This year’s Pride focuses on demonstrating why Pride is still very much relevant in 2018. This aim and much of the events of Pride month have been built around the findings of a comprehensive Pride Matters report, that gives a thought-provoking insight into the experience and hopes of the UK LGBT+ community. This fantastic work by Pride In London, has made us at Bright Network reflect on how our research revealed how far we still have to go in order to achieve actual equality for LGBTQ+ students.
39% of our LGBTQ+ community surveyed said that they did not feel they could pursue any career path they wish - Bright Network Report
The fact that our LGBTQ+ members felt significantly less confident and more obstructed from freely pursuing their dream career than our hetrosexual members is a significant issue that must be addresed, both for the students to reach their potential and for firms to diversify their teams and reach our bright LGBTQ+ members.
We are committed to better supporting our LGBTQ+ members to build the skills, confidence and network to secure their dream career. We recognize the call for a supportive and inclusive community and we want to make sure our network can be this for our LGBTQ+ members as they search for their internships and launch their careers. We have broadened our sexuality data and will continue to do so to reflect the diversity of our members and ensure we can send tailored LGBTQ+ opportunities and event invitations.
We will continue to celebrate LGBTQ+ members in the workplace, share their inspirational stories in our diversity and inclusion hub, and promote the work of our partner firms who are striving to achieve true equality.
15% of LGBTQ+ respondents said they would reject an offer in favour of another opportunity, if they felt they had received a better experience during another application process - Bright Network Report
Ensuring that the recruitment process is inclusive and engaging for the LGBTQ+ community is a real commitment for our partner firms. We will continue to bring together students’ insights with our partners to help support them to increase their inclusivity. We are proud that a great deal of our partner firms have established LGBTQ+ networks that support their team members, run collaborative events with other offices and are working to create a truly diverse company culture.
LGBTQ+ members are more likely to see career success as contributing to a cause they believe in - Bright Network Report
The key words for 2018 Pride include Protest and Freedom and perhaps it is representative of this that our LGBTQ+ members seek meaningful careers that bring about positive social change. From charities and public sector organizations to city corporates with exceptional CSR or Pro-bono offerings, we strive to provide our members with the chance to secure a career path that stands up to this wonderful measure of success.
“Until such time as all LGBT+ people are able to go about their lives and business with the same freedom and confidence as heterosexual people, without fear of shame or worse, then Pride will matter” - Pride Matters Report
We know we cannot solve a problem if we pretend it doesn’t exist - the discrimination that LGBTQ+ people experience, their exclusion from living openly, freely and to their full potential must be recognized. We at the Bright Network are committed to doing our part to bring about this change.
Have a very happy Pride.
To read our research report head here