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Powerful films set to inspire LGBT+ workers

Gay, lesbian and bisexual (GLB) public sector workers share first-hand accounts of coming out in the workplace, as part of a drive to inspire others to have the confidence to be open about their sexual orientation.

Students Saul Turner and Emilie Wright (second and third from left) with (from left) Paul Fitzgerald, Antonia Proudley, Elisabeth Britz, Paul Rana, Rosey Cox and Cllr Michael Payne, who all told their stories on film.

Staff and officials across local government, the NHS, emergency services and education tell their personal stories in a powerful film designed to encourage lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT+) colleagues to feel comfortable, and proud, to be out at work.

The film, featuring council staff, a leading councillor, police community support officer, firefighter, health worker and educationalist, has been produced by students at West Nottinghamshire College, Mansfield, as part of a project called Our LGBT+ Role Models.

The project has been spearheaded by the Nottinghamshire Diversity Champions Partnership, made up of organisations that have featured in equality charity Stonewall’s list of top 100 employers in the UK for promoting LGBT+ equality, plus a partnership organisation that displays positive practice.

Organisations include West Nottinghamshire College, Nottingham City Council, Nottinghamshire County Council, Nottingham City Homes, Nottinghamshire Police, Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service, Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, and East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS).

Results of Stonewall’s Workplace Equality Index 2017 – a confidential survey that drew 91,248 responses from employees across the UK – revealed that just 20 per cent of lesbian, gay and bisexual respondents in the East Midlands were comfortable being completely out in the workplace, which is the lowest proportion of any region of the UK. However, LGBT+ respondents who agreed they can be themselves in the workplace were more than twice as likely to be satisfied with their sense of achievement compared to those who disagreed (84 per cent compared to 38 per cent).

The role models project aims to challenge stereotypes and break down barriers that may exist and give LGBT+ employees the platform to be themselves, where they choose to do so.

The organisations came together in 2016 to share expertise, resources and training to further advance equality and diversity within their workplaces and one of their first projects was to produce a booklet featuring LGBT+ role models within their organisations. This has now been expanded to include a series of uplifting individual films showcasing role models’ own experiences and their advice to people in a similar situation, while celebrating the positive and inclusive culture within their organisations.

Media production students (from left) Matthew Hart, Saul Turner and Emilie Wright, who made the ‘Our LGBT+ Role Models’ film series.

The films have been produced by West Nottinghamshire College media production students Emilie Wright, Matthew Hart and Saul Turner as part of their course work. There is also a short, trailer-length version featuring interview clips and high-impact messages.

The series features city council project officer Rosey Cox, county councillor Michael Payne, housing company project liaison officer Christian Liquorish, police community support officer Antonia Proudley, firefighter Sean McCallum, healthcare trust senior occupational therapist Elisabeth Britz, the college’s head of student support Paul Rana, and EMAS’ equality and diversity manager Paul Fitzgerald.

The trailer-length film had its first public screening at the diversity partnership’s ‘Exploring Intersectionality and the Power of Roles Models’ conference, held at Nottingham Council House on Friday, February 24 2017, attended by almost 150 employees from the partnership organisations, plus members of the local LGBT+ community and their allies.

Following the launch, the films will now be used as promotional, training and awareness-raising tools by each organisation, and will also be available on their websites, social media and YouTube channels so they can be seen by external audiences.

Don’t be ashamed of who you are

The video campaign features people from a wide range of organisations, who share their own unique experiences of coming out.

Rosey Cox decided to reveal her sexual orientation to her colleagues a year after joining Nottingham City Council in 2004, after growing tired of “living a complete lie that I struggled to keep up with”.

Describing the experience as “definitely a good one”, she said: “People were interested in my life, in the real me. They took time to find out what it meant and how they could make it so that I was more comfortable at work.” 

“Initially, I planned for the worst-case scenario on how people’s reactions would be, but it was the complete opposite,” added Ms Cox, who has a dual role as the authority’s LGBT+ lead.

Councillor Payne, who represents the Arnold North ward of Nottinghamshire County Council while also serving as deputy leader of Gedling Borough Council, made the decision to come out shortly after meeting his current partner.

“I just thought ‘If I’m going to stand-up for the values I believe in, I need to be true to who I am,'” he said.

Adding: “I discovered there is more support for people who are gay than I thought there was and, actually, it’s not really an issue. But since coming out, I’ve been more comfortable speaking about particular issues that affect minorities and particularly the LGBT+ community, because I can speak from experience.”

Working in an inclusive, supportive environment prompted Christian Liquorish to be open about his sexual orientation amongst colleagues.

He said: “The experience was very comfortable for me, because there were so many people around Nottingham City Homes that were supportive and understanding.”

