Defence
The MOD Police & Guarding Agency is strongly committed to a culture of respect for diversity, believing that diversity and equality are not just civilised values in themselves but also key drivers in achieving enhanced outputs, quality performance and professional success.
MDPGA's diversity plans are intended to encourage and incentivise new ways of thinking and acting, thereby fostering a culture of respect for difference, whether in age, disability, ethnicity, gender or gender identity, religion or belief, or sexual orientation.
It is a core value of the agency that all its staff do their jobs in workplaces that are free of harassment, bullying or unjustifiable discrimination.
MDPGA will not tolerate harassment at work, inappropriate language or behaviour, or any form of humiliation of one person by another. Such behaviour undermines professionalism, effectiveness and the agency's good name. The agency therefore adopts a zero tolerance stance on harassment and bullying.
MDPGA is commitmed to providing a working environment where people are treated with dignity and respect and this extends to those who work alongside the agency, whether Service personnel, civil servants or contractors.
Support Groups
The agency encourages and fosters the setting up of minority group forums, to underline that it recognises their identity and values the contribution they make. There are four support groups for minority staff: the Women’s Staff Association (WSA); the Agency Support Group for Minority Ethnic Staff (ASME); LGB Unite (the support group for lesbian, gay and bi-sexual staff); and the Disability Support Forum (DSF). These groups help ensure that the agency understands the specific needs of minority group members and the issues they face.
The agency is committed to encouraging, wherever possible and practical, developmental opportunities for members of minorities or under represented groups amongst its staff, such as disabled people or women, to enable them to fulfil their potential.
These include the Springboard women’s development programme (and the Navigator men’s programme), MOD and police development programmes for ethnic minority, disabled and LGB staff, and positive action events.
The agency is making
increased efforts to recruit and retain staff from under-represented groups, such as women, ethnic minorities and gay and lesbian people, with the aim of staffing both MDP and MGS in a way which reflects the ethnic diversity of the wider community.
The agency believes that achieving the aim of more diverse representation will make it more effective as an Agency, since it will be more representative of the communities in which it operates.
The agency strives to ensure that all its people are educated and trained to know and understand how to fulfil their responsibilities on diversity, and contribute to the achievement of its diversity goals.
MDPGA Diversity Champion
MDPGA’s work on diversity and equality is led from the top, with the Chief Constable/Chief Executive as MDPGA Diversity Champion.
His role is to direct the diversity agenda, supported by a Diversity Programme Board, comprising representatives of all Agency Management Board members, the Trades Unions, the Defence Police Federation, the minority staff support groups and the MOD Police Committee. The Board formulates and monitors progress on the MDPGA’s Diversity Strategy and annual Action Plan.
Diversity and Equality Unit
MDPGA has a Diversity and Equality Unit (DEU) whose key roles are to formulate, implement and monitor diversity and equality initiatives, policies and plans; to provide advice and guidance to management and staff in the agency on diversity and equality issues; to build and maintain internal networks and liaise with external networks; to ensure the agency takes into account good practice in other organisations; and to develop publicity material and provide information and education on diversity and equality issues.
The DEU also leads on harassment and bullying and manages a network of Contact Officers who provide a confidential and informal avenue for support to colleagues who believe they have been harassed, bullied, discriminated against or treated unfairly at work or who have been accused of such behaviour.
Although most of the MDPGA’s customers are internal to the Defence community, MDP and MGS officers have regular contact with members of the public in a variety of situations. There is, therefore, a need for the agency’s diversity work to address both employment and service delivery issues and so a particular responsibility of the DEU is to ensure that diversity and equality issues are taken into account in the provision of policing and guarding services.
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