It seems as though people were out enjoying the gay scene over the weekend as one owner of a string of LGBT+ venues in Birmingham city centre spoke about the road to recovery for the sector.
The majority of the UK’s pubs and bars have been on lockdown due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic for over 100 days and many are desperate to open in order to stay financially viable. As lockdown restrictions eased in England last weekend, the streets were filled with eager punters looking to enjoy a bit of normality.
Lawrence Barton who owns three Birmingham venues (The Loft, The Village Inn and The Nightingale Club) and who is also the Festival Director for Birmingham Pride, spoke about how encouraged he feels after one of his venue’s takings were “in line with those of an average Saturday pre-lockdown”.
Speaking about trading conditions, Barton told THEGAYUK
“In spite of restrictions on customer numbers, volume of music, social distancing and a strict no bar service, one of our venues had takings that were in line with those of an average Saturday pre-lockdown. Meanwhile, despite takings at The Village Inn being fifty-five per cent down on pre-lockdown levels, these were in line with our forecasts.
“Reports in the media and elsewhere of widespread flouting of public health rules and requirements were not reflected here in Birmingham. I was enormously encouraged by the responsible behaviour demonstrated on the part of patrons in adhering to social distancing requirements and the pragmatic approach police adopted in ensuring adherence.
“I am confident that yesterday marks the start of a long road to recovery for both the sector and our economy as a whole.”
Also commenting, Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, said,
“Last night was very encouraging for the region’s hospitality sector, and I want to thank the vast majority of people who followed social distancing guidelines and behaved very responsibly.
“There is no question that it is a long way back, but last night will help to give people confidence that they can safely enjoy a trip to a restaurant or pub.
“We have seen how dangerous this virus can be and, as we slowly ease lockdown measures, everyone must continue to follow the Government guidelines and keep up the basics of hand washing and social distancing.”
We’ve just had Pride month and along with that thousands of corporate entities adopted the iconic rainbow symbol, hundreds sent their well-wishes to the LGBT+ community but even fewer actively call out bigotry unlike the Post Office, which managed to deal with homophobic bigotry levelled at its staff in the most perfect way.
In a Twitter post published by the Post Office official account on the 19th June, the Post Office’s Chief Marketing Officer Emma Springham, shared her “journey to pride”, to which one user, @jamesmc13123269 responded with “Degenerate”.
This attack on Emma didn’t go unnoticed by Courtney from the office who called out the bigotry saying,
“Do you honestly think it’s okay to speak about my colleague like that? Your comment is absolutely disgusting. You don’t know Emma personally to even comment on the type of woman she is, so please don’t respond unless you have something positive to say”
Do you honestly think it's okay to speak about my colleague like that? Your comment is absolutely disgusting. You don't know Emma personally to even comment on the type of woman she is, so please don't respond unless you have something positive to say 👍 – Courtney
While another user complained about the use of the rainbow flag saying, “It is not right to quit-claim something that belongs to all mankind.”
However this complaint was expertly handled by Stephen, who replied,
“The rainbow flag represents the diversity and vibrancy of the LGBTQ+ community which we’re proud to celebrate as it gives us the chance to reaffirm the equality, rights and dignity of the LGBTQ+ community in the UK and beyond.”
The rainbow flag represents the diversity and vibrancy of the LQBTQ+ community which we’re proud to celebrate as it gives us the chance to reaffirm the equality, rights and dignity of the LGBTQ+ community in the UK and beyond. – Stephen
One user who used the word faggots against was also taken to task, when the comm team tweet a poll which asked, “Should we continue listening to language like this? and included “Absolutely Not” and “No” as the only two options.
Should we continue listening to language like this?
The boom of online shopping hasn’t just stopped at online groceries, now you can get your favourite sex toy and lube direct to your door, but which sex shop offers the best shipping deals?
There are a number of online adult stores based in the UK. They include the well-established gay brands such as Prowler and Clone Zone but also Bent and our very own TheGayShop.
All of these shops offer home delivery, but what does it cost?