The vice-chair of the organisation’s LGBT+ forum, added: “The advice I’d give to anybody who is LGBT+ is ‘never be afraid to speak out and don’t be ashamed of who you are. Be comfortable, be happy – and live your life.’”

PCSO Antonia Proudley felt comfortable in declaring her sexual orientation with colleagues upon joining Nottinghamshire Police in 2009.

She insists being gay has helped her engage with the LGBT+ community in the St Ann’s area of Nottingham, where she is based – from policing Pride events to helping young people “at a really low crisis point” due to struggling with their sexual orientation.

“I’ve been able to be empathetic and get on with them, so that’s been a big help,” said Ms Proudley. “It is so important to normalise being gay – that it is normal and it is acceptable.”

Firefighter Sean McCallum says revealing his bisexuality to his colleagues made him more productive at work.

The crew manager at Retford Fire Station, said: “I don’t spend time pretending to be something that I’m not, covering my tracks, worrying if somebody finds out about my difference in terms of sexual orientation. So I certainly felt, within a very short time of coming out in the workplace, that I was performing better. I was much happier.”

And while he’s proud to be part of the campaign, Mr McCallum hopes LGBT+ role models won’t be needed in future.

“That’s the goal for me – and to get to a point where sexual orientation is a non-issue,” said Mr McCallum, who is a former LGBT+ official on the Fire Brigades Union.

An “uncomfortable” past experience of being ‘outed’ by staff at a previous employer prompted Elisabeth Britz to come out to her colleagues at Rampton Hospital, near Retford, just weeks after joining Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust in 2004.

“Professionally, it’s made a lot of difference. It means I can be myself; I’m not tip-toeing around trying to pretend to be one person at home and another person at work,” said Ms Britz, who is vice-chair of the trust’s sexual orientation equality steering committee.

“It’s meant that, hopefully, I can present a positive impression of who a gay woman is. People have a lot of stereotypes and hopefully I dispel a lot of those.”

EMAS equality and diversity manager Paul Fitzgerald has proudly lived as a gay man since coming out at the age of 14, more than 40 years ago.

He is equally proud of his involvement in the role models campaign, saying: “When I was growing up, I had no role models at all, other than the stereotype ‘camp’ characters that appeared on television and they were deemed to be deviants.

“So I think it is vitally important that young people – and people across the globe, really – have good role models so that they can see people who are just like themselves, who present no threat to society and just get on with their lives.”

Although he never actually hid his sexual orientation, Paul Rana chose to become West Nottinghamshire College’s face of the campaign as a way of coming out to colleagues.

And while he insists being out has made no difference to how he is treated by staff, it does help him to support students facing similar issues.

He said: “Sometimes, I have to deal with difficult safeguarding issues and some involve LGBT+ students. It’s sometimes tough hearing their experiences, and they can remind me of my own. This makes me even more determined to ensure they receive positive outcomes.”

The Our LGBT+ Role Models films were produced by West Nottinghamshire College media students Emilie Wright, 18, Matthew Hart, 19, and Saul Turner, 21, for an industry-related project designed to equip them with the skills and experience to work with real-life clients.

It saw the students – who are in the second year of the BTEC Level 3 in Media Production (Film and television) – script the interview questions, film out on location, and edit the footage in the college’s state-of-the-art editing suites.

Emilie, from Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, whose ambition is to become a film director, said: “Personally, I didn’t know a lot about LGBT+ issues before this project, so we conducted research to prepare us for the interviews. It was interesting, but also quite sad, to discover there are people who feel they need to hide who they are in workplaces and with their friends.

“Hopefully, people thinking about coming out will watch the films and think ‘This is really inspirational; I’m going to show everybody who I am and not hide it anymore.’”

Saul, from Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire, who wants to work as a film and TV editor, said: “We’re trying to remove any negativity and stigma surrounding the topic, and show people that it’s okay to be LGBT+ by putting it in a positive light. Once we started filming, people really started opening up and expressing themselves. I want the films to convey the same feeling we got when we were in the room listening to them. Above all, I hope it makes people think.”

Gogglebox stars open Cats Protection’s first shop in Brighton

Gogglebox stars Chris Steed and Stephen Webb joined in the fun to officially open Cats Protection’s first shop in Brighton.

Pictured L-R Mark Verity, Stephen Webb, Chris Steed and Lara Beumer. Photo by: Skye Brackpool
Pictured L-R Mark Verity, Stephen Webb, Chris Steed and Lara Beumer. Photo by: Skye Brackpool

The cat-loving duo, who appear on the hit Channel 4 TV show, cut an opening ribbon and met shoppers, volunteers and staff when they dropped in to the shop’s opening day on Wednesday, March 8.

