Diversity & Inclusion Bus Group
Launched in March 2019, the Diversity & Inclusion Bus Group forms part of Women in Transport, with the key aim to promote and accelerate diversity and inclusion in the bus industry. The group is made up of likeminded peers from across a wide range of different functions, levels and businesses; all working towards the same objective… to start making a big difference!
The group’s key objectives are:
to lead change and make a real difference
to promote the benefits of diversity and inclusion and improve perceptions of the bus industry
to attract a diverse workforce which represents our customer base
to become employers of choice attracting the skills and talent we need
The group meets around four times a year and works on various workstreams and shares learnings, knowledge and expertise.
What we’ve delivered in 2023
There has been lots happening within the Diversity & Inclusion Bus Group so we’ve put together this bite sized summary for 2023. It gives you an insight of our initiatives and projects. We have over 35 active members across 19 different organisations and we’re all proudly part of Women in Transport.
Our output is always aligned to our annual objectives which have seen us tackle recruitment and retention, women’s safety on bus and inclusive cab design. We are also dedicated to providing thought leadership to the industry.
If you would like any further information, please email us at bus@womenintransport.com.
November 2023
In conversation with…
Our "In conversation with.." series is an opportunity get to know the members of the D&I Bus Group. Our first conversation is with Olivia Sklenar, Accessibility and Inclusion Officer at Lothian Buses introduced by Chloe Leach O'Connell who co-chairs the group.
Olivia discusses her perceptions of the public transport sector before she joined Lothian Buses, her experience of working in the bus industry, her passion for accessibility and inclusion, the challenges of improving accessibility and how you foster the connections and culture you need to support greater accessibility and inclusion in bus for the benefit of everyone.
Updates
Our projects
Promoting the Diversity and Inclusion agenda
We’ve had fantastic support from our friends across the industry, from sponsorship opportunities at the UK Bus Awards and the introduction of new categories focusing on company culture and diversity and inclusion, to the Confederation of Passenger Transport going over and above to help implement The Inclusive Employment Journey.
Robert Jack at Passenger Transport Magazine
Graham Vidler and Christopher Nice at the Confederation of Passenger Transport
Mark Yexley and the team at The UK Bus Awards
Tim Deakin at Route One
Jacqui Trayford and the team at Coach and Bus UK
Juliana O’Rourke at Landor
We’re really keen to do all we can to get the message out there. We released a factsheet ‘The Lowdown on Diversity and Inclusion’ in December which explains why diversity is not just a ‘nice to have’. It details how companies with inclusive cultures, where people feel they can be themselves, outperform in the markets they operate in. We want it to be clear, that it’s not just about getting underrepresented groups to join a company, it’s about creating a welcoming, respectful and engaged workforce, which will, in turn, create motivation, increase performance and attract diverse talent.
Project lead: Chloe Leach O’Connell
The Inclusive Employment Journey (IEJ) is a major project backed by the Confederation of Passenger Transport. We have created a central resource for the whole of the bus industry to use and benefit from. The ‘journey’ covers every step of employment, from community engagement and recruitment, through to support with ‘life after buses’ when our long servers leave the industry. Diversity and inclusion is at the heart of this initiative and our aim is to promote the very best, and the latest projects which represent first-class practices from across the industry.
Our partners have helped us make the IEJ a reality by sponsoring this important project, a massive thanks to:
CPT
Women in Transport
Blackpool Transport
Buzz Marketing
Society of Operations Engineers
Go North West
Uno
News
Inclusive employment in transport: The journey starts here — Caroline Ward and Chloe Leach O’Connell of Women in Transport, Womanthology, December 2021
The inclusive employment journey - driving diversity forward, CPT, February 2022
Project lead: Caroline Ward
The Diversity and Inclusion resources
In 2020, D&I Bus Group member Charlie Barnes led a project to create a a free diversity and inclusion electronic calendar to help the sector plan your equality, diversity and inclusion events. It covered 2021 and 2022 and was freely available to download on our website.
We are passionate at Women in Transport about collaboration and not duplicating efforts that support diversity and inclusion. Jo Major from Diversity in Recruitment signposted us to two fantastic resources that anyone can access: Powered by Diversity and Your D&I. These combined resources provide a comprehensive calendar of key dates and events and talks that any organisation can use to make a difference.
Your D&I
The Your D&I Diversity and Inclusion Calendar is available in multiple formats to best suit you. Visit the Your D&I website to learn more about the different ways you can keep up to date on all things diversity and inclusion: https://yourdandi.co.uk/calendar/
Powered by Diversity
The Cultural Calendar Club from Powered by Diversity offers 12 months of equality, diversity and inclusion talks and events, made financially accessible for all organisations. Find out more at: https://www.culturalcalendarclub.co.uk/
Our members
Women in Transport - Sonya Byers - CEO (Co-Founder)
Women in Transport - Daljit Kalirai - Co-Chair of the D&I Bus Group
LOC Consultancy - Chloe Leach-O’Connell, Director (Co-Founder and Co-Chair)
Abellio London Bus - Debbie McDonell - HR and Operations Director
Abellio London Bus - Lorna Murphy - Operations Manager
Alexander Dennis - Debbie McCreath - Marketing Communications and Public Affairs Manager
Alexander Dennis - Jane Murphy - HR Manager
Arup - Liani Baglietto Castellares - Transport Planner / Social Value Specialist
Arup - Sophie Zachulski - Senior Transport Planner
Blackpool Transport - Vicky Clegg - People Development Manager
Bus Users UK - Victoria Walker
Bus Users UK - Lydia Horbury - Director for England
Claire Rawlinson Ltd - Claire Rawlinson - Marketing Strategist
First Bus - Gareth Hind - Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
Go-Ahead - Nina Sjolund - Head of Talent and Development
INIT Ltd - Angelika Mazur - Project Manager
INIT Ltd - Sadie Levitsky - Marketing Manager
Jaw Consultancy - Caroline Ward - Director
Lothian Buses - Sarah Boyd - Managing Director
Lothian Buses - Aileen McKie - Head of People
Lothian Buses - Gaynor Marshall - Communications Director
National Express - Tinne Ledwitch-Madsen - Head of Employee Experience
National Express - Jenny Tocknell - Head of Operational Excellence
Stagecoach - Imran Sama - Inclusion and Culture Partner
Stagecoach - Michelle Doyle - Interim People Development Partner
The Oxford Bus Company - Lewis Nagle - Commercial and Publicity Officer
UK Power Networks - Charlie Barnes - Innovation Project Lead - Consumer Vulnerability
Uno Buses - James Thorpe - Managing Director
