Network Buzz Issue 2 by Inclusive Networks

BUZZ ISSUE 2

January - February 2015

www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

COVER STAR

LEWIS HANCOX

We meet the super talented filmmaker and transgender ambassador

EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW

CLAIRE YOUNG

LET TOYS BE TOYS

We talk role models, career advice and apprenticeships with the entrepreneur, youth advocate and Apprentice finalist

‘Girls’ and ‘boys’ signs limit children's choices. We chat to volunteer Tessa Trabue about their work and taking on the UK’s biggest retailers

CELEBRATE

Leading charity Action for Children have launched a new employee network. We celebrate its launch

In partnership with

Proudly presented by

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 2

BUZZ The UK’s first magazine for

Network Groups

24-26 30-32 44-46 58-59 49-51 56-57 JOIN OUR MAILING LIST AND KEEP UPDATED ON OUR EVENTS, PUBLICATIONS, NEWS AND COMPETITIONS. REGISTER AT www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

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Introduction Our first two months Interview: Lewis Hancox Celebrating Diversity Interview : Claire Young Network Eye

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Feature : Molly Aldrich-Wincer Action for Children : Celebrate Features coming soon

28-29 | 30-32 | 34 | 36-38 | 40-41 | 42-43 | 44-46 | 47 | 49-51 |

Inclusive Networks Awards Interview : Amelia Rope Top Employers Interview : Let Toys Be Toys Network Group Tips Interview : Pop ‘n’ Olly Feature : Shelley Chapman News & The Wireless Report Interview : Leslie Jordan

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Interview : A*Base Their first UK interview Music : New Releases Interview : Noreen Khan Interview : Marcus Collins The IN List One To Watch : Taylor Jones

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3 | Network

Editor & Chief Executive Thomas Anderson @thomasinmanc thomas@inclusivenetworksuk.co.uk Advertising info@inclusivenetworksuk.co.uk Inclusive Networks & OUT in the UK logos Designers Up North www.designersupnorth.com Diversity Illustrations Jack Greaves Cover Photo Sophie Moore Contributors Lewis Hancox Claire Young Molly Aldrich-Wincer Siobhan Corria Amelia Rope Tessa Trabue Shelley Chapman Thank you to everyone that spared the time to contribute to our first edition. It wouldn’t have all been possible without this incredible support. Big thanks to my partner Matthew for his continued support.

disclaimer ©2015 OUT in the UK Ltd registered in England and Wales no. 08975724 All rights reserved. Material is strictly copyright. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission from OUT in the UK Ltd is forbidden. We’ve taken great care to ensure the accuracy of the information in this magazine but we cannot accept responsibility for omissions or errors. The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of OUT in the UK Ltd. Images included of people do not indicate their sexuality.

Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

Editor’s Introduction Welcome to Network Buzz Happy New Year. I hope you had a happy festive season, and if you’ve made any New Year resolutions, that these are going to plan. I never bother with them. I have one motto this year, ‘Go for it’. It’s something I put into action at the end of 2014. A lot has happened since the launch of Inclusive Networks on 24th October last year. I always planned a soft launch to plant the seeds for a full launch event in the Spring this year once I had something more visible to talk to people about. That’s still the plan. When I had the idea for ‘Inclusive Networks’, and the offshoot ‘OUT in the UK’ I had imagined juggling my time spent doing what I love, supporting and celebrating the work of network groups, inclusive employers, charities and community groups, social media and all things comms, with my full time day job at The Co-operative Pharmacy. Doing all of the Inclusive Networks work on evenings and weekends, exactly what I’ve been doing up until now. The two couldn’t have been further apart though. I made a big decision in the week I launched Inclusive Networks and the first issue of

Network Buzz. I handed in my notice at work after over six years in a role I was successful in. I’m not going to fib, it was a really easy decision to make and it feels fantastic starting 2015 with Inclusive Networks getting my full attention. There’s so many ideas I’d like to develop. Thank you to the few key people who inspired me to just go for it. Throughout this issue I’ll let you know about some of what I’ve been up to and also a bit more about some of the things we have coming up. It’s certainly been a busy few months. Following the last issue I’ve been approached by lots of network groups around the UK and I’m looking forward to working more closely with and supporting them throughout 2015. There are so many people doing lots of selfless and great work. I have come across lots of networks in the last few months that I didn’t previously know about and that excites me. The nominations for the inaugural Inclusive Networks ‘Awesome Network’ award are now closed and the quality of the 60+ nominations has been really high and it has really highlighted why this recognition is needed. Reading the nominations there are lots of networks with a

lesser profile, for smaller organisations doing lots of innovative work that are shaping workplace cultures and I am delighted to be able to reward this in some small way. We’ll be announcing the lucky networks on 12th February, a bit of love from us before Valentines Day. It’s now full steam ahead with the inaugural Inclusive Networks Awards. Celebrating the wider work of networks, their members and inclusive employers, we’ll be announcing details of the venue and sponsors very soon. Nominations are open, so what are you waiting for - see pages 28-29 for more info. Please get in touch if you’d like to share your work, or need any support developing or getting your network off the ground. Together we can achieve so much more. I hope you enjoy the second issue of Network Buzz.

Thomas Anderson

Network Buzz Editor & Founder & Chief Executive of Inclusive Networks and George House Trust Ambassador

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Some highlights from our first two months

Stephen Fry wishes us ‘good luck’ On 28 October 2014 we were taken aback when the truly inspiring ‘King of Twitter’ Stephen Fry sent a tweet to his 7.77 million Twitter followers wishing us ‘Good luck’. The tweet was sent in the week we oﬃcially launched and the visible support from such an authentic role model to his millions of followers really means a lot to us. Thomas Anderson, Founder and Chief Executive of Inclusive Networks said:

“As a huge supporter of diversity and equality, to be acknowledged by someone as authentic and inspiring as Stephen Fry in the week Inclusive Networks oﬃcia"y launched is truly amazing. We’re thri"ed to have the support of Stephen and we look forward to starting our journey. What a way to start.” The Inclusive Networks team would like to congratulate Stephen on his engagement to his partner Elliott Spencer. We wish you many more years of happiness together.

We’ve been out and about We hit the ground running and have attended a number of network group and networking events in the last few months. Our invites to date have been mainly from LGBT networks but we’d love to attend more events from other diversity strands too, hint hint. Recent events we’ve attended include the launch of the Ally Programme at law firm Linklaters, ‘The Network of Networks’ LGBT event hosted by PwC as well as invites to the launch of The Independent’s ‘Rainbow List’ and many more. We’ve met lots of wonderful people and discovered lots of new networks too. Fabulous.

Over 12,000 views on our website We launched our website on 20 October 2014 and we’re thrilled that in the first two months we’ve received over 12,000 views - and growing quickly. We’re overjoyed. We’ve received lots of positive feedback too so thank you to everyone for this and we hope you’re enjoying and finding some use out of your visits to the website. We’ll be launching Phase2 from February 2015 so watch out for this. New additions will include dedicated careers, entertainment and events pages. We’re looking forward to sharing these new pages with you soon. We’re getting bigger. Check out our website at www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

7,700+ Twitter followers. Follow us and join in the conversations at @IncNetworks , @OUTintheUK & @NetworkBuzzMag

Not Beyond Us Join us on February 4th worldcancerday.org

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COVER STAR I N T E R V I E W

Photo by Sophie Moore

Lewis Hancox Since starring in the Channel 4 series My Transsexual Summer in 2011 Lewis has pursued his ambitions in filmmaking. He directs, films, edits, writes and acts. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s worked with Hollyoaks, Lucky Tooth Films, Channel 4 and All About Trans. He co-created the My Genderation film project with Fox Fisher - documentary films about the transgender community. Heâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s also an Ambassador for All About Trans. Interview by Thomas Anderson

COVER STAR Lewis Hancox

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

“Some people still have an attitude that children should not be exposed to transgender people. So to have the show on a mainstream channel on primetime was a massive step in showing people that it’s not a taboo subject.”

What impact has appearing on My Transexual Summer had on your life? It’s impacted my life in such a massive way, on many levels. One of the outcomes was I got to have my chest surgery because the NHS in my local town wouldn’t fund it. I set up some fundraising events and so many people all across the country donated and I managed to get it done. Being a part of the show has really made my career what it is. I’ve always wanted to be a filmmaker and I’ve always been creative but I didn’t have that platform and I think being on the show gave me that platform for people to look me up and watch the films that I make. It threw me in to the media. It’s had a massive impact on my life. Before the first episode aired, me and my mum were a bit nervous at first. After saying yes to being a part of the show, just before the filming started I had second thoughts and almost backed out. All of my friends knew I was transgender and my family, but it’s not something I went around telling people as I just didn’t see it was that important, and I didn’t know how people would react I suppose. I was really nervous as I was thinking, ‘Is this going to change my life?’. I didn’t know how other people would see me. Would people see me in a different way? Was it going to ruin my life? Then, at the last minute I thought, ‘Let’s go for it’. How many chances like that do you get in life to try and change peoples opinions about transgender people and to help tackle the prejustices that are out there? After the first episode aired I had such a positive reaction and I didn’t have a single negative comment, even from the people I may have expected this from in my little hometown of St Helens in the North West of England. People were saying, ‘Oh, it’s that lad off the

telly, well done’. There was no transphobic comments so it was a big reassurance that things would be ok, and for me to give the public a bit more credit too. I think a lot of people think being transgender is a bit of a taboo. A lot of people associate it with sexuality and sex and gender are something completely different, it’s not at all sexual. Some people still have an attitude that children should not be exposed to transgender people. So to have the show on a mainstream channel on primetime was a massive step in showing people that it’s not a taboo subject. To get a mainstream audience watching it was great too. I’d like to think it had a big impact on the public and I know a lot of people stumbled across the programme, people that wouldn’t normally watch a programme like it. People got captured by it. Comments I’ve received from lots of people make me believe the show has supported change lots of peoples minds and help them understand that transgender people are real people and there’s not that much different about us. I also met my girlfriend Sophie as a result of the show. She watched the show and before that, she didn’t even know transgender guys existed. There’s more trans women in the media, so lots of people don’t know it can happen the other way around. It was a real eye opener for my girlfriend, and now we’re together.

I’ve moved to Brighton and we’re at opposite ends of the country but we’ve still been keeping in touch on the phone. I see Sarah and Donna every now and again too. We’re all friends.

We tend to see transgender females being more visible in the promo material for trans events than transgender men I think there definitely needs to be more trans men out there in the media. I don’t know why there is a lot more visibility in the media and at transgender events for trans women. I really want to be a part of that presence and to have a role in having more visibility for trans men.

Number 79 The Independent’s 2013 ‘Pink List’ (now known as the Rainbow List)

Do you keep in contact with anyone from the programme?

Fox and I have been making the ‘My Genderation’ documentaries together and we both live in Brighton so I see a lot of Fox. Drew, she was one of my best friends after the show and she’d come to St Helens every other weekend and we’d have loads of fun nights out. Our friendship has drifted a little bit as

Number 13 The Guardian’s Top 30 young people in digital media

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 8

“I’m just a guy who was born differently. I came through something and now I’ve come out the other side.”

Talking about My Genderation

Getting started in film making

My Genderation is a series of short films that each focus on a different transgender and gender variant, people that don’t fit in to the boxes of male or female, from all over the country and of all ages. The films show the many different identities and that transitioning isn’t the same for everyone and to show that transgender people and gender variant people are just people and we all have different interests and aspirations. To be honest, instead of focussing on peoples struggles, we’ve tried to make the films positive so people that watch can see that those people that do transition can have a perfectly happy and successful life and relationships. We hope the films give people a positive image of transgender people and for people who are maybe thinking about transitioning, but are afraid to, maybe they could watch them and feel inspired to come out and be who they are. We felt that the people taking part in the films opened up to me and Fox more as we could relate to them and their experiences and we weren’t going to over sensationalise their story and focus just on surgery.

I’ve done filmmaking ever since I was young and when I was little I was in to drawing cartoons and telling stories that way. Then, as I got a bit older, my dad bought me a camera and I realised I could tell all these stories through film. I took film and media studies at College too and I taught myself how to do most things. I went to University in London to study film and media but I haven’t yet completed my degree - it’s a long story. I’ve decided to put my degree on hold for now and just focus on the work I’m getting through and on my other projects. I think it’s good to have the qualification but at the same time I think the experience is kind of the most important thing, you can always teach yourself lots of things and just go out and do it. Fox came to me with the idea about making films about different transgender people and we teamed up and worked on a project. We’ve both had lots of recognition from this which is great. I still want to make films focussed on transgender people and experiences but I am trying to step away from that a little bit now and show people that there are other things I’m passionate about, like comedy and fiction. I’ll never drop the gender stuff completely but I

do want people to see a different side to me and my films now. Before I did ‘My Transexual Summer’ I wasn’t really a part of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) world and it was such a small part of my life. I still see it as small part of my life. I’m just a guy who was born differently. I came through something and now I’ve come out the other side. I don’t need to keep focussing on that. The benefits of making the films is they help other people and that’s something that is so rewarding, but at the same time I need to start making some films for myself and be creative and express myself in different ways. I’m an actor too and I’d love to be known for all of my skills, and then for the fact I’m transgender to be a bit of a side thing, it’s not really relevant but people know it. Then when people watch me, they’ll see they like my comedy or the work I do and me being transgender is a secondary thing. I’d like to normalise being transgender.

Boy on film

9 | Network

COVER STAR Lewis Hancox

Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

“I think my views may come from the fact that most LGBT organisations and groups focus less on the ‘T’ and I never really saw much relevance, or interest, for me.”