For our experiment, we looked at the price of shipping a bottle of Liquid Silk 250ml to a UK mainland address. Here’s what we found.
THEGAYSHOP came out with the cheapest P&P coming in at £3.75 – using Royal Mail while Love Honey was the most expensive costing a whopping £3.99 for postage, however, they did use Royal Mail’s tracking service.
So here’s what the various brands charged for delivery of 250ml bottle of Liquid Silk.
All of the stores also offer free stand delivery on orders when you reach a certain price.
Prowler free delivery on orders over £25
TheGayUK free delivery on orders over £40
Regulation free delivery on orders over £50
Bent / Esmale free delivery on orders over £20
CloneZone free delivery on orders over £25
LoveHoney free delivery on orders over £40
GayMegaStore free delivery on orders over €120
Disclosure: TheGayShop is a division of Pineapple Rock Ltd. and profits go towards funding THEGAYUK.com. This is not an advertisement and the contents have not been paid for by any party.
Victoria Beckham has released a t-shirt which aims to raise money for the LGBT+ charity Albert Kennedy Trust.
But it looks to be sold out – and it cost £90!
The simple T-Shirt which bears the slogan, “Everyone Deserves Love” from Victoria Beckham seems to have sold out – as no options are available left on the official website. VB has promised that 25 per cent of each sale will go to help out LGBT+ homelessness.
However, explaining the reasoning behind the apparel, Victoria said,
“In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall uprising, I wanted to celebrate the LGBTQ+ community and their continued message of positive change and inclusivity,
“This year, for the first time, I’ve created a t-shirt with proceeds benefitting the Albert Kennedy Trust that champion human rights.”
One of the UK’s most traditional brands, Fairy washing up liquid is about to donate a huge 50K to the Albert Kennedy Trust with the launch of a limited edition product.
Fairy is coming out in support of the LGBT+ community by promising to donate £50,000 to the Albert Kennedy Trust, the LGBT+ homelessness charity with the launch of its limited edition FAIR range.
This comes as the brand publishes The FAIR Report which looks at the attitudes and perceptions of British parents and finds that, while things have come a long way in Britain since Fairy launched in the 1950s, there is still a long way to go for all families to enjoy equality. Key findings include:
Less than a third (30%) of British parents surveyed said they think families with LGBT+ members are fairly treated in 2019
Seven in ten (69%) said they would support their child if they were in a same-sex relationship and wanted to have a child
When asked what would help to create equality for families with LGBT+ members, education in schools was the top answer (59%)
While some stats from the report were promising, others showed there is still work to be done:
Just over half of parents (59%) think that they talk openly and positively about LGBT life and issues to their kids.
Less than half of parents of an LGBT+ child (47%) believe that their child was comfortable telling them they are LGBT+
Over a quarter (27%) of British parents say they agree that it is fair to treat people differently because of who they love or who loves them
Nearly 1 in 5 (18%) said that LGBT+ parenting has no place in 2019
The research, conducted amongst 2,000 British parents during May 2019, shows that, while we’ve come a long way, there is room for family life to be more FAIR today. For this reason, FAIRY is donating £50k to the charity akt to help progress equality for members of the LGBT+ community and help them find a supportive family unit.
According to the research, a third (32%) of British parents say, within their family, they find it difficult to find the right moment to talk about sensitive issues. And whilst over half (59%) believe they talk with their children openly and positively about LGBT+ issues, a quarter of those surveyed (25%) did not.
“FAIRY has been a presence beside British kitchen sinks for over 70 years – if a bottle of FAIR can help families find a moment to talk openly and positively about LGBTQI+ issues, that will really help shift perceptions and drive equity for all family members, everywhere,” said Tim Sigsworth, CEO of akt.
“Fairy’s donation will help akt develop innovative responses to ensure parents, caregivers and siblings are better informed and supported – increasing the possibility that young people will continue to enjoy a supportive and loving family life, after they come out.”
