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The lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer plus staff network aims to improve the experience LGBTQ+ staff have at St Mary's, through networking opportunities and social events, as well as by raising awareness of our diverse community.

We are hosting a variety of events during February to celebrate LGBT+ History Month. Explore what we have on offer.

As part of St Mary’s LGBTQ+ Project, the University and Students’ Union are launching our LGBTQ+ Student Experience Survey.

This aims to gather valuable insights about the LGBTQ+ experience of our students to help us build a more inclusive campus.

We want all students to complete the survey, regardless of whether or not they are part of the LGBTQ+ community.

Their confidential responses will guide initiatives to enhance the overall student experience here at St Mary’s.

By completing the survey, students will have the chance to win one of three £50 vouchers for a shop of their choice.

The survey will run through the whole of February.

If you are in a student-facing role, please do share details of the survey with your students and encourage them to fill it in.

LGBTQ+ Experience Survey

Join us as we raise the Progress Pride Flag in Student Square at 12pm on Thursday 1st February, to launch LGBT+ History Month.

All staff and students welcome!

Grab yourself a sweet treat (cakes, cookies etc.) while you're there at our charity bake sale. Proceeds will go to support Switchboard, the LGBT+ helpline.

Let's make this a memorable start to LGBT+ History Month at St Mary’s!

Join the LGBTQ+ Staff Network on Monday 12th February for a Lunchtime Talk about LGBTQ+ Advertising.

Everyone is welcome: staff & students, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and allies.
In this interactive and thought-provoking session, we will be exploring the portrayal of the LGBTQ+ community through the lens of advertisement, and reflect on the impact it had/has on the community.

The session will be held in the Link Room (opposite Sports St Mary’s reception) from 12-1pm.

Bring your own lunch.

To reserve a place at this session, please email LGBTQ@stmarys.ac.uk.

The session will be led by Eleonore Murauer who is the e-Innovation Director for Reckitt’s Intimate Wellness brands (which includes Durex) and is also global lead of the company’s LGBTQ+ Employee Resource Group.

An experienced, challenge driven, and award-winning marketeer with experience in global and local roles, Eleonore is passionate about the impact brands can drive, and the fights they take on. She regularly challenges her teams to think creatively about how they can work as meaningful allies and drive positive societal change via internal and external action.

Most recently, Eleonore pioneered an augmented reality in-store shopping experience for Reckitt’s Intimate Wellness brands, supporting consumers in discreetly finding the right products for their needs, and she led the roll out of the first LGBTQ+ focused sex survey, to ensure all Durex products, marketing, and educational materials are inclusive and support all our consumers in meeting their needs, and in seeing their identities recognised through our brands and marketing. In her free time, she can be found spending quality time with her wife and two young children.

In this article in Marketing Week, Eleonore explains Why brands must be braced for backlash when supporting LGBTQ+ communities.

Join the LGBTQ+ Staff Network on Thursday 22nd February to Celebrate LGBT+ History Month with a relaxing and creative wellbeing workshop.

Everyone is welcome: staff and students, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and allies.

Come along and learn how creativity can positively impact your health, mood, and increase focus.

Take part in practical exercises and learn how to develop a personal creative wellbeing practice of your own.

The workshop will be held in room K17 from 12-2pm, but you can drop in for as long or as short a time as you are able.

Bring your own lunch.

To reserve a place at this session please email LGBTQ@stmarys.ac.uk.

The session will be led by Jens Welch (They/Them) who is a Person Centred therapeutic arts practitioner. They have a special interest in LGBT+ affirmative, and disability and neurodiverse positive practices. They work within health, education, and charity sectors throughout the UK.

They are a member of APCCA (Association of Person Centred Creative Arts) and tPCA (the Person Centred Association).

Please don't feel any pressure to be "out" as LGBTQ+ to join our network or attend our events.  All our colleagues are welcome, whatever your sexual orientation or gender identity, including allies.

Note: We do not ask you to disclose your sexual orientation or gender identity.

Please join our mailing list by emailing lgbtq@stmarys.ac.uk to receive our e-newsletters with information and updates on what's happening on campus and virtually.

We aim to engage actively with St Mary's University, by:

  • raising the profile of LGBTQ+ equality across the whole University, and working to address any identified inequalities
  • actively influencing University practices, policies, and strategies to be inclusive of the needs of LGBTQ+ people
  • celebrating LGBTQ+ diversity and promoting an inclusive culture for work and study at St Mary's
  • providing support, advice and information on LGBTQ+ matters to all staff, exercising confidentiality as and when appropriate
  • raising our external profile as an LGBTQ+ inclusive University, by networking with external LGBTQ+ communities, groups, and organisations.