Does the T sit comfortably within LGBT? It’s a debate that’s been going on for quite a while. A lot of people don’t think they sit with each other, but lots of people do. Personally, I think the reason they sit so closely with each other is because many people go through the same struggles and there’s the whole coming out process, the risk of losing friends and family, fighting for equal rights. The similarities with the struggles is something a lot of people relate to and may have brought these together like we see now. I think the LGB and the T are completely different and gender and sexuality are different. There are some crossovers with shared experiences but I think they’re separate. I think it’s good to have them grouped together in some instances though as it’s great to support each other. I think my views may come from the fact that most LGBT organisations and groups focus less on the ‘T’ and I never really saw much relevance, or interest, for me. I wouldn’t really involve myself as they were mainly focussed on sexuality. There are some positive changes happening now and I think people are giving more attention to transgender people and this is a great thing.

We’re seeing lots more transgender people in the media and on TV There is more awareness now and trans people are in the mainstream more. Maybe what is happening now with transgender people is what happened with gay people 30 or so years ago with becoming more visible in the mainstream. So much has been done to get equal rights for lesbian, gay and bisexual people and an incredible amount of great things have been

achieved. Maybe people are now seeing it’s time to tackle transgender now and do more to support full inclusion for transgender people. I’d like to think the ‘My Transexual Summer’ show had a role to play in the recent positive shift but I think there’s still a way to go. Hopefully this will happen with more incidental trans people, trans actors, trans characters in TV shows, people just being out there and are well known. People like Paris Lees having a cameo in Hollyoaks is great.

experiences with our own families too. It’s all in the process of being finalised and we can’t wait for the official broadcast. I hope this all goes well and will be another platform to get lots more diverse work. I’m really excited.

How important are awareness raising days like Transgender Day of Remembrance?

I think they’re amazing initiatives and if anything, they’re a reminder to the world and those people who aren’t gay or transgender and Let’s talk haven’t been through the Hollyoaks same struggles. The historical and current I worked on some challenges can hit of the backstage home more with videos that were people. They’re available to view also a reminder of on their website. how far we’ve I presented one come. The fact of the videos there needs to be Lewis working with too. The these days, it shows some of the stars of hit organisation ‘All that there was a time TV show ‘Hollyoaks’ About Trans’ set when we were not up these interactions accepted at all. The that set up transgender world is a lot more people with people in the accepting now, but we media. Through this I did the shouldn’t forget historic struggles. work with Hollyoaks. I also directed a I’ve had a bit of a smooth sailing with second video. This was around myth people accepting me and I have a great busting and tackling different group of friends, and have never had misconceptions about transgender any issues with people accepting me for people so that was great. I’d love to do being transgender. I had my own some more work with them. I’m really internal struggles, with becoming proud of this work. happy with my body and also that my chest surgery was rejected, these were I’m also really proud of a broadcast me my own personal biggest struggles. I’ve and Fox have coming out on Channel 4. been very fortunate. But this isn’t true We’ve produced 25 short films, each of everyone. about three minutes long. Channel 4 have selected 11 of them that will be broadcast at some point in the near future in a 45 minute show with me and Fox presenting this. It also includes Pop this on your calendar some content about our own

Transgender Day of Remembrance takes place on 20 November 2015

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COVER STAR Lewis Hancox

“When I was growing up and at school all I knew was how I felt and I didn’t have a clue about anything transgender related and I had no idea that you could change your sex and transition. My family didn’t know either.”

LGBT network groups can’t forget the T Organisations need to be aware that this is such an important time for transgender people and getting more people to understand and accept us. It’s incredibly important to include the T and to show genuine acceptance for your transgender members. There are lots of transgender events all over the UK for networks to get involved with and support, like Sparkle and Trans Pride. Making these visible to your members alongside Pride events and other diversity events should be just as important. Transgender people are more of a minority than LGB people and being visible with supporting transgender events and initiatives is just as important. Even though we’re in the minority, there are still a lot of transgender people in the UK and I am sure a lot of people will have met a transgender person without even knowing it. I dream that in the future we don’t need things like network groups, but we have a long way to go.

Did you have a role model growing up? I don’t think I had many role models growing up, especially not transgender role models. When I was growing up and at school all I knew was how I felt and I didn’t have a clue about anything transgender related and I had no idea that you could change your sex and transition. My family didn’t know either. I remember telling my mum when I was 4 or 5 years old that I felt like a boy. My mum and dad had no idea what to do and what the outcome would be. That’s why I think it is so important now that people of a younger age are learning about the many differences in people

Lewis and Fox in action

and I think educating people about transgender related topics in schools is very important. A transgender persons life is so much more positive if they are confident to come out when they are younger, and are able to start puberty blockers and start hormones earlier and live a bigger percentage of their life as the real them. That’s why it’s incredibly important. I didn’t have any of that. When I got to the age of 19, this is when I first came out as transgender. I started to watch videos on YouTube, loads of transgender, mostly American guys, who made blogs and posted them. That is what taught me the most. I would then show the videos to my mum and friends to educate them. I make the videos now and it’s nice to think that maybe other people are doing the same with my own videos. Most of my transgender education came from YouTube.

My filmmaking role models Although he’s not a filmmaker, I really look up to Simon Pegg. I love his style of comedy and he writes his own stuff and features in his projects too. That’s what my dream would be, to write, direct and feature in my own stuff. He’s

such an inspiration of mine. He goes to show that you can write, produce and star in your productions. I love Wes Anderson’s filmmaking style. He does quirky comedy drama movies like Rushmore and Royal Tenenbaums. I used to watch his movies loads. He likes everything in his shots to be really symmetrical and the composition of the shots are just perfect. He’s a massive inspiration about how I’d like to shoot my films. Lots of my inspiration comes from my own life experiences as well. I love to take things that have happened to me and put a comedic touch on them. Like things lots of us can relate to, like getting shot down by a girl. Situations that in the moment are awful, but you can see a lighter side when you look back on them. I’d love to write a comedy about transitioning. Just because I think bringing humour to the very real life situation will help people see the lighter side of life.

What does 2015 have in store for you? It’s scary but exciting not really knowing what’s in the pipeline. I’ll be working with Fox with All About Trans again, we don’t know too much about what this work will be yet but I’m looking forward to it. I’ve written a few short comedies too and I’m going to make some films and submit them in to some film festivals. If nothing else, it’ll be good to keep developing these and sending them off to all of my contacts in the industry. I’m pushing with producing music video and videos for companies too, to get my bread and butter money. I’m having lots of fun doing it all. Hopefully it will all lead to somewhere. I think it’s going to be a good year.

lewishancox.com | @MrLewzer | www.youtube.com/user/MrLewzer

Hear my voice

People with a learning disability and their families, families like ours, face many challenges in life. There are 1.4 million people with a learning disability in the UK and many more who love and support them. This means millions of people who want to see change. In May 2015 we will elect the people who will run the country for the next 5 years. Together we must tell our future leaders what needs to change.

Our voice counts. Yours does too. Have your say and join the Hear my voice campaign.

www.mencap.org.uk/hearmyvoice #HearMyVoice 020 7696 5583 | hearmyvoice@mencap.org.uk

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A new year means lots of network groups and employers will be starting their year planning engagement and networking activities for the year ahead. We’ve brought together a selection of upcoming diversity and celebration dates, as well as a few special events that may be of interest to you, your employees and your network group members.

Getting involved Supporting diversity and inclusion

27th February – 1st March 2015

National Student Pride

Celebrating 10 years of supporting inclusion in higher education

Held at the University of Westminster, London, the event is a diverse one with something going on to appeal to everyone. The daytime job fair is where you’ll find stands from inclusive employers, charities and community groups. It’s worth a visit for the great giveaways alone. A coup for the event, they have an exclusive screening of the highly acclaimed ‘Boy Meets Girl’ which won Iris Prize’s Best Feature Film - not one to be missed. The panel discussions are always very popular. There’s plenty going on in the evening with a popular club night at G-A-Y Heaven with the ‘Camp Attack’ night. Keep checking their website and watch out for their Twitter posts for all the latest news. A weekend wristband costs £5 - See website for full details and ticket options.

www.studentpride.co.uk @StudentPride

An event we’d encourage you to support

13 3 | | Network Network Buzz Buzz || January January -- February February 2015 2015 || www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

27th January

Holocaust Memorial Day

Holocaust Memorial Day (HMD) has taken place in the UK since 2001, with a UK event and over 2,400 local activities taking place on or around 27 January each year. The UK played a leading role in establishing HMD as an international day of commemoration in 2000, when 46 governments signed the Stockholm Declaration. Between 1941 and 1945, the Nazis attempted to annihilate all of Europe’s Jews. This systematic and planned attempt to murder European Jewry is known as the Holocaust (The Shoah in Hebrew). By the end of the Holocaust, six million Jewish men, women and children had perished in ghettos, mass-shootings, in concentration camps and extermination camps. More at hmd.org.uk

Watch out for special features and articles on our website www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

FEB

4th February

World Cancer Awareness Day

Taking place under the tagline ‘Not beyond us’, World Cancer Day 2015 will take a positive and proactive approach to the fight against cancer, highlighting that solutions do exist across the continuum of cancer, and that they are within our reach. World Cancer Day is a unique opportunity to raise awareness that there is much that can be done at an individual, community and governmental level, to harness and mobilise these solutions and catalyse positive change. By moving forward together we have the potential to show: Cancer. It is not beyond us. More at worldcancerday.org

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Trans History Month celebrates the lives and achievements of the LGBT community. It’s a great opportunity to host events in the workplace to raise awareness of LGBT history. More at lgbthistorymonth.org.uk

18th February

8 MARCH

University Mental Health and Wellbeing Day

University Mental Health and Wellbeing Day is an annual event aiming to focus efforts that promote the mental health of people who live and work in Higher Education. More at umhan.com

Check out the useful Diversity Calendar on our website at www.inclusivenetworks.co.ukdiversity-calendar/

International Women's Day sees thousands of events occur to mark the economic, political and social achievements of women. It’s always a popular day for network groups to support. More at internationalwomensday.com

ADVERTISE WITH US You can contact us at info@inclusivenetworksuk.co.uk or call our Editor Thomas Anderson on 07702 130 348.

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SUPPORTING CHARITY

Rainbow Biz talk music with the Erasure frontman

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I N T E R V I E W

Claire Young Claire Young was born in Johannesburg and brought up in Wakefield, West Yorkshire, where she lives today. Made famous by her role as the highly driven runner up of series four of ‘The Apprentice’, Claire started out in roles at Colgate Palmolive, L’Oreal and Superdrug. She studied Equine Science at the University of Bristol and remains a keen rider. Claire runs her own business, ‘School Speakers’ and has co-founded ‘Girls Out Loud’. She also works within the media as a journalist/radio presenter in addition to working with the government on projects helping young people onto the career ladder and more women into business. In 2013 Claire gave birth to daughter, Eva. Interview by Thomas Anderson

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

Role Model Interview : Claire Young | Entrepreneur, Youth Advocate and Apprentice Finalist You've had a diverse career. What was the turning point where you thought you wanted to go it alone and be your own boss?

During my time in The Apprentice there were a number of candidates who ran their own businesses. I had a moment where I stood back and thought ‘Well, if they are doing it I can too’. I left the show, turned down job offers and took the risk of starting my first business. I have never looked back.

Did you have any hindering thoughts about leaving the security of working for big companies with the employee benefits, holiday and sick pay, pension......? Yes! It is a big step and one which needs to be considered with a lot of thought. Being an entrepreneur is not for everyone.

Do you think there is enough support out there for entrepreneurs and new business start ups?

Yes I think there is plenty of support, however, finding it can be tricky. I would suggest that people contact their local National Enterprise Agency, Chamber of Commerce or Start Up Loans website.

What would you say to someone who believes they have a great idea but they keep getting the door closed in their face? You need to have a level of tenacity to keep on going, there are difficult days. You

also need to listen to why people are saying no. There may be some useful feedback to take your idea from good to GREAT.

What about workplace Role Models. Has there been anyone in your career who has inspired you and you've looked up to?

Emma Walmsley was the general manager at L’Oreal in my first graduate job. She was dynamic, passionate and a bit of a ball breaker! She also balanced having a large family. I thought she was brilliant! She is now President of GSK, see www.gsk.com/ en-gb/about-us/corporateexecutive-team/emmawalmsley/

“The figures all show that a gender balanced workforce is the most productive and successful so we need it to happen.”

Do you think it's important that there is equal male/female representation in the boardroom?

Yes, very much so. The figures all show that a gender balanced workforce is the most productive and successful so we need it to happen.

Is it easier for men to balance having a successful career with a positive family life?

Culturally, I think that there are less expectations on men with regards to childcare duties and in that sense it is easier for them. For example, when a child is sick it is always assumed that the mother should step in – rarely the father.

Are there enough networking opportunities for people to meet, inspire and learn from each other, outside of the workplace? This all depends on the region where you live. In Yorkshire we have hundreds of networking events and groups. When I relocated back to the county, after 10 years in London, I spent two months getting myself out there meeting people. Hard work, but worth doing!

Career aspirations and dreams begin at school. What role do you think schools have to play in instilling belief that 'you can turn dreams in to reality'?

Students should leave school ready and prepared to face life outside of education. Self-belief and aspirations are key for success so schools should be embedding this into all of their messages and assemblies, and accessing external speakers to highlight opportunities for students.

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 16

Connect with Claire: www.claireyoung.co.uk | www.schoolspeakers.co.uk | @ClaireLYoung We'd love to know more about School Speakers

After taking part in The Apprentice I was asked by several schools to visit them and talk to their students. I know a number of great speakers and I saw a gap in the market to help schools find their services under one website, so I created ‘School Speakers’. We now have just under 300 speakers and work with schools across the UK and internationally.