“Whilst there has been huge progress in equality in the UK, there’s still room for greater fairness. In partnership with akt, our FAIR campaign recognises and celebrates the diversity in family life today” said Tom Moody, Vice President & General Manager, P&G Northern Europe
“When people chose a limited edition FAIR bottle and place it by their sink at home, they’ll be supporting a fabulous cause and our vision to create a world free from bias where everyone is free to be themselves” he continued.
Fairy has created ‘The Fairy FAIR film’ with campaign ambassador, Duncan James and akt to accompany the report. Commenting on it, Duncan said, “I count myself so lucky that my Mum and grandparents have been so loving and supportive over the years.
“We have come such a long way but The FAIR Report highlights that there are still so many members of the LGBTQ+ community who struggle to have a happy family life. I would encourage families – next time you’re having a cup of tea or doing the washing up, have a chat and let each other know, we’re all equal no matter who we love or who loves us.”
The limited edition FAIR range will be available from leading retailers from July 2019. A donation of £50,000 will go to akt.
Shocking new research shows that 36 per cent of corporations that are utilizing the rainbow flag for Pride month are not giving back to the LGBT+ community.
Research conducted by marketing experts, Rebootonline.com have noticed that only 64 per cent of companies undertaking promotional activity surrounding Pride are giving back to the community – while the research shows that nearly 90 per cent of the LGBT+ community feel that all brands using Pride should donate to LGBT+ causes.
Marketing experts Rebootonline.com noticed this spike in Pride campaigns by brands and decided to investigate their commitment to the LGBT+ cause, and how those in the community feel about the increase in ‘corporate Pride’. To do this they looked at 122 companies, of varying sizes, to see what LGBT+-related marketing they were doing, whether this was the first time they have done something for Price, and whether they were donating any proceeds to relevant charities.
The marketing agency also took into account a survey of 250 LGBT+ respondents, answering questions on how they felt about ‘Rainbow Capitalism’.
There has indeed been an increase in 2019 of brands taking part in Pride month. The results revealed that almost a third of the companies (29%) analysed had never done an LGBT-related marketing campaign before 2019.
Furthermore, only 64% of those with a campaign for Pride this year donated to charitable LGBT+ causes. This has caused a stir in the LGBT+ community, with 87% of those questioned stating that ALL corporations should be donating proceeds to relevant charities.
The survey also revealed that 9% of participants stated that they would go as far as purposefully NOT purchasing brand Pride tie-ins.
This is perhaps a wise choice as, upon further investigation of each company’s CEI (Corporate Equality Index) score (when available), over 1 in 10 companies scored less than 80% for their “steps to ensure greater equity for LGBT+ workers and their families in the form of comprehensive policies, benefits and practices”, with the majority of these failing to provide “equivalency in same and different-sex domestic partner medical and soft benefits” and showing a lack of “equal health coverage for transgender individuals without exclusion for medically necessary care.”
Rainbow Bandwagon
CREDIT: TheGayUK
Clothing brand H&M was given a meagre CEI score of 45% by HRC. Yet they have participated in “corporate pride” this year, with their ‘pride collection’- although they are donating 10% of their proceeds to “support the work of the United Nations’ Free & Equal campaign”- unlike 34% of other companies jumping on the rainbow bandwagon without giving back.
Other findings from the survey conducted revealed that 84% felt that they felt “positively” about these branded Pride campaigns, with one stating “celebration of LGBTQ is great to raise awareness, especially to younger generations”.
The LGBT+ community were unanimous in thinking that corporations should “do more throughout the year to help LGBT+ causes, rather than just for Pride month”, with 96% of respondents agreeing with this sentiment.
This year is an important year for our LGBTQ+ community. It’s fifty years since the Stonewall riots this Pride Month, so this should be a June to celebrate more than ever.
We’re only nine days in but we’ve already had many disgusting stories in the headlines where LGBTQ+ people have been targeted and hurt because of their sexuality or gender identity. We have had companies hiding behind rainbow branding, actively damage our community. At the time of writing, it’s the 9th of June and I have a handful of examples of high profile stories. This doesn’t count the small, unreported moments – the couples holding hands who get glared at, the LGBTQ+ people who are told by strangers (and even people they know) that “being gay isn’t normal,” and the ignorant, uneducated comments faced by LGBTQ+ people every single day.
