Our EDI Commitment

Below is an HTML accessible version of the document. If you require it in any other format, please contact diversity@energy-uk.org.uk.

Quick Links

• Foreword
• Approach
• Energy UK – Looking in
• Energy UK – Looking out
• Creating a more diverse energy industry
• Next steps

Foreword

Energy provides a fundamental service for our country. Powering economies and communities, the sector we represent affects every single person.

For this reason alone, ensuring that every part of society is considered in our industry’s decision-making is vital. We must recognise where some people need more support than others, and update our processes, services and communications so they are easily accessible.

A diverse workforce that is truly representative of society will help us to do that, alongside collaboration with charities, networks and existing associations and organisations that specialise in supporting people with specific needs.

Attracting people from a range of backgrounds means creating an inclusive culture. One where every individual is supported to succeed. We know businesses with diverse teams perform better, so there is every incentive to get this right.

As we navigate the challenges from the critical transformation of our sector, diversity of thought, experience and perspective will be the catalyst for sustainable and innovative solutions that meet the needs of all people.

This will become even more important as our workforce grows rapidly over the next decade. As the UK continues to decarbonise, an estimated 135,000 to 725,000 net new workers will be needed to achieve Net Zero, alongside the need to retain our existing expertise, especially in the face of growing international competition.

At Energy UK, we firmly believe that promoting equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) is not only a moral and societal imperative, but also a strategic business advantage. A culture of inclusivity allows companies to attract and retain top talent from all backgrounds, and foster innovation through varied perspectives. It enhances our ability to understand and serve the diverse communities that rely on our industry.

This commitment is a starting point in formalising and sharing initiatives we have implemented at Energy UK and outlines our approach to diversity and inclusion as an organisation, both as the voice of the energy industry and as an employer.

Our efforts internally have been recognised with a Gold Investors in People Standard, and we have played an instrumental role in setting up TIDE, the industry-wide EDI initiative. Our Young Energy Professionals Forum is going from strength to strength, engaging not only with those early in their energy career, but students too.

Our strategy is built on the core principles of continuous improvement, collaboration and accountability, seeking to learn from and share good practice across the sector and beyond.

Above all, we commit to keep learning; there is always more we can do to promote inclusivity within Energy UK, across our industry engagements, and in supporting the overall energy workforce.

This report is designed to hold our organisation accountable, and its purpose is to set out a baseline from which we can measure progress, as well as share our learnings to benefit our employees, our members and in turn wider society.

The transition to a sustainable energy future depends on a workforce rich in diverse talent and perspectives. I invite you to engage with our initiatives, let us know where we can improve, and join us in championing equity, diversity and inclusion as a strategic priority for progress in UK energy.

Juliette Sanders

Director of Strategic Communications, and EDI lead

Energy UK EDI Progress Roadmap

2013 – Young Energy Professionals Forum established

2018 – Took part in the Mind Workplace Wellbeing Index 

2019 – First industry-wide EDI conference

2021 – Ofgem joins as EDI Conference partner

2020 – Achieved Investors in People Silver

2022 – TIDE – Tackling Inclusion and Diversity in Energy – is formed  

2022 – ENA joins Ofgem as EDI Conference partner

2023 – Achieved Investors in People Gold

2023 – First year of participation in Inclusion Measurement Framework

2024 – Energy Institute joins Ofgem and ENA as EDI conference partner

2024 – Participated in TIDE’s Health Index

2024 – EDI Commitment published

Beyond – continuous improvement and yearly progress reports

About Energy UK

Energy UK is the trade association for the energy industry with over 100 members – from established FTSE 100 companies right through to new, growing suppliers, generators and service providers across energy, transport, heat and technology. We work with the sector, government, regulators and wider stakeholders to champion a sustainable UK energy industry.

Our members deliver nearly 80% of the UK’s power generation and over 95% of the energy supply for 28 million UK homes as well as businesses.

Our values

Our culture is reflected in our values, which give a common purpose for the organisation and guide the way we engage with each other, members and stakeholders at all levels.