We remember the careers advice support we had in school. It wasn't great. Do you think schools are better equipped to guide people into different and sometimes unconventional careers? No, I think careers informational advice and guidance is terrible in schools. There is no

consistence, no set structure and it is not objective. It needs a complete overhaul.

What would you say to someone who can see a great apprenticeship opportunity but taking it would mean they wouldn't be able to continue with their education? I would say get plenty of advice as some apprenticeship levels involve going to university and gaining a degree.

A degree nowadays isn’t necessarily needed for a successful career. I am a big fan of apprenticeships, earn whilst you learn, gain qualifications and real life experiences.

Can appearing on the BBC TV show The Apprentice damage someones career before they've really got started? That is up to the individual taking part!

What about support from the show once those famous words 'You’re fired' are said. Is there any? No.

You have so much going on with lots of fantastic businesses and initiatives. How do you manage to fit everything in to your week?

I am very organised. Everything is placed into an online diary so I can keep track of everything.

Do you think you're successful at balancing work life with a fulfilling personal life?

Yes. I have a two year old daughter, social life, gym and ride my horse. It’s important to balance and not burn out.

What do you enjoy doing when you're not working? Going to the cinema, riding my horse or having a nice cup of coffee whilst reading the paper.

The Apprentice

“I think careers guidance is terrible in schools. There is no consistence, no set structure and it is not objective. It needs a complete overhaul.”

“A degree nowadays isn’t necessarily needed for a successful career.”

What are you most proud of ?

My daughter Eva. She was born on June 20th and I was back to work on June 30th!

Do you have any New Years resolutions?

To keep up my good work life balance!

More about Claire: She has been nominated for the Queen's Enterprise Award and is honoured to represent the UK in The European Network of Female Entrepreneurship Ambassadors. She is Honorary President of Young Chamber UK (www.youngchamber.com) a not-for-profit social enterprise organisation which is dedicated to ensuring that young people of all levels of ability and background are equipped with the skills needed to fulfil their aspirations and achieve their goals.

School Speakers is a one-stop-shop website and service which connects schools with the best of the UK’s inspiring, motivational and informative speakers. Having over 280 speakers registered with School Speakers, they are confident that they can provide you with a speaker that will enthuse, motivate and raise aspirations amongst your students. More at www.schoolspeakers.co.uk

stonewall workplace conference 2015 breaking new ground Stonewallâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 12th annual flagship Workplace Conference in London, supported by EY is the must-attend event for everyone involved in the delivery of workplace equality and diversity. Go to stonewall.org.uk/wpc2015 to find out more and book your place.

Friday 17 April 2015, London SW1 stonewall.org.uk/wpc2015 Supported by

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 18

NE T WO RK EYE

Network Eye Networks doing great things

In Issue1 of Network Buzz we highlighted the inspiring and excellent work of lots of network groups all over the UK. We feel very happy that this meant so much to lots of the networks featured and we’re thrilled that lots of networks responded to our open invitation for news and snippets for future issues.

Late 2014 was a very active time for lots of networks with many key diversity and awareness raising days falling, including World AIDs Day, International Day of Persons with Disabilities and Anti-Bu"ying Week. We’ve done our very best to cover as much of the network group activity you’ve told us about as possible. Big thanks to everyone that submitted news and updates for this issue. You’re doing lots of great work. Well done. Keep them coming! Email us your network news and updates to info@inclusivenetworksuk.co.uk

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Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

The Disabled Students Network University of York To end the Autumn term, The Disabled Students Network at the University of York coordinated two weeks of awareness raising that coincided with Disability History Month (22 Nov – 22 Dec). Students will have noticed that the network committee displayed pictures of famous disabled people throughout history. A diverse bunch, they ranged from the Roman Emperor Claudius to Tanni-Grey Thompson. They were chosen as the committee believed these people are a great celebration of our diversity and show the high heights disabled people have achieved.

Engaging with other students, the network arranged a special performance of the hit movie ‘Finding Nemo’ where popcorn and sweets were sold. The network raised an impressive £300. All proceeds went towards helping the university automate more doors on campus. Great work everyone! Connect on Twitter : @YUSU_DS

IN Brief : ASDA have been named ‘Business of the Year’ in the end of year poll by one of the UK’s biggest gay magazines, ‘The Gay UK’. The reader voted poll result comes after the retailer’s extremely active LGBT network ASDA-LGBT had representation at over 30 LGBT events in 2014 | ASPIRE, the career network at The Co-operative published the latest issue of their network newsletter, featuring an interview with Chair of The Co-operative Group Ursula Lidbetter | The Diversability Support Network at healthcare provider Novartis was named ‘Outstanding Employee Network’ at the 2014 European Diversity Awards

A New Year Honour for Liz Authentic leadership recognised

GLEE@PwC PwC - PricewaterhouseCoopers The GLEE@PwC network team never fail to amaze us with their diverse range of events and charitable giving. We think it’s safe to say the network is definitely one of the most active and highly regarded networks in the UK.

We were delighted to see that Liz Bingham, Managing Partner (People, UK & Ireland) at EY was recognised in the New Year Honours list. She was awarded an OBE in recognition for her work supporting a more inclusive society. Liz is an authentic ambassador for diversity and inclusion and is a huge supporter of network groups within EY and beyond and regularly speaks at networking events.

“It is so important for leaders in our communities to be recognised for the vital work they do.” Paul Martin Chief Executive The Lesbian & Gay Foundation Well done Liz!

We’d also like to congratulate everyone else recognised with honours. We were so happy to see the work of many people striving for equality and inclusion rewarded.

The network is the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) network for the organisation but unlike lots of networks, everyone is welcome to become a member, including those not employed by PwC. How amazing is that. To get their members in to the festive spirit the network arranged a rather amazing event with a diﬀerence. In collaboration with their Business Recovery Services they hosted a Christmas event at their oﬃces at Riverside, London on 9 December. Guests were entertained with carol singing from the London Diversity Choir and were refreshed with drinks and delicious mince pies.

Connect on Twitter : @GLEEPwCUK ' ' @DiversityChoir

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 20

Investing in employee network groups with five active networks Visible support from authentic leaders Recognising and celebrating the work of those that make the networks live and breathe Getting all staﬀ involved and giving each network equal exposure

Diversity and Inclusion Week 7-14 November 2014

Powering diversity and inclusion around the world. On 13 November 2014 we attended an event that really made an impression on us. Not because of the lavish surroundings, luxurious food and drink or celebrity guests, because there was none of these, but for something quite simple, and quite rare. An event hosted by an Executive member where all their employee networks were celebrated together along with many of the charities and community groups they support. Joining members of the employee network groups were representatives from the charities financial giant

BNY Mellon work with, including the Albert Kennedy Trust and Salford Foundation. Inclusive Networks Chief Executive Thomas Anderson was also invited and was introduced at the event and spoke of the work and plans for Inclusive Networks and the importance of celebrating the work of networks and those that volunteer their time to support the networks.

During the organisations Diversity and Inclusion Week their network groups arranged a number of impressive events to get everyone involved. It’s really powerful

Diversity & Inclusion Week at BNY Mellon, Manchester Monday : A Chinese writing workshop. Employees could have their name and other messages written in Chinese characters. There was also an explanation about the language and writing style. Tuesday : Various remembrance day activities and an Italian culture night attended by over seventy employees.

involving people who may not identify with the network and help them understand the different challenges experienced. Speaking to Inclusive Networks, Steve HayesAllen, Manchester site Executive and Regional Head, Northern UK said: “Diversity and inclusion is part of our DNA at BNY Mellon. It is a vital part of our companies culture and is critical to our ability to support our clients and develop our businesses. We are committed to ensuring that everyone is included and our vibrant and inclusive culture helps to make BNY Mellon the perfect place for people from different backgrounds to pursue a variety of career paths.” “Our diversity and inclusion campaign was a week of celebration and education and a great extension of all the work that takes place throughout the year.” “Employee Resource Groups are a key

component of our diversity programme and are at the heart of what we do in Manchester. In Manchester all five groups give access to a variety of opportunities, they host a number of events and provide a number of ways to get involved in the wider Manchester community.”

Employee networks at BNY Mellon PRISM : Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) WIN : Gender IMPACT : Ethnicity and culture HEART : Disability and wellbeing VET-NET : Returning military

Connect with BNY Mellon www.bnymellon.com @BNYMellon

Wednesday : Women in IT day. An event for students with IBM providing an insight into working in IT and the challenges and opportunities for women. Thursday : Diff-ability day. A chance for employees to find out what it is like living with different difficulties such as hearing loss, dyslexia and physical differences. It included volunteers eating breakfast/lunch blindfolded, with only one arm etc. That evening there was a celebration event with their network groups and charity partners - see article.

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

RBS Rainbow Network and Enable: The RBS Disability Network RBS - Royal Bank of Scotland To raise awareness of World AIDs Day (1 Dec), on 27 November two employee networks at RBS, Rainbow (LGBT) and Enable (disability), collaborated on an event where everyone was welcome. Held at their oﬃces at 280 Bishopsgate, London, the event was more than a social gathering. It was an event that empowered those attending with key information and facts about HIV and how it really can affect anyone. The guest speaker at the event was Dr Paul Lamba, HIV Consultant (St Mary's) and Consultant at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust. Dr Lamda gave a talk around HIV and AIDS and quashed the many myths and stigmas attached to them... "From Patient Zero... to Getting to Zero".

It was also an opportunity for those attending to understand more about both HIV and AIDS, ask any questions they had direct to an expert and also to network with colleagues from within RBS and from a diverse range of other organisations. Connect on Twitter : @RBS_Rainbow

Tesco have a Senior Champion who’s speaking up It matters!

EY Sikh Network EY Another great example of the innovative events hosted by network groups, the Sikh network at EY hosted an art exhibition that explored the diversity of UK Sikhs. The event, in collaboration with the Singh Project, took place on 27 November in London. It was described by many guests as ‘inspiring’.

Lesbian, gay and bisexual rights charity Stonewall will host Britain's leading conference on sexual orientation, equality and diversity in the workplace on Friday 17 April 2015 at the QE11 Conference Centre, London. Keynote speakers include Benny Higgins, Chief Executive Oﬃcer at Tesco Bank. Benny is the Executive Sponsor for the LGBT network at Tesco, OUTatTesco. He accepted their ‘Network of the Year’ award at last years ‘g3/OUTintheCity Awards’. www.stonewa".org.uk

inspiring Guest Yeohan Kim described the event as, “An enchanting inspiring exhibition of art culture identity.” Jaskiran Sagoo said, “A very well put together presentation by @singhproject at Ernst and Young, left feeling inspired.” Connect on Twitter : @EYSikhNetwork

We want to share your network events, initiatives and successes. Get in touch! Email us your network group news, event details or anything else you think we may be interested in. We’re more than happy to share your event invites via our social media platforms and in our email newsletter too.

Email us at info@inclusivenetworksuk.co.uk

Network Buzz | October - November 2014 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 22

EXCLUSIVE FEATURE : MOLLY ALDRICH-WINCER | INCLUSIVE NETWORKS BLOGGER

Our Ageing Population We’re delighted to intr oduce you to Molly Aldrich-Win cer, the newest addition to the Inclusive Networks fa mily. er olly, follow her on twitt To get in touch with M @maldrichwincer @hotmail.co.uk or email her at mollyaw I recently conducted some research for a university project, looking at the impact of loneliness on older people. I found a crazy statistic that was something like loneliness is as unhealthy as smoking 15 cigarettes a day. This is one of many challenges that our ageing society brings to us. In this piece I will be opening up some discussions that need to be had in order for us to more effectively deal with this demographic change. One of the main causes of loneliness is social isolation. There are lots of brilliant projects that are tackling the problem head on. For example, Age UK’s “Men in Sheds”, a pilot project that supported older men who want to get together, share and learn new skills - all in the welcoming space of a ‘Shed’.’ These kinds of projects are crucial in allowing groups of people who may feel left out of society to meet new people and learn new things. There is a real misconception that once you turn a certain age, you lose interest in things. But this isn’t the case. Society needs to take responsibility and accommodate our ageing demographic, from the ways products are designed to the way in which services are provided.

Useful links

Molly is a University of Sussex undergraduate, studying for her BSc in Business Managemen t& Marketing. She is pass ionate about equality, business ethics and so cial change.

The older market is growing fast and from a business perspective, it is important to really understand this segment. Luckily, many organisations are beginning to do this such as Innocent’s ‘Big Knit’ and the Casserole Club (a fantastic social enterprise). There are also other projects that are encouraging the younger generations to think about the challenges of ageing, such as Designing for the Future (a project I have been working with for the past 11 months). This is absolutely key, as young people are the future designers and bosses. Designing for the Future is about being all inclusive from the beginning. Instead of adapting products so that they are suitable for older people, they should be designed from the beginning with all potential users in mind. For example, Designing for the Future has produced some amazingly innovative and forward thinking products. Such as a Music Memory Box (Chloe Meineck) that is designed to tackle challenges of dementia.

Educating ourselves on the challenges of ageing and learning new ways to accommodate for these is extremely important. The media is slowly giving light to our ageing population, for example the outrage surrounding ‘Dementia Tax’ and BBC’s ‘Protecting our Parents’. We need to develop ways in which families can care for their loved ones, as well as thinking about those that may be socially isolated for various reasons. By considering these issues and providing accordingly, many older people are likely to build confidence and increase their quality of life. This will bring a really positive impact – for everyone.

