UK Research and Innovation honouring the commitment in the next Spending Review, which has to be agreed by the new government. 

“That’s another example of how Britain has not caught up with the creative sector, and isn’t backing it in the way that we are organised.”

What needs to be done to improve diversity in the creative industries?

“We need to do a lot better in this area. If we claim that the creative industries is not just an economic powerhouse, but a social and cultural powerhouse, and that what we produce, our music, theatre, films, TV, books and so on, touches the pulse of the nation, then it has to represent the whole nation and all of the communities. It can only do that if all of them find easy career pathways. 

“One of the key things to do is defining better career pathways, which was set out in the former government’s creative industries sector vision last year. When I work with Speakers for Schools, the charity set up by Robert Peston, and speak to first year sixth form students, I ask them ‘what’s your favourite music?’, ‘what’s your favourite fashion?, ‘what’s your favourite film?, ‘what’s your favourite TV show?, ‘what games do you play?’. It always leads to a big discussion about who has the best taste.

“I then ask them to tell me about the jobs that all of those products represent and there’s dead silence. As an industry, we have not defined the career pathways properly. If we do, we’ll have a much more diverse sector. 

“We also need much better outreach. When I was deputy chair of the National Film and Television School, we greatly increased the money we put into finding people of talent from all communities, such as having bursary funds dedicated to Black and Asian people. These are the sorts of things you can do to make a difference, but we have a way to go.”

🤝 This morning at #UWEGraduation Sir Peter Bazalgette was presented as the new chancellor of UWE Bristol – succeeding Sir Ian Carruthers OBE who has performed the role with distinction for the past 13 years 👏

Welcome, Sir Peter! pic.twitter.com/K6DSUZ5D5u

— UWE Bristol (@UWEBristol) July 18, 2024

Why did you decide to become chancellor of UWE Bristol?

“The role higher and further education plays in training, inspiring and producing the next generation of talent in the creative sector is critical. 

“The particular thing that interested me about UWE is that the creative industries is one of the key areas in which they specialise. 

“Activities that impress me about UWE include The Foundry which encourages collaboration, new ideas and development of technical knowledge. I also like the fact that they have a student ventures centre which encourages graduates to set up businesses, I like the university enterprise zone, and I like that more than 50% of graduates tend to work in the surrounding area after they’ve graduated. This is a very good statistic, and shows the contribution that UWE is making to Bristol and its surroundings. 

“Finally, as a TV producer and chair of the Arts Council, I visited the city many times and I love what Bristol has already and its potential for growth.”

Finally, what’s your favourite TV show of all time?

“Antiques Roadshow. I can’t get enough of it! 

“I love the combination of the personal histories and regional histories that are linked to an object. You learn so much about history, and individual stories of brilliant heroism. There’s also the arts and culture, the wonderful locations they visit and the element of greed when it’s revealed what the item is worth. It’s the perfect TV show. I wish I’d invented it myself.”

87% of working women want their employers to be more supportive when it comes to women’s health1. Despite a growing demand for reproductive health inclusion at work only a minority of UK businesses have specific policies that address key reproductive health moments such as menopause (26%)2 and menstruation (12%)3 

To address this issue, HeyFlow has launched a groundbreaking open-source suite of Reproductive Health Policy Guides to access information and best practices around reproductive health inclusion in the workplace.  

Sophie Creese, Co-Founder and CEO discusses why this is an important initiative: 

“Guidance on how to properly address reproductive health at work is often scattered across various sources or specific to a certain business, making it challenging for organisations to implement cohesive and inclusive practices and not knowing where to start. We wanted to create a source of information that is accessible so that businesses can develop informed and effective reproductive health policies.” 

To mark the launch of the series of policy guides, HeyFlow has released two guides on Menstruation & Menopause. The suite will be expanded to cover other reproductive health topics, but these were selected as the two key considerations for employers as they directly impact most women’s experience within the workplace.  

By 2030, 47% of all 50s are forecasted to be part of the UK labour workforce4, meaning that most employees who go through menopause will go through it at work and over half of menstruators have period pains that directly affect their work5. 

Nick Dean, COO and Co-Founder of HeyFlow highlights the importance of this initiative, but it shouldn’t be the endpoint for employers:  

“A large part of the lack of inclusion of reproductive health at work is due to societal taboos around the topics, and a lack of readily available information. You don’t know what you don’t know, so we’re so excited to launch these guides to give companies their first step into reproductive health inclusion. But a good policy is only the start. To embed effective change in a business you need to embed inclusion within your culture and bring everyone into the conversation; educating employees on available resources and supporting managers with training on how to implement policy properly.”   

HeyFlow’s initiative aims to standardise reproductive health policies across industries, ensuring fair and consistent support for all employees. By offering these guides, HeyFlow is leading the charge in promoting workplace wellness and setting a new benchmark for inclusivity. 

For more information about HeyFlow’s Reproductive Health Policy Guides and to access the Menstruation and Menopause guides, please visit  https://heyflow.co.uk/ or contact [email protected] 

(more…)

The purpose of ADLIB’s “True Diversity” Content Series is to feature, collate and showcase the breadth of initiatives that are all on a mission to work towards True Diversity and Inclusion – to capture and share what these initiatives are all about, who they are, what they do, why it matters and how businesses can get involved.  

There are many angles to consider and a wealth of EDI expertise available, if you know where to look. That is the challenge we wanted to address. 


EDI Directory

If you’re an employer wanting to find support and expertise to build truly inclusive teams, our new EDI Directory is here to signpost you to a range of initiatives that you can reach out to.  

We’re here to talk to you about any of them and introduce you to those you feel best fit your EDI objectives. No referral fees, we’ll put you in touch directly. 

Whilst our team is trained in the fundamentals of EDI and we have invested in our own EDI initiatives such as MotherBoard and HeyFlow, we are aware that there are many protected characteristics and intersectionality to consider when it comes to building truly inclusive teams. It’s important to work with true experts in these areas.” – Tony Allen 


Get Involved

If you’re an EDI Consultant or part of an initiative in this space, we’d love to include you in our EDI Directory and feature you in our True Diversity series. If you’re a business seeking EDI expertise, you can find it in ADLIB’s EDI Directory.

Contact us for free referrals or reach out directly through the directory

Contact Tony Allen at [email protected], or fill in this form for your initiative to be considered.  

Last year, we signed the Menopause Workplace Pledge and promised to take positive action to make sure everyone going through the menopause is supported.

This has led us to create our Menopause in the Workplace Guide, packed with practical tips, policy advice, and strategies to foster an inclusive and supportive environment for all our employees.

We love it so much that we decided to share it with our community!

Something Familiar Menopause In The Workplace Guide

You can read our guide here

What to do more? Help us break the stigma:

💬 Share your own experience
Your story can inspire others and create a more understanding and supportive culture.

🤝 Partner with us
Help us spread the word by sharing our guide and your stories.

📝 Participate in our survey

We’d love to know how you feel about Menopause in the workplace.

If you can, please fill in our Menopause
in the workplace survey here.
Please answer as honestly as possible because we should always be working on making work culture more comfortable for everyone.

Together, we can make a real difference.