The UK’s most inclusive employers have been revealed in the 2022 Inclusive Top 50 UK Employers index, announced at the Inclusive Awards on December 1, 2022. Compiled by Inclusive Companies, the list acknowledges and ranks businesses which are most consistent throughout the whole tenure of their organisations and encompass all types of diversity. Now in its seventh year, it has become the definitive cross-industry index harnessing both best practice and innovation with the goal of driving inclusion for all.

Founder and CEO of Inclusive Companies, Paul Sesay, is very clear in the intent of the Inclusive Top 50 UK Employers, saying, “The independent advisory panel of Diversity & Inclusion experts review and analyse each and every submission. They look at ALL areas of diversity, including age, culture, disability, ethnicity, gender, LGBTQ+ and religion. Those organisations who have participated submit a great wealth of evidence regarding their inclusive practices, covering a wide range of areas and topics, and it is from this that the experts determine the Top 50 Inclusive employers.”

This year the highest accolade went to West Midlands Fire Service, which is the second biggest fire service in the UK. Achieving a high ranking of eighth in 2021, the progress they had made from a level which was already acknowledged as being very inclusive was recognised by the panel. In second place was IT company, Capgemini which achieved the distinction of claiming the top ranking last year. In third place was community-based, volunteer-led support organisation, Touchstone which saw its ranking rise 15 places from the previous year.

Entries are growing each year and see submissions from a very wide range of employers: IT companies to NHS Trusts; police constabularies to The Open University and utility organisations to building societies. Whilst those in this year’s Top 3 had been placed the year before, there were many new organisations entering the 2022 list including: Transunion, Humberside Police, Rolls-Royce, Lincolnshire Police, Canon, Police Now, Open University, CGI and Crown Commercial. It is Paul’s intention for it to grow further as more organisations seek to embody best practice in diversity and inclusion.

“The balance of submissions and those which made the Top 50 was in favour of the public sector organisations and I wonder if this is because of their workforce demographic?” observes Paul. “Equally, could it be the wide and diverse audience they serve? Or perhaps it is their public accountability?  The truth is most likely to lie in a mix of all three.” What Paul would love to see is more submissions from FTSE100 businesses, private sector organisations and educational establishments. “They are in there,” added Paul, “but wouldn’t it be great if they were pushing that balance back to a more equitable one with regards to the public sector?”

Inclusive Companies helps organisations create cultural transformation through a “hearts and mind” approach to increase social inclusion and empowerment with the intention of embedding DEI into everything they practice as an essential ingredient.

Now well-established, its Inclusive Top 50 UK Employers that draws attention to those employers which are working very hard to be truly inclusive.  The way the organisations are assessed means that they have avoided the all too common ‘peaks and troughs’ of awareness, usually brought on by a life affirming event or, all too often, a tragedy which makes its mark on society and the public consciousness. Paul is very aware of this saying “the next goal of Inclusive Companies is to drive the embedding of diversity and inclusion in people’s day-to-day lives and their communities through their changed and improved work practices.”