Men in Sheds - www.ageuk.org.uk/professional-resources-home/services-and-practice/health-and-wellbeing/men-in-sheds/ Casserole Club - www.casseroleclub.com/ Designing for the Future - arts.brighton.ac.uk/projects/designing-for-the-future Good Gym - www.goodgym.org/

sessions courses socials convenience

Targeted services for HIV positive gay men living well with HIV Find out more: W www.ght.org.uk/beingpositive T 0161 274 4499 /beingpositiveght @beingpositiveNW George House Trust is a registered charity in England and Wales (No. 1143138) and a Registered Company Limited by guarantee in England and Wales (No. 07575379)

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 24

Our network

Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a new network group on the block. Fresh from their recent launch, we find out more about

Celebrate

the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) employee network at charity

Action for Children

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

Action for Children is one of the UK’s leading children’s charities and has services throughout the four nations. Celebrate! is Action for Children’s first staff network and has over 40 members who receive a bi-monthly newsletter and regular updates. The aim of Celebrate! is to be an inspiring and engaging network and to have fun! Action for Children’s LGBT staff network was officially launched on 21st October 2014. Celebrate! is an inclusive network, open to all staff who may or may not identify themselves as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. The network is really about celebrating LGBT equality, raising awareness and bringing people together to share ideas, events and the latest LGBT research and news. There is also a supportive element. Colleagues are able to approach network members in complete confidence.

Action for Children is a Stonewall Diversity Champion and are number 51 in the Workplace Equality Index (2014). We take inclusion very seriously and want all of our members of staff to feel supported and able to be themselves in work. As an organisation, we exist to improve outcomes for children throughout the UK and our staff are key to achieving this aim. If people can come to work knowing that they are working within an inclusive environment that respects and promotes diversity, they will ultimately do a better job for the children they work with. Prior to the launch of Celebrate! there existed a network of LGBT staff, but the network was not visible. We wrote a terms of reference and got a logo designed and that was the starting point of the network. The network posted on the staff intranet, and word spread. More and more people became interested and asked to be added to the mailing list. Celebrate! set up a Twitter account and has been building up a following over the past few months. Social media is vital to raising awareness about LGBT equality, making contacts and finding out about the fantastic events that take place throughout the UK.

Siobhan Corria Head of Inclusion Action for Children

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 26

The network has produced four newsletters, which have been distributed across the organisation and to our external contacts. We recently held a meeting in London, which was attended by one of the Chairs of Glee@PWC and our Chief Executive, Tony Hawkhead. It is so important to have support from the senior management team when setting up a staff network as leadership and visibility are key to ensuring an inclusive working environment. Tony has been extremely positive from the outset and the fact that he attended the first meeting was symbolic for the members. It was also great to hear from Glee@PWC, although our organisations are so different. The network picked up some interesting tips and advice and we hope to work with Glee and other networks in the future. The launch itself was held at our head office in Holborn, Central London. Video clips celebrating LGBT life were shown to the audience, some were funny and some were touching. I think we had some tears! We then heard from Michelle Moon Lim who is Action for Children’s Stonewall Account Manager who talked about the importance of staff networks and how pleased she was to see Celebrate! develop and grow.

“If people can come to work knowing that they are working within an inclusive environment that respects and promotes diversity, they will ultimately do a better job for the children they work with.”

Ogilvy & Mather Group has become the 50th organisation to become a member of Stonewall’s Global Diversity Champions Programme The global marketing agency will work closely with Stonewall to celebrate equality and diversity through events with clients and other LGBT networks.

The launch of Celebrate! really spurred everyone on to think of ways of promoting the network and encouraging more members. The network is continuing to make contacts and is looking forward to working with other staff networks in the future. Exciting times ahead!

Follow the network on Twitter @CelebrateLGBT

Annette King, Chief Executive Officer, Ogilvy & Mather Group UK commented: “We want to foster a workplace where people can be themselves; where women and men from a diverse range of backgrounds can thrive. Our partnership with Stonewall strengthens our resolve to promote an open, honest and inclusive work environment.”

Andrew Barratt in February 2014. We’ll be bringing you lots more from the network in future issues of Network Buzz.

Simon Feeke, Director of Workplace Programmes, Stonewall commented: “By joining the Global Diversity Champions Programme, Ogilvy recognises that people perform better when they can be themselves. Our members are forward-thinking employers who want to recruit, recognise and support the very best staff. Good employers understand that providing support for all staff improves their operational effectiveness.”

Follow the network on Twitter

Ogilvy Pride is the Group’s LGBT and Straight Ally professional network, and was established in the Ogilvy UK office by

@OgilvyPrideWW The Ogilvy Pride network is very active on Twitter and their tweets are always interesting and informative with links to blogs and articles of relevance, many written by the network. We’re enjoying following the network and it’s great seeing them go from strength to strength. Keep up the fantastic work!

27 | Network

Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

Ain’t no stopping us now Coming soon to www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

Nicky Morgan

Darcy Oake

We talk role models with the Secretary of State for Education and Minister for Women and Equalities

Electrifying new illusionist and star of Britain’s Got Talent 2014 who is embarking on a huge worldwide tour

Joe McElderry

Enfys : The LGBT+ staff network at Cardiff University

Since storming to victory in the 2009 X Factor final he’s released four hit albums and has been touring the UK non-stop. We chat to Joe about his upcoming 60 date tour

We meet one of the most respected and active LGBT networks in Wales, and they’re the first University we’ve worked with

RBS Focused Women's Network We chat about this fantastic network with their Global Chair Heather Melville

Baroness Liz Barker We speak to the Liberal Democrat member of the House of Lords, a Life Peer and an amazing inspiring person who helped make equal marriage a reality

Coming soon

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | @IncNetworks | 28

The Inclusive Networks Awards are the first ever awards of this scale dedicated to network groups. The unique awards will celebrate and reward the work and positive impact of network groups from all diversity strands and from all sectors. The awards will also recognise the people who make the networks live and breathe, many of whom volunteer substantial amounts of their own time, as well as thank the organisations that support and encourage their work and that of an inclusive society. What makes these awards different is they celebrate and reward the work of the doers, individuals and teams who show an extraordinary amount of commitment and dedication to support employees, the wider community and help influence the views of the wider public on their perception of the organisations they represent through their work. We hope you get behind these special awards and nominate in

as many categories as possible. They are a fantastic opportunity to share the fabulous and inspiring work of networks and organisations all over the UK. They are open to everyone. Be a part of it!

If you know of a network, organisation or individual doing fantastic things, why don’t you nominate them. We appreciate some networks are smaller than others so less people may know of your work so self nominations are also encouraged. There is nothing wrong with giving yourself a pat on the back. It’s about the quality of the nominations and not the volume of nominations per network received. At the awards reception there will be a diverse range of entertainment and many moments to remember. Every guest will receive a special goody bag filled with goodies and a souvenir programme.

What makes these awards different is they celebrate and reward the wor k of the doers

Award Categories ................. Employee Network of the Year

Networks from diﬀerent strands will be recognised

Professional Network of the Year Inter-Sector Network of the Year Fresh Out The Box : New Network of the Year Network Publication of the Year Network Event of the Year Network Collaboration of the Year Charity/Community Group Collaboration of the Year Network Team of the Year Network Chair/Co-Chairs of the Year Inspiring Member of the Year Senior Champion of the Year Employer of the Year Special Recognition Some awards wi" be split in to private and public sector where networks in both sectors wi" be recognised.

wards /a k .u o c s. rk o tw e n e v si lu Nominate at www.inc

FREE TO NOMINATE

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | @IncNetworks

Our judges

Left to right

John Amaechi Former NBA Player, Author & MD, Amaechi Performance Systems |

Deborah Lane-Winter Head of Talent, Carve Productions |

Jackie Crozier

Events Professional & Community Champion |

Vanessa Vallely

Founder & MD, We Are The City & Author |

Thomas Anderson

Founder & CEO, Inclusive Networks & OUTintheUK |

Scott Durairaj

Head of Patient Experience – Mental Health and Learning Disability, NHS England |

Elly Barnes

Founder & CEO, Educate and Celebrate |

Phyll Opoku-Gyimah

Co-Founder and Executive Director, UK Black Pride |

Liz Bramley

Engagement & Diversity Specialist & Founder of Great Days Work |

James Wharton

Author & Diversity Specialist |

Authentic | Inspiring | Respected |

Claire Harvey

Assistant Director, Youth Sports Trust & GB Paralympic sitting volleyball Captain |

Liam Hackett

Founder & CEO, Ditch the Label |

Richard McKenna

Director, Inclusive Employers |

Our charity partner is D itch the Label. We wi ll be fundraising and raising awareness of the charity throughout the nomination and shortlisting process as we ll as at the awards recep tion.

Dates to remember ..................... Nominations close at 11.59pm on Sunday 24th May 2015. The shortlist will be announced on Wednesday 1st July 2015. The awards will be presented at the Inclusive Networks Awards 2015 reception in October 2015. More details about this special event will be announced soon. Tickets will be made available as soon as this announcement is made. The winners of the awards will be selected by our judges. The winner of the ‘Employer of the Year’ award will be decided by a public vote from the shortlist that will announced following the nomination process.

Sponsorship ............. Sponsoring our awards is a fantastic way to show your visible support for inclusion in the workplace and in the wider community. The awards aim to be accessible to everyone and to be an opportunity for networks and organisations of all types to come together and celebrate and reward their work. Where everyone is treated equally, everyone attending our awards reception will be a VIP on the night. If you’d like to discuss sponsorship opportunities email our Chief Executive Thomas Anderson at thomas@inclusivenetworksuk.co.uk or call him on 07702 130 348

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 30

ROLE MODEL INTERVIEW : AMELIA ROPE | ENTREPRENEUR AND CHOCOLATIER Photo by Lucy Young

Amelia Rope Amelia adores fine chocolate. The discovery of the cocoa tree, Theobroma Cacao ('Food for the Gods') and its fruit, the cocoa bean, has to be one of the most wonderful results of the magic of alchemy. This intoxication and fascination with chocolate brought her to launch her own business: Amelia Rope Chocolate Ltd. Let’s find out more! How did your adventure into the world of being a chocolatier begin?

By mistake. I was overweight and so wouldn’t have chosen chocolate as my vehicle but it was given to me and I have driven it ever since. I always thought I would be running my own business from a very early age. Its a long story but in a nutshell - my 20's and 30's were spent in admin jobs which in retrospect gave me the lessons of discipline, ability to multitask and be efficient with communication. A turning point was seeing a life coach when I was a Practice Manager who helped me find self-belief. I was hoping to get into food journalism and wrote to an Editor of a Food magazine. They tasted my chocolate truffles and exclaimed, 'You are the next Juliette Binoche', and propelled me onto The Market Kitchen to coat and dip truffles with Tana Ramsay. That was all I needed to encourage me. From there I had my vision of my unique chocolate dipped rose petals, pansies, violas and mint leaves which I decorated with gold leaf. Dropping these off at press brought orders in, leaving my job and setting up

Interview by Thomas Anderson

shop. The key turning point though was my commission for chocolate bars - an effective product to market with shelf life, durability and at that time little competition in the premium line market.

We'd love to know more about your product range

My products are all about taste, quality and purity. I play and create and am not dictated to by convention. Flavours are from organic aromatherapy oils (food grade) as I used to be an aromatherapist, or quality inclusions (hazelnuts from Italy, coconut flakes from Sri Lanka et al). The chocolate I use is fine quality and single origin and you will often find Maldon Sea Salt in my recipes. I adore salt and grew up close to Maldon so I’m totally biased to thinking it is the best! I have chocolate bars, boxed chocolate cubes and I’ve just launched my exciting new Colombian Range. I visited Colombia twice last year (the first was to meet cocoa producers and the second was for a commission for The Telegraph to write about cocoa and Colombia). It is an incredible country and its people are truly fantastic with HUGE hearts. The range is made entirely in

Colombia from tree to final product. They are single origin dark chocolate coated coffee beans and cocoa nibs. The chocolate comes from an area called Tumaco which is near the border of Ecuador and where a lot of cocaine used to be grown. They are made in the capital, Bogota.

Were you nervous about setting up your own business and did you have any support doing this? I have always been propelled by something inside me I was born with to scarily just go for it and take risks. My parents and brother are very different - I am not sure how I ended up getting it all but I seem to have done. I found myself setting up my own business and no I wasn’t nervous as such. I was excited, exhilarated and felt freedom like never before. People came into my life at different stages of my business who supported me.

More from Amelia

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Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

ROLE MODEL INTERVIEW : AMELIA ROPE | www.ameliarope.com | @ameliarope Were things all plain sailing for you?

I don’t know anyone who has ever experienced plain sailing with growing a business. Half the satisfaction comes from challenges which you have to face and deal with and get through. It brings weight to yourself with confidence and conviction. You are on track or perhaps you may have to alter your track slightly and this helps you grow in so many ways. There are too many challenges to list but none have beaten me yet!

Has there been a key turning point for your business?

Yes several. They are November 2009 with a commission from the Late Parick Reeves for 1,000 chocolate bars which I had only six weeks to get made, design a recipe for, package and hand foil and hand sign each bar. They went out with 1,000 sofas he sold and I was paid with 1,000 bars to get selling. September 2010 when I launched in Selfridges. July 2014 when HSBC, my bank, agreed to a bank loan.

People must say you have the best job ever to you all the time. Would you agree?

No! Its long hours, stressful at times, challenging and demanding almost on a daily basis and consumers have a limited easy spending price point with chocolate. Saying that, I adore running my own business, seeing it grow and develop and start finding it has legs. I constantly test it to see if it has strength in really going places and each time it pings back at me showing it is bedding in. Any food company has a tough time as margins are slim, the consumer wants a Bentley but prepared most of the time to pay for an Aygo (I have one so feel I can say that!).

What makes your products stand out from the mainstream chocolate bars available in every corner shop? I would say the packaging initially if the consumer is not aware of my brand.