The main concern this Pride Month is that every single company seems to take on our rainbow flag in an attempt to “be cool,” but they don’t seem to think about what it actually means. The rainbow is more than just a flag. It flies as a visual representation of the beauty and diversity of our collective community/family. We wear it as a badge of honour in memory and respect of those who fought for us and paved the way for our equality. Now it is cheapened by this mass adoption every June by companies who tend to only bring it out for a few weeks a year and then forget it ever happened. If companies can’t respect our community or contribute to us in any way then they don’t deserve the right to use it to drive their own corporate gain.
This year we have had the Home Office using the rainbow colours all over their social media while trying to deport Ken Macharia. Ken has lived here in the UK for a decade after escaping from Kenya where homosexuality is illegal and he could have been imprisoned (by law) or beaten or even murdered by anyone who took umbrage to him living his truth.
— Sky Sports Rugby Union (@SkySportsRugby) June 3, 2019
Ken had been detained and threatened with deportation last November when it was ruled that he could live his life openly in Kenya despite the dangerous possibilities that actually faced him back there. He was allowed to go but was summoned to the Home Office on Thursday 6th June where he, once again, faced deportation. Thankfully, Ken was allowed to stay in the UK but he still isn’t completely safe and could still face deportation again at a later date.
Youtube has been another company that have hurt LGBTQ+ people during a recent ongoing saga with Carlos Maza and Stephen Crowder. Maza is a writer for Vox, a left-wing news site while Crowder is an inflammatory, right-wing YouTuber who hosts “Louder with Crowder” on the video platform with an audience of millions.
The story unfolded when Maza posted a thread on Twitter, exposing the abuse he had been facing from Crowder who had consistently called him vile names and made outrageous accusations about him for being gay and Latino for years. Maza rightfully called for YouTube to acknowledge the abuse and to do something about Crowder.
Since I started working at Vox, Steven Crowder has been making video after video “debunking” Strikethrough. Every single video has included repeated, overt attacks on my sexual orientation and ethnicity. Here’s a sample: pic.twitter.com/UReCcQ2Elj
“Our teams spent the last few days conducting an in-depth review of the videos flagged to us and while we found the language that was clearly hurtful, the videos as posted don’t violate our policies.”
This decision sparked outrage and soon after, YouTube decided to reverse their position again and demonetise Crowder with a statement saying:
“Update on our continued review. We have suspended this channel’s monetization. We came to this decision because a pattern of egregious actions has harmed the broader community and is against out Youtube Partner Program Policies.”
Shockingly, it appears that Youtube may have been planning this for a while and Crowder’s demonetisation might not have even been anything to do with Maza’s tweets. Instead, with the announcement crossing over with the timing of this very public drama, Maza has ended up facing all the backlash and is suffering, even more, hate and harassment. Whatever YouTube’s reasoning – whether it was pre-determined or because of Maza and the backlash, their handling of events have made things much worse. Even high profile people like Grandpa Munster ahem I mean, Ted Cruz, have got involved: You can read more about this interesting take on events here.
Most recently the NSPCC (National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children) had launched a campaign with trans-activist Munroe Bergdorf. On Wednesday 5th June, Bergdorf spoke out about her excitement to help play a part in an important role:
“The wellbeing and empowerment of LGBTQIA+ identifying children is something that I have been passionate about throughout my career as an activist. I’m excited to have the opportunity to let more kinds know that they are not along in how they feel. There are people who care, people who can help and people who have been through the same things as you, so PLEASE don’t suffer in silence.”
However, soon after she spoke out about her involvement, anti-trans activists, including a Times journalist and other Twitter users became involved, accusing Bergdorf of being “dangerous,” a “porn model,” and they threatened to cancel their direct debits to the charity if they allowed their association with her to continue.