The store, in Beaconsfield Road, will stock good quality second-hand clothes, toys, books and household items. All proceeds will go to help care for unwanted and abandoned cats.

Chris, whose much-loved pet cat Ginge died in 2015, said: “I have a friend who volunteers for Cats Protection so I know how valuable it is that people donate items, money or even their time to help out Cats Protection shops like Brighton. It’ll make a big difference to unwanted cats.”  

Stephen added: “I’m helping out today in memory of Ginge. He was a lovely cat and I’m doing this for him and all the other cats out there that still need Cats Protection’s help.” 

Photo by Skye Brackpool

Fans of the Gogglebox pair can now enter a competition on Cats Protection’s Facebook page to win one of two fleece jumpers signed by the pair on the shop’s opening day.

To enter the competition, click here:

Or email: competitions@cats.org.uk with the answer to the following question:

What dogs can often be seen on the sofa with Chris and Steve during their Gogglebox? 

Entries close on Friday, March 10 at noon, following which two winners will be drawn from the pool of correct answers.

Cats Protection is the UK’s largest cat charity, helping around 500 cats a day – or around 200,000 a year – through a national network of 32 centres and over 250 voluntary-run branches.

Lana Beumer, Manager of the new Brighton shop, said: “We’d like to say a huge thank you to Chris and Stephen and all our new friends and supporters in Brighton who made our opening day such a success. We’re really looking forward to meeting local people and anyone who would like to become a volunteer at the shop is more than welcome to pop in to find out more.”

The new shop, at 70a Beaconsfield Road, will be open Monday to Saturday from 9am until 5pm and on Sunday from 10am until 4pm.

Donations should be delivered during shop opening hours.

For more information or to check the items which can be accepted, call 01273 565675.

 

PREVIEW: Charity Dance Gala

The Gay Men’s Dance Company’s (GMDC) stage their first annual variety showcase, starring GMDC members from London and Brighton, their choir, pole dancers and special guest acts.

Join them for an uplifting evening of fun and jazz-hands, as they take you on a journey through song, dance and spoken word reflective of gay life in 2017.

With over 300 active members, GMDC performers range from experienced dancers to their newest members making their performance debut.

All net proceeds will go to the Alex Scurr Foundation (ASF), raising money for existing LGBT charities and organisations. Current partners include: Dean St, London Friend, ELOP, Opening Doors, Positive East, GMFA, Wandsworth Oasis, Diversity Role Models and MindOut.

With the help of ASF, financial support will be provided for combating homophobia, chemsex and substance abuse while improving sexual health/wellbeing throughout the capital. Both prevention and fighting stigma of HIV, and mental health issues from depression and anxiety to relationship-building will also be included.

The ASF aims to create a more healthy and connected LGBT community.

Patrick Cash
Patrick Cash

Patrick Cash, from Attitude and 56 Dean Street, said: “A joyous and uplifting inspiration of what gay men can achieve together. Not only was the dancing captivating to watch, each number assembled with insight and expertise. The story of community that emerged from the spoken personal anecdotes were deeply moving. The GMDC may be viewed simply as a dance class from the outside, but evidently to its members the company provides both an outlet for passion and a treasured space of friendship, solidarity and love”

Dress code is fabulous. Stay on after the show finished and drink, dance and party with the cast until the early hours.


Event: Gay Men’s Dance Company Charity Gala

Where: Troxy, 490 Commercial Road, London E1 0HX

When: Saturday, April 8

Time: Door open 6.30pm show arts at 7.30pm

Cost: For ticket details. click here:

BOOK REVIEW: Somebody to Love The Life, Death and Legacy of Freddie Mercury

Somebody to Love

The Life, Death and Legacy of Freddie Mercury

Mark Langthorne & Matt Richard

For the first time, the final years of one of the world’s most captivating rock showman are laid bare. With interviews from Freddie Mercury’s closest friends in the last years of his life, along with lots of never before seen personal photographs.

Here are previously unknown facts about the singer and his life, moving detail on his lifelong search for love and personal fulfillment, and of course his tragic contraction of a then killer disease in the mid-1980s. Woven throughout Freddie’s life is the shocking story of how the HIV virus came to hold the world in its grip, was cruelly labelled ‘The Gay Plague’ and infected thousands of men, women and children – Freddie Mercury himself being one of the most famous.

The death of this vibrant and spectacularly talented rock star shook the world of medicine as well as the world of music.  Somebody to Love finally puts the record straight and pays detailed tribute to the man himself.

Out now £20.00

For more info or to buy the book see the publishers website here: 

 

 

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