How important is the design of the packaging of your products to you? I absolutely love design and if I wasn’t in a chocolate business I would love to have a brand/design/ recipe development company. It is important that my product is not all about packaging and the taste and quality is delivered in the product. I am planning to launch a new packaging design in 2015 so watch this space!

“I have always been propelled by something inside me I was born with to scarily just go for it and take risks.” Where does the inspiration for your chocolates come from, and do you have a personal favourite?

Recipes will just come to me; usually it’s because my palate is craving them and so drives me to get playing around in my kitchen. Ooh no I couldn’t have a personal favourite but I am loyal to Dark Raspberry, Dark Coffee Bean, Pale Hazelnut & Sea Salt, Pale Rose (when I need to be surrounded by floral aromas) and White Edition 03. I devour them all though.

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 32

ROLE MODEL INTERVIEW : AMELIA ROPE | ENTREPRENEUR AND CHOCOLATIER

“Any food company has a tough time as margins are slim and the consumer wants a Bentley but is prepared most of the time to pay for an Aygo (I have one so feel I can say that!).” Do you look up to anyone in the world of chocolate?

I admire Angus Thirwell, Founder of Hotel Chocolat. The direction of the brands like Cath Kidston & LK Bennett have inspired me. As for role models, the key person who I will never forget in my business is the late Patrick Reeves (cofounder of Deliverance and then sofa.com), my chocolate diamond geezer who I yearn for five minutes of his time from up above to discuss ideas with.

Are there still things you want to achieve with the business?

Yes, to expand globally in a focussed way; targeting an area rather than be scattered as I am now.

What advice would you give to someone thinking of becoming a chocolatier?

It is a saturated market, margins are slim, consumer demands are high but if you really want to do it you must GO FOR IT.

What do you enjoy doing when you have a day off ?

September - Christmas Day is flat out and by the end I can barely operate. The rest of the year....... see friends, visit galleries, see a movie, go exploring........

Do you have any guilty pleasures?

Ooh yes. Some I can tell you and some I won’t! Swaledale & Woolsery Goats cheese, buying books I never have time to read, drinking fizz with chips and mayo every now and again, collecting too many scarves and the rest are my secret!

Have you made any New Years resolutions?

I don’t think I have ever made a resolution so not sure I will start now. I always strive to do my best and if I was to die tomorrow I hope I would have given some legacy to someone somewhere.

For Amelia Rope chocolate stockists visit www.ameliarope.com/stockists/

Popular articles on our website www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk Jack Lane of Fused Recruitment, tells us why December is a great time to recruit and apply for jobs Dame Elizabeth Cadbury School, Bournville : Eradicating homophobia in the classroom The clock was ticking, we caught up with broadcaster and journalist Kiri Bloore

33 | Network

Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

Loved by You We asked our social media followers to share their favourite chocolate treats with us. Here’s what you said...

Chocolate heaven DARK RASPBERRY EDITION BAR 01 75% £5.60 / 100g The combination of raspberries and dark chocolate is so delicious. Amelia has taken the Dark Edition 03 75% chocolate and sprinkled raspberries across the base of the bar. Simple, sophisticated and heavenly. Highly recommended!

www.ameliarope.com

PEANUT BUTTER COCOA DUSTED TRUFFLES £3.99 / 200g Amazing deep, dark 65% truffles dusted in rich cocoa powder, created to simply melt on the tongue or slather over your face. A must for any peanut butter lover!

www.hopeandgreenwood.co.uk

EXQUISITE MILK CHOCOLATE, BLACKBERRY & CINNAMON BAR £7.70 / 90g A creamy blend of milk chocolate paired with warming flavours of blackberry and cinnamon. The perfect treat for cosy evenings in.

www.meltchocolates.com

Jenny Barnes Mine is the Lidl dark chocolate with ginger. Real lumps of ginger. You don't need a lot to feel really treated. Shelley Chapman Reeces nutrageous bar!! Richard Brown It has to be a KitKat. The crunch of the wafer. Have a break, have a...... Matthew Love Yorkie bars. A big slab of chocolate. It can’t be beat.

Are you the next Apprentice? Applications are now open for Series 11 of the hit TV show ‘The Apprentice’.

If you think you've got the talent and confidence to impress Britain's toughest backer, the process starts at apprentice.fremantlemedia.com The closing date for applications is 11.59pm on 26 January 2015.

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 34

Glassdoor’s Employees’ Choice Awards 2015 Glassdoor, an online jobs and career community, has announced their seventh annual Employees' Choice Awards, honoring the Best Places to Work across the U.S. and the UK. Winners were determined by the people who know these companies best — their employees. This is Glassdoor’s seventh annual ranking of the 50 best places to work in the coming year. Google has something to be very happy about, they’ve been named the best place to work for 2015. On working at Google, one respondent commented: “Best place to work in the industry right now, amazing people and brilliant culture.”

and another said, “Interesting work with smart people.” We’re aware of active network groups existing in many of these organisations, but not so much at Google. We’ll be finding out more.

We love blogging www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

Here’s the Top10 Rank

Employer

Google

John Lewis

Microsoft

Accenture

Jaguar Land Rover

J.P Morgan

Three

Cisco Systems

Deloitte UK

Rainbow Biz @rainbowBizUK

Read their second blog for Inclusive Networks exclusively on our website from Tuesday 13 January 2015. A business that is steeped in the community, they’ve recently become a Social Enterprise.

PwC

Find out more at www.glassdoor.co.uk

Awesome Network 2015

More from Sue & Sarah at www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk/ blogandnews/

The quality of your nominations for our inaugural Inclusive Networks ‘Awesome Network’ recognition has really impressed us. We’ll be announcing the networks who’ll be bestowed with the honour of being named an Awesome Network on 12th February 2015 (sharing some love just before Valentines Day).

Macmillan Cancer Support, registered charity in England and Wales (261017), Scotland (SC039907) and the Isle of Man (604). Also operating in Northern Ireland.

Worried? Got questions? Whateverâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s on your mind, weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re here. Call the Macmillan team free on 0808 808 0000 (Monday to Friday, 9am-8pm) or visit our website www.macmillan.org.uk

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 36

They’re taking on some of the UK’s biggest retailers and winning. But there’s still lots to do! Interview by Thomas Anderson

Tessa Trabue, pictured, lives in East London with her wife and eight year-old child. She joined Let Toys Be Toys in February 2013 after being fed up with seeing gendered signs in toy stores and on children's books. When her son insisted that he couldn't have a magazine he wanted because the sign on the shelf said it was for girls, she was prompted to act, and contacted the campaign to see if she could help.

Let Toys Be Toys grew out of a thread on the parents' online message board Mumsnet. Someone started a topic complaining about gendered marketing, and many members joined the conversation, discussing how fed up they were by seeing the 'girls' and 'boys' signs in toy shops and departments. A few decided to form a group and do something about it, and the Let Toys Be Toys campaign was born. Within a few weeks the group had carried out a shops survey to discover the extent of gendered signs within stores, and garnered a lot of media attention.

Why does it matter?

‘Girls’’ and ‘boys’’ signs limit children's choices by telling them which toys they can or should play with, and, by the same token, which toys are off limits. Along with gendered signs comes stereotyping about what boys and girls are supposedly interested in; toys labelled for girls are often pink and have a domestic, caring or appearance-based theme while toys labelled for boys

are often blue and have action, adventure, transport or science themes.

“Childhood is a time for exploring interests and expanding the imagination” Childhood is a time for exploring interests and expanding the imagination. Play is an important part of this, and a crucial way in which children learn all kinds of new skills. When a sign tells a child that a toy is not for them, this shuts off a child's opportunity to explore different ways of playing, and potentially gaining a new skill or interest. Later on, this may play a part in a child deciding not to pursue a subject, or even a career, because they may not feel it is for them – this could be a contributing factor to the low numbers of

women taking up careers in STEM areas, for instance.

What about children not playing with toys perceived for their gender and this resulting in bullying from other children

Children are keen to fit in with their peers. Gender stereotypes can lead to bullying and 'gender policing' from other children. This can occur when a child commits a 'social transgression' by choosing a toy that is outside of what is perceived as 'normal' for their gender, and other children tease or bully them about this. We hear stories about boys who are bullied for choosing to play with dolls or prams, and about girls bullied for liking superheroes. By removing these signs, which can often be read like 'rules' by children, we believe children will feel free to follow their interests and imaginations and choose a toy that genuinely interests them, thus breaking down some of the existing stereotypes.

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What role do schools have in taking down the barriers and removing stereotypes

Schools have an important role to play in making sure that gender stereotypes are not perpetuated by other children, or even by teachers in the classroom (i.e. by asking for ‘strong boys’ to move tables, or by reinforcing differences by lining boys and girls up separately). Teachers and support staff should be trained to challenge stereotypes in a supportive,

Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

person until one of our first meetings with retailers, when the campaign had already been going for over six months, and there are still some campaigners who have not met each other in real life. There is a small core that has been involved from the start, and others have joined and left (and sometimes rejoined) as other commitments allow. So far it has worked amazingly well!

Us, Boots, and Debenhams. Some, like The Entertainer toy store, have been replacing the gendered signs with more useful signs indicating type of toy, like ‘construction’, ‘arts and crafts’, and ‘games and puzzles’, and have great inclusive signage showing pictures of boys and girls playing together. We’ve been really pleased with the positive response to the campaign and the changes seen in many stores.

stop publishing titles with these labels in them, and let books be books.

Who still has work to do?

WHSmiths still has ‘girls’ and ‘boys’ signs up in several of their stores, and also stock many children’s books with gendered titles – we get contacted about these by supporters regularly. However, despite our many emails and tweets to them, they have yet to get back to us with a direct reply. On the

A retailer changing its ways : Toy store The Entertainer now has more generic in store signage educational way whenever these come up. Let Toys Be Toys has worked in collaboration with teachers and parents to put together information and resources on these topics for schools, and classroom exercises that teachers can use to facilitate fruitful discussion and learning around gender stereotypes – for more information please see our website.

How is the organisation made up?

The Let Toys Be Toys team is made up entirely of unpaid volunteers - we fit our campaigning around our families, jobs and other commitments. The campaigners are based all around the UK, and we “meet” and organise the campaign wholly over social media. None of us had met in

“We’ve been really pleased with the positive response to the campaign and the changes seen in many stores.” What have you been up to since you launched?

Thirteen major UK retailers have responded to Let Toys Be Toys and agreed to take the gendered signs down in their stores, including Toys R

On World Book Day 2014, we launched the Let Books Be Books campaign in response to the many tweets and emails we received raising concerns about the gendered labels on children’s books, such as Buster Books ’The Brilliant Boys Colouring Book’ and the ‘The Gorgeous Girls Colouring Book’. The response to the campaign was immediate and very positive, with Usborne Books and Parragon Books both agreeing to discontinue publishing gendered titles, and Katy Guest, Independent on Sunday Literary Editor, and Waterstones book store coming out in support of the campaign. Many high profile authors, such as Joanne Harris, Malorie Blackman, Anne Fine, and Neil Gaiman have come out in support of the campaign, and to date seven children’s book publishers have agreed to

books front, we are still waiting for Buster Books and Igloo Books to respond to our petition, letters and many tweets - both of these publishers have large numbers of gendered titles in their catalogues. We started our Toymark award scheme to recognise good practice for retailers and booksellers selling their merchandise in an inclusive way. We’ve awarded over 30 stores to date, and our list includes the wonderful bookseller Letterbox Library, which has been selling diverse and inclusive children’s books for over 30 years.

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 38 Gendered titles : Take down the barriers!

“Schools have an important role to play in making sure that gender stereotypes are not perpetuated by other children.”

How can people support your work

Find out more and connect with Let Toys Be Toys at www.lettoysbetoys.org.uk and follow them on Twitter @LetToysBeToys

Let us put a smile on your face

Our campaign could not continue to exist without the help of all our supporters. People can support us by signing our #LetToysBeToys and #LetBooksBeBooks petitions, which can be found at on the Change.org website. They can also support us on social media by following us on Twitter at @LetToysBeToys and liking our Facebook page. Please visit our website at www.lettoysbetoys.org.uk for more ways of getting involved. People can also support our campaign by purchasing products from the Let Toys Be

Toys shop on our website. We have a variety of fun items for sale, ranging from mugs and tshirts to coasters, tote bags and baby gros, and Let Toys Be Toys receives a small percentage of each sale, which helps with campaigning costs.

What does 2015 have in store for the campaign?

In 2015, as well as continuing with our existing campaigns, we’ll be expanding our work to look at the toys themselves, and questioning manufacturers on gendered labels, colour coding, pictures and descriptions on the packaging and products.

INCLUSIVE NETWORKS COMPETITIONS We love competitions and from the 5,000+ entries we’ve already received for our Twitter competitions it would appear lots of you do too. Check out our competitions page on our website to be in with a chance of winning lots of exclusive prizes. Prizes that we’ve given away or are still up for grabs include signed Ella Henderson album, signed Keith Lemon books, luxurious beauty products, tickets to events and lots more. Check them out

www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk/ competitions/

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 40

YOUR MEMBERS MAY NOT HAVE REGULAR ACCESS TO A PC AT WORK

Network Group Tips

Engaging with employees within your organisation and increasing the visibility of your network

Attracting new members and engaging with existing members can often be a challenge other events and initiatives where you have members, ask them where they are based - not their actual address but town, village or city. • Make it as visible as possible and if you can, make your networks logo the click through - this will also help embed the network within your organisation.

intranet An up to date and engaging intranet page • If you are an organisation that has an internal intranet site this will often be regularly visited by those employees with access to a computer at work. • Having a visible intranet page profiling your network, what you do, how people can get involved and most importantly, details on how people can become a member is really powerful. To ensure you can communicate with them capture their email address and to support with arranging events or supporting

• Don’t hide the page within your HR intranet pages as most staff won’t engage in this regularly. We recommend a max of three clicks to find your page. • Make your page as visual as possible as you don’t want it to look too corporate. Include details of the team who coordinate the network as this will make it more real and approachable.