Bergdorf replied that she has “never shot porn in [her] life,” and saying that “demonising those who do, isn’t okay either.” She had posed for Playboy in 2018 but the shoot was actually very tasteful and the images captured were strong, beautiful and empowering for Bergdorf who also spoke about her experiences as a trans woman in the accompanying article. Not a single one of those photos could be considered pornographic; in fact, they were more akin to the edgy fashion modelling one would expect from a fashion magazine.
Despite this, the NSPCC has dropped Bergdorf’s campaign and turned their backs on her saying,
“Munroe Bergdorf has supported the most recent phase of Childline’s campaign which aims to support children with LGBTQ+ concerns. Munroe has been referred to as a Childline Ambassador. At no point has she been an ambassador for the charity. She will have no ongoing relationship with Childline or the NSPCC. The NSPCC does not support, endorse of authorise any personal statements made by any celebrities who contribute to campaigns.”
This sends a cold and dangerous message to the people this campaign is meant to help. By leaving Bergdorf behind and refusing to acknowledge her is cruel. How can LGBTQ+ children trust a charity who might treat them so nonchalantly? This is a cruel betrayal of not only Bergdorf but of the entire LGBTQ+ community. Especially the trans community who currently suffer the same kind of hatred through misinformation and lack of education that the gay community faced in the 80s. I spoke about this before in a previous article. You can read more about it here:
The most heartbreaking part of this is that it comes at the same time Childline, which works closely with the NSPCC, confirmed that over the last twelve months they have dealt with over 6,000 counselling sessions with children and young people about LGBTQ+ issues. Birmingham Live revealed that almost 800 calls were made to the Birmingham branch of Childline and some children have even been told to “kill themselves” because of their sexuality. These are some of the loneliest, most desperate and vulnerable children and they are being failed.
What kind of message does it send when in the news we see our very existence as a daily hot topic for debate. We are bombarded with people digging their noses into every inch of our lives, deciding whether we’re “appropriate” enough to exist or not. We see the protests in Birmingham over LGBTQ+ inclusive education and are told by strangers online that we are “mentally ill,” that “we are not normal,” and that we are “disgusting.”
Despite the fact that relationship education is becoming mandatory by law, and an injunction taken out which restricted parents protesting outside the schools, they still continue just outside the restriction zone. The protests led by Shakeel Afsar, who doesn’t even have children at the school, have recently been endorsed by Roger Godsif – Labour’s MP for Birmingham Hall Green.
The protests were also defended by Shabana Mahmood back when they first started in March.
On 30th May, a lesbian couple was brutally attacked on a bus by a gang of young men – aged between 15-18 – all because they wouldn’t kiss for their entertainment. This attack wasn’t just a homophobia based hate crime. It was a misogynist hate crime too, just because the two women didn’t want to “entertain” the young men. It’s a horrendous, heartbreaking story. Luckily the women involved have remained resilient and refuse to back down and be scared. The heroines have spoken out and intend to continue to live proudly and visibly.
But that wasn’t the only hate crime this week. On Saturday 8th June, a performance of Rotterdam was cancelled due to some of the actors being victims of a hate crime. Rotterdam is a play about a young lesbian who is about to come out to her family in an email but before she can send it, her girlfriend tells her that she identifies as a male and wants to start living as a man. It’s about how they begin to navigate their relationship and love for each other. It’s a wonderful, modern story that deserves to be told and clearly has reason to be heard.
Sadly, we can’t hide from the fact that our community are the target of so much hatred in the current political climate in which this extreme right-wing attitude is legitimised and even fuelled by people like Donald Trump with his transgender military ban and the proposal of bills that mean it’s legal to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people in the workplace, etc.
In the UK, Brexit Party member, Ann Widdecombe, stated that it’s entirely possible that maybe one-day science will cure homosexuality and Tory Leadership candidate, Esther McVey stuck up for the parent’s protesting against LGBTQ+ inclusive education by saying “parent’s know what’s best for their children.”
