In order to develop, recruit and retain talented people, we aim to achieve a more inclusive and diverse workforce, reflecting the communities where we work and to be seen as an employer of choice across diverse communities.

We aim to ensure equal opportunity in recruitment, career development, promotion, training and reward for all employees, including those with disabilities. Where existing employees become disabled, our policy is to provide continuing employment and training wherever practical.

Our employee resource groups, which cover areas including gender, ethnicity, disability, faith, sexual orientation and new employees, continue to deliver results in three areas: providing professional development opportunities for members through workshops and programmes; supporting the Company’s community relations activities through fundraising, volunteering, and providing support to organisations such as the American Association of Blacks in Energy; and working to increase broader understanding of inclusion through workshops, presentations and other educational events.

We have established a programme known as 'level playing field', which seeks to address the ongoing challenge we face around retention of under represented groups such as women and ethnic minorities. The programme is designed to enhance or make better use of existing processes such as mentoring and sponsorship, drive individual accountability for inclusion within the performance management framework, and encourage the application of flexible working policies.

Our key performance indicator in this area is the number of females and ethnic minority employees. We also measure number of female and ethnic minority employees in our management team.