As part of St Mary’s University’s efforts to increase the sense of belonging for all our staff, fourmembers of staff have been through the LGBT Foundation’s Training Academy Champions programme.

The programme consists of various modules including terminology, legislation, LGBT health, LGBT inclusive workplaces, and intersectionality. Our LGBT Champions are now more informed on how to support LGBT colleagues, and will contribute to our Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion strategy.

Our Champions are a point of contact if you, or one of your colleagues, are seeking support, advise, or signposting to relevant bodies related to LGBTQ+ issues. They are not trained therapists or counsellors, but they can point you in the right direction to receive appropriate further support if required.

Any interactions you have with the LGBT Foundation Champions in this capacity will be strictly confidential. An LGBT Champion will only ever disclose that they have had a conversation with you if they have concerns for your safety, or the safety of someone else.

  • Jo Blunden, Cheif Operating Officer.
  • Jordan Baker, Democracy and Academic Representation Coordinator (SMSU).
  • Gopi Pajwani, HR Partner.
  • Lorna Piper, Placement Officer.

The St Mary’s Staff Trans and Non-Binary Equality Policy was released to all staff in July 2022.

This was followed up with some Gender Awareness Training.

Staff Transgender and Non-Binary Equality Policy

The St Mary's Student Transgender and Non-Binary Equality Policy was approved and released in February 2024, during LGBT+ History Month.

Transgender and Non-Binary Equality Policy for Students

Dates and information

Look out for more information coming to mark key LGBTQ+ dates throughout the year.

Cathedrals Group LGBTQ+ Support Working Group

Sam Goober from HR has recently established this working group, which your co-chairs attended. We had a really interesting first meeting with members from Leeds Trinity, York St John, Gloucestershire, and Cumbria universities. 

It was reassuring to hear that despite some common challenges we all face there is some great progress being made.We now have a MS Team for the group through which we can share ideas and information. And we’ve agreed we’ll look for ways to collaborate on events going forward.  

LGBTQ+ social events

What sort of social events (if any) would you like the network to organise?
Please let us know your thoughts by emailing LGBTQ@stmarys.ac.uk.

Rainbow badges, laces, and ribbons

We have a small stock of rainbow flag lapel pins for network members.

Wearing one around campus is a good way to increase LGBTQ+ visibility on campus and to show colleagues and students that you’re LGBTQ+, or an LGBTQ+ ally.

In addition, rainbow laces are available from Sports St Mary’s Reception and the Widening Participation team in J123/J124​. The latter also have rainbow ribbons available.

LGBTQ+ Staff Pulse Survey Report

In 2021, in conjunction with HR, we conducted a Pulse survey to understand the experiences of LGBTQ+ Staff at St Mary's.

The LGBTQ+ Staff Pulse Survey Report summarises the findings of that survey and makes some recommendations for addressing the challenges highlighted in the survey responses. 

The Vice Chancellor and Senior Leadership team are committed to working together with us to progress these recommendations as appropriate. Indeed, work on some of these recommendations is already underway.

Follow us on Twitter

We now have our own Twitter account. Follow us on: @smu_lgbtq.

Report and support

If you have, unfortunately, experienced or witnessed instances of bullying, harassment, and misconduct related to protected characteristics (such as sexual orientation or gender identity) at St Mary's, there are now some new resources available to help you.

The latter is currently a pilot scheme. So all feedback will be gratefully received and will be used to review and enhance the form/process.

Our Commitment to our LGBTQ+ students

See St Mary's statement & video of Our Commitment to our LGBTQ+ Students produced by the LGBTQ+ Staff Network and St Mary's Students Union for LGBTQ+ History Month in 2020.

Lunch club

These events are currently suspended. Please watch this space for more information.

  • Every Tuesday in the Refectory from 12pm-1pm.
  • Look for the rainbow flag – and join like-minded colleagues for an informal chat over lunch (b.y.o. lunch) and feel part of the community.

Our history, your future

Read about LGBT people's careers and entrepreneurship stories. How would you like to advance your career at St Mary’s?

The AIDS epidemic and its legacy

Read: Dana Rosenfeld’s moving article on the global AIDS epidemic’s impact on our LGBT community.

Watch: Russell T Davies’ It’s A Sin on Channel 4 which follows the history here in the UK.

LGBT people deserve dignity at work

Check out and share these articles on how to be an ally, how to support trans colleagues, and why it’s still not mission accomplished for LGBT workers in the UK.