The Brexit Party did unexpectedly well at the recent EU elections and McVey stands a good chance of becoming our next PM.
What does this say about the future? Nothing positive. That’s what. All that we can take away from this is that on this fiftieth anniversary of Stonewall, we must all adopt some Stonewall spirit and keep fighting. It is an undeniably terrifying and uncertain time to be LGBTQ+ but we must be brave enough to remain visible and dignified. We must live honestly, love openly and not let them silence us.
GROWLr has become the latest dating app, aimed at gay and bi men to be sold, and it was sold for some big $$$s!
Although the amount paid for it is dwarfed by the amount paid by a Chinese gaming firm for Grindr, the buyers still parted with nearly $12,000,000 ($11.8m) for GROWLr and that’s not to be sniffed at. This also means the app is no longer gay-owned or operated and becomes an “acquired property” of the much larger company, The Meet Group.
Currently, GROWLr has around 10 million users of which 200,000 of them use the app daily.
Speaking about the acquisition, Geoff Cook, the CEO of The Meet Group, said, “In addition to reporting a strong quarter, I’m excited to announce the acquisition of Growlr, which provides a meaningful step into the large same-sex dating market and expands the base of users to whom we can deliver our live video product,
“We are thrilled to add Growlr to The Meet Group portfolio,” said Cook.
“Similar to what we have done with our other acquired properties, we plan to be aggressive in bringing our video model to Growlr. We expect to begin rolling out live video on Growlr in the fourth quarter of 2019.
“We also see opportunities to grow advertising revenue on the app, and we plan to further invest in user acquisition to expand brand awareness and reach.”
Topics covered over social media in 2019 cover a variety of subjects, the one surrouding healthy eating can cause a Twitter storm if not handled in the right way warns industry experts, which came with the warning “For brands venturing into this topic, it is essential to consider planning in advance and staying away from political and divisive subjects”.
The latest immediate future report, using data analysed from Brandwatch, looks at the rising ‘healthy eating’ and ‘healthy food’ conversations on social media in the UK. Whilst most posts are positive, there is a significant number of passionately angry and disgruntled ones. The backlash spikes around those organisations pushing the healthy eating agenda such as brands, government and celebrity chefs.
Anger drives social sharing.
Katy Howell, CEO at immediate future, says, “Shares, accounting for almost 40% of social posts, are driven by two core behaviours: anger (and some pretty spicy language), at the affordability and cost of eating healthy food; and the making of healthy foods, from recipes and planning, to food origins.”
Social data analysed using social intelligence tool, Brandwatch, shows that 39% of posts around cost, mention the issue of affordability of healthy food options and 30% declare eating well is expensive. And it’s the 42% men on social, talking healthy eating, that tend to rant the most!
Rising year on year healthy eating is predicted to continue an upward trend on social. The conversations don’t just spike in January, they run through the year as UK consumers are increasingly conscious of, and educated about, what they eat. For relevant brands this is an opportunity to raise awareness and engage with consumers in a shopping category that is burgeoning.
Katy continues, “Joining the healthy food trends is perfect for food, fitness and weight-loss brands. However, companies must plan. Awareness of the topics that both spark debate and anger should form part of your brand’s approach. Transparency and authenticity are key if you don’t want to be battling negativity on social.”
The report, reviews a year’s worth of social data, looking at posts that mention healthy eating and healthy foods and it’s available for free at http://po.st/eatwell
Two of the three co-founders of the Chappy app have stepped down.
Chappy, today announced that two of its three original co-founders, Ollie Locke and Jack Rogers, have decided to leave the company. Its Board of Directors has collectively appointed Sam Dumas to succeed the duo as the Global Head of Brand. Locke and Rogers will step down on 29th August 2018 after 18 months with the company. Max Cheremkhin will remain as an active co-founder working with Dumas to ensure a smooth and seamless transition.
