Merseyside Police supports National Inclusion Week

This week Merseyside Police is supporting National Inclusion Week, (Monday, 27 September – Sunday, 3 October), an annual event which is designed to encourage organisations to celebrate, share and inspire inclusion practices.

National Inclusion Week comes at a prominent time for the force as inclusion as it is one of our key force priorities for the coming year. This reinforces the importance the force places on diversity, inclusivity and equality, not just internally but in the service we provide to the different communities of Merseyside.

This year’s national theme is ‘United for Inclusion,’ encouraging all employees to come together, be part of the conversation and unite in sharing learning, best practice, successes and challenges.

It has continued to be a demanding and challenging time for policing and combined with the pressures from the pandemic, this week also serves as a timely opportunity for the force to talk and reflect what inclusion means and how embracing difference can make a real difference to the service we provide.

Across the week, each department within the force has arranged and offered a range of different activities and events for all to take part in. These include departmental open days; themed webinars; paired conversation mornings; ‘Round the world’ special canteen food menu; wellbeing events with visits from the therapy dogs, personal testimonies, video diaries and community and partnership engagement events.

Assistant Chief Constable Matt Boyle said: “Having inclusion as one of our force priorities for the upcoming year demonstrates our pledge to support a diverse and inclusive working environment. We firmly believe that by having a force where everyone feels that their voices are heard and valued, allowing us to provide a better service to our communities. For this to work we know it is not something that can just be driven from the top down, we like to encourage all officers and staff to play their part which is why it is fantastic to see so many different departments and teams getting involved in this week’s activity and supporting our inclusion agenda.”

Siwan Smith, Diversity Equality & Inclusion Manager said: “For us, an inclusive workplace means a stronger workplace. In the past year alone our dedicated Inclusion team has taken great strides to achieve this, whether that be by reviewing our positive action service; arranging inclusive leadership workshops; supporting the work of our staff support networks, or revising force policies.

"Celebrating National Inclusion Week is another key priority time for us, not only does it give the opportunity to reflect on what we have achieved so far, it is also a chance for us learn and see how we can continue to move the organisation forwards.”