Induction • Does your organisation have a formal induction programme for new starters or those returning from maternity leave or sickness? If yes, a mention of your network with details about your aims and how to join is a great way to capture people as they join the organisation. And it means no one can miss out on hearing of your existence. Speak to your HR team about making this happen.

Social Media • Social media is a great way to engage with your members and employees of your organisation outside of their normal working hours and have limited PC access. • There are so many different social media options and depending on your objectives and network type and member base, some may be preferable to you than others. The resources (time) you have will be a key factor too. • Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter are very popular amongst network groups and we have heard only great things from the networks that use them about the benefits. • It is more effective to have dedicated accounts for your network than asking your organisation to do the odd tweet about your network from the main organisation accounts. You’ll be able to build a relationship with your members, communicate more frequently and build your own identity. • It is positive to ask your organisation to tweet about your successes and open events from the main social accounts for your organisation as it will show authentic support for your work - and probably reach a bigger audience as they’ll likely have more followers (although there are some exceptions).

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Buzz | January - February 2015

Internal publications • Many organisations publish regular hard copy staff magazines and e-magazines to their staff. These are often a mix of business updates with more informal employee news and events. Hard copies are often accessible to those employees who do not have access to a computer at work, often in retail stores and warehouses. They are a great way to introduce your network to a wider audience and celebrate your achievements and events in a fun and visual way. It also shows your network is a part of the DNA of your organisation and you have full buy in. • Many networks also publish their own network newsletter that include articles written by members, engaging stories and news as well as details of key diversity days and network events. Invite all employees to contribute to these. Host the newsletters on your intranet or organisations website. Even better, host them on the main website or an external hosting site so people can view the issues at home. People outside of your organisation will be able to view them too and you never know, they may like what they see and look to join your organisation as their next career step.

Emailing your members • Issue regular email updates to your members. These should be at least once a month, but not too much it becomes spam. Even if you haven’t got much to say it will keep your members engaged. • In your emails encourage your members to forward them on to other employees and new starters who may not yet be a member of your network. Word of mouth is really powerful and will help build your network.

Posters • Keeping this simple. This is a really effective option for engaging with employees who are office based and those that work in stores or warehouses etc. It’s also very cheap! • Lots of people are a dab hand with word and you should have no problem finding someone to produce a poster to promote your network and events. It’s always good to stick to your organisations brand guidelines and this will make everything look a lot more professional and will make your network look like a part of the furniture. • Display the posters in prominent positions but make sure these are locations where you are authorised to display material - we know some organisations have really strict rules. Good locations include close to tea and coffee facilities, on notice boards close to printers, in staff canteens or chill areas and in lifts. We know of a few networks who display their posters on the backs of the doors in the cubicles in their staff loos - well you will have their attention! • Keep the posters bright and visual. Too much text will be a barrier to people reading it. The visuals should be representative of your network and should have a good mix of different faces of mixed genders, age and race - this will support with attracting members.

An event where network groups of all strands and inclusive employers will be celebrated together. Don’t miss your chance to nominate your network group, Senior Champion, members and employer for one of our inclusive awards. Celebrating and rewarding the work of the doers!

Nominate at: www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk/awards Nominations close on 24th May 2015

And there’s more..... • Work with your Diversity or HR team to publish fact-sheets on your intranet or organisations social media to celebrate key diversity celebrations relevant to your network, such as International Women’s Day and National Coming Out Day. • Desk drops with network group literature and branded items are effective. Bring your network to employees who are office based. We all love a branded pen! • Visible Senior support - Ask them to mention your network at conferences and key events. This endorsement with get manager buy in and should filter throughout the different teams. • When arranging network events or participating at external events, make everything inclusive and invite all employees. This way no one will feel left out and they’ll likely embrace the network more than if they felt excluded. Collaborated with other networks too. • Add some info about your network on pay-slips (in the box where there’s normally little messages printed). This is a great way to reach employees with no computer access.

We hope you find these tips useful. Please let us know if there is anything you’d like us to cover in future issues. We’re here for you!

Our Twitter Tips for network groups at www.inclusivenetwork s.co.uk/ groups/network-group-tips-tw itter/

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 42

Creating a buzz

POP

Olly Pike is a performer and presenter who has performed in the West End, toured the UK, and also performed around the world. You may recognise him as ‘Wiley Sneak’ We recently came across the fabulous ‘Pop’n’Olly’ videos. For those not familiar with ‘Pop’n’Olly’, please tell us more

Pop’n’Olly is a YouTube channel I created a few years ago for kids. It’s just a lot of silly videos really which are all light hearted and fun. In each episode there are lots of laughs but you also learn from them too. Most of them are art based videos. I wanted to encourage kids to be creative and imaginative.

Where did the inspiration for the character ‘Pop’ come from?

I remember thinking ‘I need a side kick’. A lot of my friends call me Ollypop (which the show was called originally but I had to change it as there is a big company called Ollypop). So I decided Pop should be the other half of the show… and what goes pop?… A

OLLY

from the BAFTA winning CBBC show ‘Trapped’ and ‘Trapped: Ever After’. He runs and continues to produce ‘Pop’n’Olly’, a fun, creative and comical online children’s

balloon! It worked out quite well because balloons can make lots of funny noises too.

The short and snappy videos are fantastic. When did you start and produce these?

About three years ago. I’ve worked a little bit in children’s television and in children’s theatre entertainment. After coming very close to getting various children’s presenting roles on many occasions but not being ‘quite right’, I was bored of being a runner up so I just decided to create my own show, and do what I want to do.

art show. We chatted to Olly about his brand new video that aims to educate the younger generation that families come in all shapes and sizes, in a fun and interactive way.

Where do you get the ideas for the themes and subjects for the videos from?

I generally work backwards. I tend to see the end result, e.g. what point I want to make, or what I want the kids to learn about or understand…and then I start to piece together how I can get there in a fun and creative way. I like them to be light hearted and comical, but also smart.

What has the reaction to the videos to date been like?

Yeah, always very positive. Although I look back at my first video and cringe because it’s so bad compared to what I

can produce now. But that’s what it has been about too, learning who I am and what message I want to send to kids.

The audience for the videos is a bit younger. Do you have to do a lot of extra planning to ensure the tone of the videos is just right?

Well, I wouldn’t say there’s any more planning involved then if I were making a video for adults. Kids are just mini people and are incredibly smart – not much gets past them. I don’t want to talk down to them (which is the mistake I possibly made in my first few videos) so I generally make the video as I see it in my head, which is normally the right sort of tone. Although sometimes I have to go back and slightly change/ edit parts if I think it isn’t quite right for this age group.

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

Creating a buzz Over 10,000 video views We were one of the first in four weeks to share the new video Your experience working in children’s TV must come in handy?

Yes, but I think all experiences I’ve had in life have come in handy. Certainly working in children’s television, but also working in children’s theatre, and also having the opportunity to teach children and spend time with them, and even just having a wonderful nephew – who actually features in a lot of the videos.

Can you tell us a bit more about the new ‘Pop’n’Olly’ video

This video is slightly different to my others. I wanted to make a video explaining to children about gay, lesbian and bisexual people and how normal people with different sexualities are. I think I just feel like I’d had enough of hearing/reading/ witnessing homophobic acts. As a gay man, I think I’m always

slightly cautious of ‘coming across gay’ out of fear and I shouldn’t have to feel like that. One particular incident I experienced was when I was holding my boyfriends hand in central London, in the daytime, and we were verbally abused by a group of young guys. They were saying particularly nasty things and made us feel uncomfortable. I just thought, where does this come from? Who has taught them this? The most important way I think we can battle homophobia for future generations is to start with children. We should educate them about different types of families and different types of people, and what the truly important things are like love, kindness and acceptance. And basically I thought my Pop’n’Olly channel would be a good platform to do this.

It’s such an important message. What impact do you hope the video has? Is this

a subject close to your heart?

I would love people to watch it and be like ‘Yeah, thats not a complicated subject to explain after all’. Hopefully people would be willing to share it with their children no matter what sort of family they come from. Also, I know what it’s like being slightly different from the other kids at school. I would have loved someone to have taught me things like this when I was younger and explaining that it doesn’t matter if you are different, or if you want to marry a boy.

“Children need to understand it’s perfectly fine to have one dad/ mum, or two dads or two mums” It’s a subject that up until very recently, wasn’t really talked about in mainstream society, especially to younger children. Were you nervous approaching the subject?

video, part of me is worried I’ll offend people, or get a really bad response. But then the other part of me is kinda hoping it does cause a bit of controversy. I think children should be exposed to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender characters. They need to understand it’s perfectly fine to have one dad/mum, or two dads or two mums. Some people might say it’s a bit of a difficult subject to talk to kids about, but thats also partly the reason why I made this video, to show that it really is pretty easy explaining these things to children if done in the right way.

Do you plan to produce any more videos with a theme of diversity and equality? Yes, I would love to take this subject matter further. I feel like I have only just brushed the surface and there are so many other ideas I’d like to cover.

What’s next for ‘Pop’n’Olly’?

Well, I’d like to see what sort of response this video gets and then take it from there. I’d really love to eventually see this sort of thing being broadcast on children’s television. Whether it is Pop’n’Olly or perhaps another developed idea, but whatever it is, I would love to be a part of it.

I was in two minds about sharing the

Keep connected:

Watch the video:

www.ollypike.com | @OllyPike

www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk/out-in-the-uk/popnolly/

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 44

Reader Feature itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s all about you

Feeling the buzz By day Shelley Chapman is a Pharmacist and has been an active member of an employee network group for many years too. Looking after others health and wellbeing is a key part of her job. With the hustle and bustle of everyday life she piled on a few pounds. A few visits to the gym later and she was on her road to becoming a professional bodybuilder. Shelley shares her journey with Network Buzz.

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

READER FEATURE : SHELLEY CHAPMAN | Pharmacist & bodybuilder So it’s that time of the afternoon when the clock doesn’t seem to move and is stuck at five minutes before the end of your working day. Everyone is discussing what they're up to, who’s watching the new series of Celebrity Big Brother, who’s got to go home and tidy up after their partner or their dog, or maybe who’s going to slob out in front of the telly with a yummy Chinese takeaway and catch up on episodes of Come Dine With Me. The latter option would probably have been my choice a few years ago and the weight began to creep up as the years of those well known northern pasties for lunch took their toll. Food is amazing after all. Well in those days I wasn’t into sport at all, I could never understand people who would run outside in the dark cold nights whilst I drove past. Sport was a no no at school too. In hindsight I now realise I

liked running and wish I’d done more of that but I generally avoided PE. After a couple of years of full time work and having a car to drive me around everywhere rather than walk, the weight started to creep up as mentioned and I generally felt tired and a bit low. I heard the usual comments from family suggesting I join a gym to get me out and hopefully feel better about myself. Eventually, probably about New Year time, I decided to go for it. I rang the local gym where I knew a few people went to and asked to look round. Rather impulsively I signed up there and then which I guess this is how they make their money - but I definitely made the right choice. It was a 12 month contract but I ended up staying there for about five years. I had an induction with a gym instructor and she made me a plan to follow which I stuck to three times a week as well as trying out some classes. I remember the initial buzzing feeling I got from completing my workout and sleeping amazingly well after it. I found going straight after work easier as I couldn’t be bothered to go out again once I got home. After a couple of years I’d built up a level of fitness and decided to do some 5k runs to keep fit. It always pushes you harder running in a group, although at the time of running I can

Left : Shelley completes the Great North Run half marathon in September 2012. Above : Getting started Training deadlifts at a weight training for women class in July 2012.

often hear myself questioning why on earth I choose to be out of breath and in pain. However the buzz after finishing is fantastic and is the major reason that keeps me coming back. One of my first 5k runs also was sponsored by that great pasty company originating from the north of England and the reward for finishing was a medal and a pasty. YES A PASTY! I then knew a few people doing the Manchester 10k run so I challenged myself to that. The atmosphere really spurs you on, especially when random people see your name on your number badge and cheer you on as well as seeing friends in the crowd supporting you. I did this run four years in a row and in the back of my mind I wanted to try a half marathon next. So when my friends said they were signed up to the Great North Run I knew I had to do it too. I found a charity to run for and completed the run which starts in Newcastle and ends in South Shields. For me though the run ended in the best ‘Fish and Chip shop’ ever in South Shields, needless to say the place was packed full of runners. Good job I was quite quick so I didn’t have to wait too long to be served.

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 46

READER FEATURE : SHELLEY CHAPMAN | Not afraid to train Alongside running I’d developed an interest in weight training. I trained with a motivational and inspiring personal trainer called Sonia who challenged my efforts and pushed me to improve myself in every aspect. I didn’t let the fact that the free weights section was dominated by men intimidate me and they got used to Sonia and I in the weights corner. Sonia was STRONG and I always tried to push myself in her direction. I then signed up to a introduction to weight training class for women at a gym in Eccles that was frequented by bodybuilders and powerlifters. It was so educational and inspiring. Here I met another lady in the class who I shared the same interests with. We both admitted our dream was to compete as a bodybuilder. I never thought I would be able to achieve the look and then actually go on stage and do a routine. I don’t like attention! Especially on stage in a bikini. But I knew this was just the pinnacle where you got to display the results of your determination and dedication to the sport. She introduced me to her personal trainer Damian who set me a diet and training programme which led to me competing for the past couple of years. What a buzz when I got medals, trophies and reached a British final. So that’s my story, I’ll end with some tips I’ve picked up over my training that I hope will help get you started/motivated (if that’s something you’re looking to do).