“Leading Chappy has truly been an honour, for both of us. We’re incredibly proud of all that the Chappy team have achieved over the past 18 months to advance the interests of the community while inspiring other technology to be a force for good. Guided by our philosophy of kindness and respect, we launched in new global markets, reinspired trust in dating, whilst also lifting up all the communities we serve. We’ve made a more meaningful impact in people’s lives than we ever dreamed possible. We truly believe Max and Sam will continue to take the company from strength to strength and are excited to follow and support Chappy’s journey from the sidelines. The company will always hold a special place in our hearts, but the time has come for us both to refocus our energy on exciting new projects and we wish everyone involved all the very best for the future.”
Ollie Locke, Jack Rogers, Co-founders, Chappy.
“In Chappy, Jack, Max and Ollie have created something special over the past 18 months, from building our incredible team to taking the app to its first half a million users. It’s an important milestone that presents an opportunity for refocusing our brand and evolving our product, marketing and positioning here in the US. At its heart, Chappy is about helping gay form relationships with other like-minded men looking for something similar. Max and I share a love and respect for the DNA of Chappy and are delighted to have such a strong foundation to build on.”Sam Dumas, Global Head of Brand, Chappy.
Vodafone cements its ongoing support for the LGBT+ community by updating a raft of policies to help transgender customers.
This is how you do business.
Telcoms giant, Vodafone has announced a series of trans-inclusive initiatives, as part of the company’s commitment to improving the lives of employees and customers.
The announcement comes ahead of Vodafone’s sponsorship of Brighton Pride this weekend, part of Pride events throughout the country which the company supports.
New initiatives include:
Vodafone’s ‘Name Change’ process has been simplified and there is no need for a customer to visit a store or speak to a customer agent to do this. Instead, it can be by post; it simply requires one form to be completed with proof of the name change. This is intended to remove anxiety which may arise from the need to speak to someone. Full details can be accessed here: Name Change Process
A new ‘life events’ section has been added to Vodafone’s customer website to provide easier access to information on the ‘Name Change’ process. Vodafone has also made it easier to search and find relevant information.
For Pay Monthly customers, 24 months of bills will now be accessible, which can be used to support applications for a Gender Recognition Certificate.
A specialist team has been established to respond to ‘living as me’ requests, available on livingasme@help.vodafone.co.uk
Customers can also adopt the gender-neutral Mx prefix via our live chat, voice and retail channels.
Vodafone is a proud supporter of lesbian, bi, gay and trans communities and recognises that there are key moments when colleagues and customers may need additional support.
Vodafone has also been listening to LGBT+ communities and in particular, the experience trans people have when engaging with large organisations. Independent cross-sector research in April this year indicated that:
Trans and non-binary people felt it was a battle dealing with large organisations.
They felt they needed to ‘come out’ every time they engaged a customer service team.
The name change process caused anxiety, was prone to errors and felt unfair when compared to the experience of other groups.
Contact centre agents and in-store advisors were quick to make judgements based on appearance and by sound of voice.
Gendered selections were exclusive and did not reflect all identities.
New biometric processes could be inflexible and proved a challenge for those transitioning.
In July 2018, the UK Government published results from a national LGBT+ survey which saw more than 108,000 LGBT+ people take part and provide insight into LGBT+ life across the UK. In light of the findings, Vodafone launched an LGBT+ Retail Ambassador programme to train and support in-store employees with LGBT+ topics. This has led to the rainbow symbol being incorporated into name badges and more than 100 retail stores have come out to support local pride events up and down the country. This complements existing training initiatives such as the Vodafone Way of Care that incorporates LGBT+ scenarios into our frontline training.
The company has introduced a customer reporting process that now tracks negative experiences LGBT+ customers may have experienced. This will enable Vodafone to get faster feedback from LGBT+ customers on where change is needed to improve how we support customers.
These customer initiatives build on work Vodafone is already doing to support colleagues, which this year has included launching a “Friends of LGBT” accreditation programme and a series of initiatives to support young LGBT+ people when they start their first job. This includes offering all new graduates an LGBT+ buddy and supporting 400 graduates through inclusive leadership training.
