Date published: 28 November 2024
As the only housing association member invited to join the Group, Cordelia Johnney, who has been leading Stonewater’s EDI lead for 11 years, will represent the sector alongside other EDI champions working to improve the professional lives of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic employees.
It comes after the leading social housing provider once again maintained its place in the Top 10 Outstanding Employers in this year's Investing in Ethnicity Awards, ranking them alongside numerous blue-chip companies for the fourth year in a row.
Cordelia was also selected as one of the Top 10 individuals in the Exceptional Inclusion category this year – a further recognition of her voice in EDI.
Having previously worked informally with the Parliamentary Group, which promotes inclusive leadership and governance while aiming to give fair opportunities to people from under-represented ethnic groups, Cordelia is looking forward to working with the Group in a more formal capacity.
She said: “It is an honour to be selected to join the All-Party Parliamentary Group alongside Dawn Butler MP. Being invited to join such an important Group is testament to the dedication to EDI from everyone at Stonewater, without which I would not have been able to achieve so much in the way of equality for colleagues and peers across the sector and beyond.
“To be able to use my voice for positive change alongside such an amazing group of EDI champions and spokespeople is something I am immensely proud of.
“But we still have a lot to do; this is an opportunity that I will grasp with both hands to continue to improve the inclusivity in leadership and governance that we strive for here at Stonewater, and which is so vital across all workplaces and sectors.”
As well as securing its spot in the Top 10 Outstanding Employers Awards, Stonewater also placed in the Top 10 Exemplary Employers in Investing in Ethnicity's Maturity Matrix, a benchmarking tool to aid equality in the workplace by assessing an organisations' progress towards ethnic inclusivity.
As one of the top placed organisations, Cordelia and Stonewater colleagues including Jenny Sawyer, Director of People, Culture & Change and EDI delivery Board Chair, have been invited to attend a networking event at the Houses of Parliament in February. The event will celebrate the launch of the new cycle of the Investing in Ethnicity Maturity Matrix and the organisations investing in the ethnicity agenda, providing another opportunity to progress workplace EDI.
Nicholas Harris, Chief Executive at Stonewater, said: “Led by Cordelia, our EDI team, with support from colleagues across the organisation, is dedicated to making sure we reflect the diversity of the communities we serve and proactively promote equality and inclusivity organisation-wide and across the sector as a whole.
“We are extremely pleased to see Cordelia’s work and the strength of her voice in EDI recognised in this way and look forward to seeing her contribute to further progress in this area, ensuring our workplaces are truly inclusive and open to individuals from diverse backgrounds.”