Don’t be afraid to train

Consider what your reasons are for not joining the gym, run outside or join that class? Trust me, no one is watching when you start to run on the street or try a class for the first time. Everyone has to start somewhere but paranoia that everyone is watching at first is normal!

Joining a gym?

Book a free induction. This should give you an idea how to use the equipment and give you a program to get you started.

Cost?

There are loads of cheap monthly contract gym memberships available these days. I’d try to avoid at peak times though if you want to get on the machines!

Don’t be afraid of the weights section

Weights are a great fun way to tone up. It doesn’t have to be all cardio, and fixed weight machines are a safer start to learning techniques. Technique over weight should always come first!

Park runs

“I didn’t let the fact that the free weights section was dominated by men intimidate me”

I found these free 5k runs held in lots of parks all over country really useful to improve time for all levels. Google them!

Decide a specific goal

Lose weight, muscle gain or increase endurance? If you can afford it, hire a PT to help you plan.

Share your stories and adventures with us!

Network Buzz is for you and we’d love to include more contributions from our readers in futures editions. If you’d like to share your story with us, drop us an email to info@inclusivenetworksuk.co.uk

Shelley in action

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

It captured our eye News that caught our attention

Research :

Anti-Bullying Charity Announce Findings of Report into Sexting and Bullying on Smartphones A major report looking at ways young people are engaging on smartphone social media apps has been published by national antibu"ying charity and the ‘Inclusive Networks Awards 2015’ charity partner Ditch the Label.

Vogue magazine UK has a gap of thirteen years between featuring a black model on their cover British supermodel Jourdan Dunn has announced that she is the first black model to score a solo spot on the cover of British ‘Vogue’ after a gap of thirteen years. The last black model to appear on the publication’s cover solo was Naomi Campbell back in 2002, thirteen years before it emerged Jourdan was to cover their February 2015 edition.

Network Buzz opinion:

Come on Vogue. Thirteen years is too long. Don’t leave it so long next time. Be representative of the society you trade in. It’s not just white females that buy your magazine. Let them see a bit of them on the cover. It really will inspire! There’s an abundance of models out there to choose from.

Only 42% of HR professionals took their full holiday allowance in 2014 A survey of more than 750 employees commissioned by recruitment company Robert Walters revealed that 45% of those who did not take their full entitlement (42% of those surveyed) felt under pressure to work to meet tight deadlines or after requesting leave, had it turned down due to working schedules.

The report, which looks into sexting and instances of abuse on smartphone apps, reveals that 3 in 5 (62%) young people have been sent abuse via a smartphone app, 2 in 5 (37%) have sent a naked photo of themselves and 1 in 4 (24%) have had that shared without their consent. Females are twice as likely to send a naked photo of themselves once a week than men. Ditch the Label’s Wireless Report surveyed 2,732 young people aged 13-25 (1,020 respondents were from the United Kingdom). The survey was conducted in partnership with Habbo, the largest online teen community in the world. Ditch the Label provide a virtual “Bullying Support Centre” for the social networking service, which is accessed by over 30,000 teens worldwide each month. The survey found the most popular apps used by young people were Snapchat (74%) - an instant photo sharing platform with images being “deleted” after 10 seconds, Instagram (68%), Skype (67%), Kik Messenger (59%) – a free anonymous instant messaging app and Whatsapp (57%).

Key Sexting Findings for Ditch the Label’s Wireless Report 2014

• 37% of 13 – 25 year olds have sent a naked photo of themselves via a

smartphone app. • 30% of 15 year olds have sent a naked photo of themselves at least once. • 15% of 13 and 14 year olds have sent a naked photo of themselves at least once. • 5% of 13 year olds send naked photos several times a week. • 24% have sent a naked photo to someone they know only online. • 24% have had a naked photo shared without their consent. • 49% believe is just harmless fun. • 16% said it’s the normal thing to do. • 13% felt pressurised into doing it. • Females are twice as likely to send a naked photo of themselves more than once a week than men.

Liam Hackett, Founder and CEO of Ditch the Label says: “The Wireless Survey 2014 has unearthed some striking statistics and huge areas of concern regarding the safeguarding and wellbeing of young people. We are particularly concerned about the amount of young people who are not reporting the abuse that they have received through fears that it isn’t going to be taken seriously. There is also a huge issue with the unauthorised distribution of sexually explicit images, which we have linked to some very severe health and welfare consequences for those who have had their private images shared.”

Claire Lilley, Head of Child Online Safety for the NSPCC said: “Sadly many children now see sexting as part of normal life with girls constantly being pestered to provide sexual pictures of themselves. It may seem harmless fun but it can often have a devastating end with images that were never intended to be shared being circulated to a massive audience. Some of the victims are so mortified by what has happened that they turn to self-harm.”

Is this you? Find out more about Robert Walters at www.robertwalters.co.uk

Download the report and find out more about Ditch the Label at www.ditchthelabel.org/wireless-report-2014/

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 48

Entertainment Things that have us buzzing We love all things music, TV, radio, movies.....well most things entertainment related really. In this new section of the Network Buzz magazine weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re thrilled to bring you interviews and features from some established and well known personalities as well as some talented up and coming acts who we think are ones to watch.

Featured interviews include: Leslie Jordan Emmy award winning actor Noreen Khan Top rated radio show presenter A*Base EXCLUSIVE Swedenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s newest pop act

Marcus Collins X Factor finalist and stage star Taylor Jones Up and coming singer and songwriter

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

Big Interview

Leslie Jordan Leslie is best known for his role playing Karenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s pretentious, sexually ambiguous rival Beverley Leslie on the hit TV series Will & Grace. For that role he received an Emmy Award for Best Guest Actor in a Comedy Series at the 58th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards. A man of many talents, he wrote and starred in the autobiographical play Lost in the Pershing Point Hotel. Adding another string to his bow, in August 2014 he was a housemate in Celebrity Big Brother UK. Interview by Thomas Anderson

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 50

BIG INTERVIEW : LESLIE JORDAN | ACTOR & COMEDIAN Do you enjoy coming to the UK?

I love it. I’ve never been outside of London, ever. I’ve been to London probably five or six times but I’ve never seen anywhere else. The furthest I’ve been outside of London was to the location of the studio where we filmed Big Brother, Elsway or wherever it was (it was Elstree).

I’m going to be the keynote speaker and I’m going to do some comedy. My mother said, “How did you become the keynote speaker?”, and I said, “Thirty years face down in a beer bath gets you to be the keynote speaker”. I’m going to be wrapped up like a Geisha at the event. I’ll be like the Invisible Man.

You should come and visit Manchester

Oh I know. I want to so bad. My publicist Kevin Wilson is from near there and he’s told me all about how popular I’d be. I’ve heard about the Manchester Pride festival and Brighton Pride too – that’s supposed to be fun. I’d love to tour the UK Pride events. It’d be like my very own little private Gay Edinburgh Festival.

“You know, I’m from the deep south and homophobia and racism is still rampant. Many people still can’t believe we have a black President.” We spotted some photo’s of you on your Facebook page where your face looked very red recently

I’ve just had this awful procedure. You know years ago I used to ride race horses and I spent eight years down in Florida riding in the sun with no skin protection so I’ve had to get all these little cancer things burnt off my forehead. Well the dermatologist said you should do this blue light treatment and then you’ll never have to worry. You should see me. I look like a monster. It’s like a chemical peel. I’m afraid my nose is going to fall off and I’ll be like Michael Jackson. All you white English boys with your fair skin should make sure you use skin protection. I did the procedure now as I don’t have many major performances coming up. I’m a member of a big drugs and alcohol recovery group , a big gay recovery group, and we’re having our picnic and

any controversy around the characters, we had nothing to do with that. That would fall in the writers lap because we really were actors for hire. I mean, of course I noticed people like Eric and Debra, you know the main four, would sometimes have heated discussions about the script but it was always the decision of the writers. We’d come up with ideas that we thought were funny and they’d look at us like we were dummies and say, “Well, why don’t you try it in rehearsal?”. They’d always edit it though. The only time I ever ad libbed was that line where it was the Jennifer Lopez episode (“I Do. Oh, No, You Di-in’t”) and Jack was offering Rosario a shrimp, and I just jokingly walked past and said ‘Queer’. The people started laughing so much and the writers said they’d let me have that one. They said don’t make a habit of it though.

How did it feel to win an Emmy Award for your role in Will & Grace?

Leslie and his prestigious Emmy award for his role in iconic TV series Will & Grace

Let’s talk Will & Grace

All I can say is the one thing I noticed immediately when I got on that show (Will & Grace) is something I learnt in my early Hollywood days. Theatre is an Actors medium, a film is a Directors medium and television is a Script Writers medium. People think that maybe we got to improvise or we had any kind of say so in the script and we really didn’t. You know, the success of the show you have to give to the writers. But anything like any kind of controversy, there’s always been some of that. A lot of people in the gay community always said Eric should have had a boyfriend and should have kissed more. There were two creators of Will & Grace. A straight guy called David Kohan and his writing partner Max Mutchnick. One was gay and one was straight. So there was a real nice checking balance. Sometimes David would speak up for the straight guy, “It’s getting a little gayer”, and then the gay Director would say, “No, this is getting too Republican.” So if there was

You know, in retrospect it felt pretty special. I really just think that Will & Grace will go down as the turning point in the gay movement. Something changed. I came on Season 3 and worked across five seasons so I was around when the tide turned. Right in there something turned and I think Will & Grace had a lot to do with it.

Do you think homophobia is still an issue?

Oh I do. I have always felt there are two ways that you combat homophobia. One is through humour. I learnt that in grammar school when the other kids would play dodge ball and hollar, “He’s a queer”, at me and try and hit me with the ball. If I was funny I could keep the bullies at bay. And then another way to combat homophobia is to put a face on it. Once you know that someone is gay, then you can’t really say, “Oh, those queers”. If you know someone and you know they’re human and like everyone else it helps. I think America welcomed these characters (Will & Grace characters) in to their homes. You know, I’m from the deep south and homophobia and racism is still rampant. Many people still can’t believe we have a black President. How ridiculous is that. There’s still so much to do to tackle homophobia and racism.

Keep updated with Leslie’s comings and goings at www.thelesliejordan.com

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

BIG INTERVIEW : LESLIE JORDAN | EMMY AWARD WINNING ACTOR Let’s talk Equal Marriage People are still protesting against same-sex marriage and I keep saying, “It doesn’t matter if you’re for or against it, it’s gonna happen. Accept it.”. My generation, we were hippies and we got out of the closet and into the streets and we protested. But the only thing that does is get attention to your cause. The change has to come from within. That’s my new platform for young gay people. You have to vote. You have to get out of the bars and get to the polls when we elect these people, those are the ones who are making the decisions and now we finally figured out, go through the courts system. The courts system will look at it and say, “You know what, this is not right”, and that’s what’s happening right now. It doesn’t matter what you think. These Lawyers that got up for Prop8, I was at a wedding recently and my friend leaned in to me and said, “That’s Judge Reinhardt. He’s the one that overturned Prop8”. And here was this old straight guy who you know just figured out, that it just wasn’t right. As an elected official, as a Judge, I’ve got to look at this. We’re pretty jubilant. I was at a wedding recently and their 9 year old daughter, I’m her same height, and she was the flower girl and I was the ring bearer. The oldest ring bearer in the history of weddings.

Have you received much negativity on social media? I did when I didn’t realise you never want to go near religion. You never want to go in to politics either. You know, there’s this thing I didn’t know early on as I didn’t really start with Facebook until about a year ago, two years ago maybe. It used to be done for me by a company and I’d tell them what to post. And then when I started to post things myself, which I do religiously now, it grew and everyday my manager calls me and says, “Quit being so personal. Talk about animals and la la la.”. But that is not me. I’m not talking about chickens.

Is social media important to you? It’s important for this one reason. The power of social media in promoting yourself is just unbelievable. I’ll tell you something funny, about two years ago I was doing my one man show in LA for the first time and I went in to the office of the

theatre and I said, “I don’t see any posters around town.”. In my day, we’d get a bunch of posters and we’d go all through the gaybourhood and stick those posters up everywhere. And then we’d pass out cards in the gay bars and you know, I said to them I don’t see any cards. They said, “Oh Leslie, we haven’t done that in years here. We just use social media. We don’t want to pay for all that”. So what happens is, my shows sell out but it seems that nobody really knows about it. A lot of my audience are older gay men who really don’t use social media and stuff like that. They’re real theatre goers and are the ones that will spend the money and come and see me.

“You have to get out of the bars and get to the polls when we elect these people, those are the ones who are making the decisions” I was in Atlanta recently as I was taking part in Gay Pride in Atlanta. When I was there they were like, “We want to take you to the gay bars and tell people you’re in town”. But let me tell you something, these queens that go to the bars, they’re not going to spend sixty bucks on a ticket to see me. They don’t have that kind of money to spend. Forget it. Well they trollied me out anyway and I don’t think we sold a single ticket from going to the bars. The night was packed packed packed though. We have two gay cruise lines here in America, one is called Atlantis, and that’s kind of the younger, circuit and party boys. I don’t do Atlantis. I do RSVP that goes to the Caribbean and Alaska, we went from Barcelona once. It’s an older crowd and I do much better with that audience.

Leslie is very active on social media. Follow him at:

www.facebook.com/thelesliejordan @TheLeslieJordan

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 52

EXCLUSIVE

THEIR FIRST UK INTERVIEW

Interview by Thomas Anderson

When Britney was topping the charts with ‘Baby One More Time’, a group of teens from Sweden, A*Teens released their album of ABBA covers with a new spin, ‘The ABBA Generation’.

