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Civil Service

Health & Wellbeing

Disability and the Media

Some media, press and even charities portray disability as inspirational, negative, sad or even tragic. But how do people with disabilities really want to be viewed? There is no shortage of famous role models with a disability such as Andrea …

Are you deaf or hard of hearing? If so, you’re not alone

As the title says, for those working in the Civil Service who are deaf or hard of hearing, you’re not alone.  According to the British Deaf Association in 2011, it is estimated, there are 151,000 people in the UK who …

Mental Health First Aid: why it matters

My young daughter came home from school yesterday with a massive hole in her thick blue tights, with some pink bloodied skin poking through. I asked what had happened, and listened sympathetically as she explained how the game of “the …

What is it like to have visual impairment?

What is it like to have visual impairment? In 2009, Simon Skerritt, a Ministry of Defence employee, feared a future of blindness when he suddenly lost sight in his left eye. Below Simon recounts his experiences. I have had visual …

Did you know that cancer is classed as a disability under the Equality Act?

Sadly in the UK, one in two people will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime, and around 1 million people of working age, currently have cancer. Given the significant number of people affected (including many thousands of carers and …

Hearing loss and Covid: Simon’s and Sue’s experience

Sue Reeves, Chair of the Civil Service Disability Network

Earlier this year, when I shared my experience on working from home during the pandemic, some disabled colleagues observed that a large proportion of civil servants working flexibly, provided new opportunities for greater inclusion and line manager empathy. Conversely, I’m …

Making a big noise about Menopause

It has been an interesting year for so many reasons, not least the need for us all to navigate a ‘new normal’ brought about by the presence of Covid 19 and the associated restrictions and distress that comes with it. …

Breaking Down the Taboos: Lifting the Lid off Cancer in BAME Communities

Posted by: , Posted on: - Categories: Diversity and inclusion, Health & Wellbeing, Our Civil Service

Despite the equal access to the National Health Service, there are more inequalities in cancer morbidity and mortality amongst black women compared to women of other racial and ethnic backgrounds, particularly white women. Below, Zahida Ramzan-Asghar, Senior Lawyer at Government …

Supporting Victims and Survivors of Child Sexual Abuse

Posted by: , Posted on: - Categories: Health & Wellbeing, Improved outcomes

Working at the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse, I have seen first-hand how victims and survivors of trauma still live with the mental and physical effects decades later. Survivors of child sexual abuse often stay silent about their suffering …