An introduction to A*Base

We're a tribute band to Ace of Base, one of Sweden's greatest pop acts ever. We do covers of Ace of Base with a new and fresh sound. We're made up of four members aged between 16 and 17 years old - Matilda Lundberg, Malin Enstedt, Alexander Beyer and Emil Henrohn.

See the Inclusive Networks website for more info about each member.

Your debut single is a cover of the Ace of Base hit 'Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry'. With so many songs to choose from, how did you settle on this as your debut single?

Because it's not one of the songs they succeeded with the most we decided to give the song a fresh new sound that people nowadays listen to. And of course because it's a really good song that sticks in your head.

You performed the song on Swedish TV for the first time recently too

It was so fun! It was our second performance together so we were very nervous but you feel so safe when you are in a group with very talented people.

Will you be putting your stamp on the blockbuster hits 'The Sign' and 'All That She Wants'?

Yes, we're absolutely gonna be putting our stamp on the blockbuster hits 'The Sign' and 'All That She Wants'. Hopefully you’ll hear them pretty soon, but that's all we can say so stay tuned!

15 years later, a new group has just been launched in Sweden that pay tribute to another of Sweden’s greats, Ace of Base. In their first UK interview, say hello to

What can we expect from your debut album?

‘Happy Generation’ is just a working name for the album and not the actual official album name. You can expect a new era of Ace of Base. Our touch on some of their greatest songs. Unfortunately we can’t tell you anything about the content just yet. Hopefully we’ll release the album during 2015 and the release will be worldwide. The UK is one of our dream countries to visit and release in. We know that the UK fans are some of the best.

Are you nervous about what the die hard Ace of Base fans will think of your renditions of the songs?

No, we're not so nervous because every person thinks differently. Some people are gonna like it and some won't. But hopefully they’re gonna like and appreciate our versions because we’re doing it to freshen up the songs and to pay tribute to Ace of Base. The feedback has been both good and bad. There's some people who think it's too similar to the original and that we're treading on holy ground. But there's also many people who really like it and are excited for the upcoming songs. But we're not trying to BE Ace of Base.

Sweden has produced so many great acts over the years. Do you have any favourites?

Our favourite Swedish acts in the charts are Robyn and Tove Lo who are two great pop singers and also known across the

world. They both have great voices and great songs like "Hang With Me - Robyn" and "Stay High - Tove Lo".

Who are your musical role models?

We all have different musical role models. But one shared musical role model is Beyoncé. Her voice, performances and her music are just amazing. She's really our biggest inspiration. All of us think the same. Beyoncé is one of the greatest ever. But there are a lot of good singers and artists out there.

What are your ambitions for A*Base?

Our ambition is to reach out with our music to the whole world and hopefully become as great as Ace of Base were. Hopefully we will release many albums and get out on a tour and perform in many different countries.

Do you have any plans to perform and promote outside of Sweden?

We absolutely have plans to perform and promote outside of Sweden. There's actually more interest for the music we do outside of Sweden which is very fun. So we really hope to come and visit your country soon.

The new A*Base single ‘Never Gonna Say I’m Sorry’ is available to download from iTunes now. abaseoﬃcial.com @abaseoﬃcial

Ƌ Ƌ ē Ƌ

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 54

Marina & The Diamonds is back with

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

FROOT UK release date: 6 April 2015 Label: Atlantic Records UK Songs available to download from iTunes now: Froot, Happy & Immortal With “FROOT”, Marina And The Diamonds' first new noise since the death of alter-ego Electra Heart in 2013, Marina Diamandis has made a grand statement of intent. It's a cathartic rebirth in nearly every way, and sees her veer away from the last LP's stylistic and thematic intentions, instead returning to basics for a new chapter in her career and life. ‘FROOT’, the single is out now and is a vanguard of a fresh record of the same name. It's the result of a drastic twist in her outlook, and a passion for taking charge. Striding back with confidence, Diamandis spouts disco grooves, dreamy vocal hooks and an effervescent sass not seen since she was last on the scene. Crucially, the thematic content is a far cry from that of The Family Jewels or Electra Heart. She stresses that 'happiness' is not the right word, but rather a contented state of existence. “It was almost like I had been burdened by something my whole life and then suddenly that went away...” she says. “I can't even describe how amazing it is... you suddenly realise why people are happy and why people enjoy things. I think I used to believe that being depressed was part of my personality or that I was born like that, but it's quite shocking to realise that perhaps that isn't the case...” She ponders, as if half-realising this on the fly. “Maybe I was ready to change. Maybe I was ready to leave a lot of things I'd held onto in the past behind. I don't know if that happens to other people when they hit a certain age or maybe some people

don't even have those issues to begin with. Perhaps it's not very common, but I know that it was important for my future.” Along with this rebooted mind-set, Diamandis' FROOT was galvanised by a passion to retake the reins. While Electra Heart's cavalcade of producers taught her the pop gamut, it was never something she wanted to do forever. “In the past because I was new and I was someone who really needed praise, I very much listened to other people, perhaps when I shouldn't have. So because of that, on FROOT, I wanted to write the entire record alone. I think one of the biggest challenges was saying what I wanted to do for once. Whoever you are as an artist, you have to know who you are so that you can do what you want to do... so that no one's going to tell you what your identity is.” More than ever, that's something that Diamandis is utterly au fait with – herself. She worked with a limited list of names on the new album, co-producing the record with David Kosten and enlisting Everything Everything on guitars and Jason Cooper of The Cure on drums– but other than that, it's a multifaceted beast of her own creation. That's not embellishment; everything is written by her own hand – a truly unique prospect in a world of cookie-cutter floor fillers and ghostwritten forget-me-nots. From the existential tribulations of “Immortal”, harking back to her days as lithe ivory-tinkling balladeer, to the relentless funk of “Better Than That” (surely a future hit), to the wit and juxtaposition of “Happy” to the '70s-

flecked “I'm A Ruin”, this is all Marina And The Diamonds. While she's still stridently marching forth, an eternally metamorphosing artist of almost supernatural ability, she nods to her DIY beginnings and the fragile, tender emotion of first album tracks like “Obsessions” or the bigpicture anxiety of “Are You Satisfied?”. Succinctly summing FROOT up, she says that “it's not about being pop or not pop, or electronic or not electronic, it's more about feeling the groove in the music and knowing there are real musicians playing it... I think it's something that I've been trying to translate for a long time.” It's a frighteningly intimate and retrospective record, with Diamandis dissecting her own foibles and pitfalls and her guilt and regret, but it's also heartwarmingly optimistic despite that. She knows how to move on, close the book and look forward now. In that, she's discovering new elements of herself, channeling invigorated ideals and developing a passion for the unknown. FROOT is not just an album of pop songs (though it's not not that either), it's the chronicling of massive tumult, growing up and emerging from the cocoon maybe a bit bruised, a tad battered, but ultimately born anew, ready to reclaim the world. “I'm used to planning everything to sweet fuckery, and I'm not planning anything this time,” she says with a slightly nervous laughter. “I'm just happy to let everything happen.” www.marinaandthediamonds.com

NEW RELEASES Music A selection of new and upcoming releases we’re looking forward to Album

Mark Ronson Uptown Special Sony

19th January The single Uptown Funk is the most streamed track of all time and what a funk.

Album

Madonna Rebel Heart Live Nation

10th March Six tracks came earlier than expected and we love them. We have good feelings this won’t be another MDNA.

Album

Ne-Yo Non-Fiction

Motown Records

16th February

He’s had a mixed bag of chart success with his UK singles but we have a feeling this album will deliver.

Single

The Veronicas If You Love Someone Sony

2nd March Their last single 'You Ruin Me' was their first UK release in 7 years and was a surprise hit. We think this song is even better, it’s very Pink sounding, so let’s hope they can repeat the magic.

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 56

role model

Interview

Noreen Khan

Noreen is a successful radio and TV presenter. She currently presents her show on the BBC Asian Network weekdays from 1:30-5pm. Listening ďŹ gures regularly prove she has the most listened to Asian radio show in the UK. Away from the airwaves Noreen has a huge interest in fashion and has launched her very own clothing line. Needless to say, she is a role model to many. Interview by Thomas Anderson

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Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk

You are a very successful radio presenter. Is this a job you always dreamed of doing?

I didn’t actually plan to go into radio when I was at school but I think it was my passion for music that got me there eventually.

How did your career start?

I started off volunteering in hospital radio, then went onto work for a commercial radio station in London and then after four years of commercial radio I was poached by the BBC!

Was it all plain sailing?

I did experience challenges along the way as media can be an extremely competitive field so you’ve got to really prove yourself to get noticed. I also struggled in the beginning when I was trying to hold down a full time job and get some unpaid radio experience on the weekends. I didn’t have much of a social life for a while as I was so determined to get as many air miles as I could.

And now you are the presenter of one of the biggest Asian radio shows in the UK. That must feel good?

I do feel proud to have the most listened to show on the BBC Asian Network. To sum up my show, I’d say I play a good mix of music, including new and classic Asian music. I cover the latest showbiz news, gadget and technology news, sports, lifestyle and have lots of cheeky banter in between. My show is pretty much infotainment.

What does success look like to you?

Success to me means being the best in your field and being able to maintain being at the top.

Do you still have things you want to achieve? Yes, there is so much more I want to achieve. I never stop!

Who are your media role models?

My media role models would include anyone from Oprah Winfrey, Chris Evans to Ant and Dec as they have been in the game for a long time and are still getting good work which means they’re doing something right.

Do you think it is important to have visible diverse role models in the public eye? We’re still in a country where white men dominate many industries. It’s very important to have visible diverse role models to help inspire others and to reflect the world we live in.

How do you feel being considered a role model to many people?

I never really think about it…if people see me as one then that’s a huge compliment. Being a role model also comes with a bit of responsibility.

“We are still in a country where white men dominate many industries. It is very important to have visible diverse role models to help inspire others and to reﬂect the world we live in.”

We would love to know more about your clothing line

I actually set up my own clothing boutique when I was just 21 so it was always in me to get back into fashion which is how Noreen Khan Couture came about.

How would you describe the clothing line and where can people buy it? My label is a blend of Asian and Western influences as I want my clothing line to appeal to non Asian women too. It’s all available via my website: www.officialnoreenkhan.com

Who are your own fashion icons?

I’ve never really followed anyone but there is one woman who I’ve pretty much studied since I was a little girl and that is the icon Marilyn Monroe.

Do you have any hopes and dreams for 2015?

I have a lot of hopes for 2015….if any of them work out I’ll drop you a note! I can’t say too much about them right now…

Racism is something that is still a big problem in the UK (and beyond). Is this something you have ever experienced?

I can’t say I’ve ever experienced any sort of racism first hand. I hope I never have to either.

What role do you think the media has in putting discrimination, whether it be racism, homophobia…, in the public eye and helping educate people of the damage it does to the victims? Obviously media plays a very important role in helping with these issues and as an industry we should try and help and do all we can to help eradicate it.

Listen to Noreen on the BBC Asian Network weekdays from 1:30-5pm. Keep connected with Noreen : www.officialnoreenkhan.com | @DJNoreenKhan

Network Buzz | January - February 2015 | www.inclusivenetworks.co.uk | 58

role model Interview

Marcus Collins Marcus finished as runnerup on the hit TV series XFactor back in 2011 and has since gone on to have a Top10 UK single and album, a hit solo tour and a successful musical theatre career, starring in

‘Hairspray’. As an openly gay man, Marcus is a visible Role Model to many and has shared his experiences on many platforms and in 2014, as a key-note speaker at the Stonewa" conference in Manchester.

Interview by Thomas Anderson

It seems like life is quite a whirlwind for you. What’s been keeping you busy in recent months?

It really has. I have been so busy this year and have took time out to get on the property ladder and travel the world with my partner. I’m taking my time with my music and finding the right direction for my career. I’ve worked so hard and non stop since my XFactor journey in 2011 and I’m growing as an artist every day.

You’re doing lots of traveling the world. Is this part of the job you enjoy?

The traveling can be difficult at times but life is for living and there is plenty of time to sleep when you’re dead I suppose! Haha. This year I’ve been lucky enough to travel to Las Vegas, New York, Shanghai China, Venice and loads of other places I’ve never had a chance to experience. My friends have nicknamed me Judith Chalmers. And more recently ‘Shanghai Lil’! Traveling is so exhilarating and I love it. Roll on 2015. I want to get to Australia, Africa and South America.

What do you miss most when you’re away from home?

A decent cup of tea! And good bacon from the local butchers! My home is my pride and joy so it’s the small things I miss. But as long as I have my room

fragrances I could be anywhere in the world and if it smells like home I’m happy.

When are you at your happiest?

When I’m performing and usually when I’m working somewhere hot with my partner. I can’t wait until my god daughter Olivia is old enough to travel with me. She is my world.

“Stonewall is a part of LGBT history and it’s incredible work should be taught without fear or shame in schools to open young peoples eyes.” You’ve recently completed your first solo UK tour. Do you have a highlight from the tour? The UK tour was a great accomplishment for me and my team. We are very proud

of what we achieved and we had so much fun. The highlight was getting a 5* review from the Daily Mirror and meeting the fans who have supported me from the get go. It was incredibly moving and reassuring for me as a performer, that I can still rise to a challenge and push myself to the next step vocally and really grow as an artist.

The tour had a very soulful and Motown theme. Can we expect new Marcus Collins music in this vein in the near future?

I really wanted to perform music that felt authentic to who I am and songs that I connect with and compliment my vocal tone. Motown and R’n’B is the music that I’ve always adored and it just feels natural to perform to me. It evokes happiness and joy. The new MC material will still have influences of soul but I am expanding my horizons and experimenting musically with genres I haven’t dared to attempt. It’s proving really promising and I can’t wait for you all to hear it.