• Integrity: We lead by example, building trust through the development of honest, fair, balanced and evidence-led positions.
• Inclusive: We make people feel welcome and valued for their contributions and provide equal access to opportunities and our resources.
• Collaborative: We encourage input from a wide range of voices, foster teamwork and provide support for new opportunities.
• Ambitious: We are bold and strive for excellence in everything we do, celebrating success and nurturing talent.

Definition of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI)

The Equality Act 2010 provides legal protection for nine protected characteristics: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. However, an effective EDI approach should go above and beyond legal compliance and take an intersectional approach to diversity and inclusion.

Our EDI approach is based on inclusion for all and as such widens the scope beyond the Equality Act covering additional characteristics, including but not limited to age, caring responsibilities, culture, mental health, neurodiversity, physical appearance, political opinion, paternity and family status, skin colour and socio-economic circumstances.

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Approach

Our overarching approach to EDI is based on continuous improvement, collaboration and accountability.

• Continuous improvement

There are always new things we can learn, and more we can do to support our own employees and the wider workforce in achieving their full potential. We commit to ongoing training, development and reviewing our initiatives.

• Accountability

In this document, we have set out our current initiatives alongside those we will implement within the next 12 months. We also commit to publishing a progress report each year.

• Collaboration

We cannot make change on our own and are grateful to those with whom we have already engaged on our journey. We commit to learning from experts, sharing our learnings and avoiding duplication by first researching what exists and what works.   

With thanks to

Big Zero Show

CIPD

Ellwood Atfield

Energy Networks Association

Enact

Energy and Utility Skills

Energy Institute

Energyz Black

Health Assured

Investors in People

Mental Health First Aid England

Mind

Murray McIntosh

Ofgem

POWERful Women

PRIDE in Energy

Scope

Skills4

Slingshot

Social Mobility Foundation

The Brain Charity

The Equal Group

TIDE

Women to Work

Women’s Utilities Network

YEP Forum

***********

We commit to:

• Ongoing training and development, including learning from others and monitoring employment law changes and societal issues
• Publishing a progress report each year
• Collaborating with experts and sharing our learnings

Our Commitment is split by three areas:

Energy UK – looking in: Energy UK’s internal policies and processes to ensure an inclusive place to work.

Energy UK – looking out: How we make sure that our external activities are inclusive, from events to communications.

Supporting industry: Energy UK’s work that supports the progress of diversity and inclusion across the energy sector.

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Energy UK – looking in

Energy UK’s internal policies and processes to ensure Energy UK is an inclusive place to work.

Leadership, Accountability and Governance

EDI at Energy UK is a Board-level responsibility. Governance and accountability are crucial to ensuring fairness, ethical culture and legitimacy. Without the support of senior leaders, EDI initiatives often fail and solutions are only short-term. With this in mind, senior leaders and Board members are involved in taking positive actions to ensure diversity and inclusion, both within Energy UK and across industry. Alongside this, senior leaders within the company are responsible for equipping employees with tools and information to support their own work, inform about wider EDI good practice, challenge inappropriate behaviours and empowering staff to raise any concerns.

Energy UK commits to:

• ensuring its Executive Committee has EDI-focused objectives, with one Director leading on equity, diversity and inclusion;
• an EDI Board Champion, and ensuring EDI is a regular item on Board meeting agendas;
• Energy UK’s Chief Executive meeting regularly with other supporting CEOs to discuss EDI and drive change;
• visible leadership: Energy UK’s Chief Executive has pledged to lead by example and drive diversity and inclusion as part of TIDE’s Leaders’ Commitment;
• a culture that is driven by continuous improvement, and encourages everyone to take responsibility to ensure an inclusive and fair working environment.

As Energy UK’s EDI Board Champion, I will support the organisation’s strategic work on EDI. Working closely with the executive committee I pledge to challenge Energy UK to lead by example, raise issues at Board-level where appropriate and use my senior profile to champion EDI across industry.

Miya Paolucci, UK Country Manager, Engie

I’m proud of the culture of our organisation, we put a lot of time into our employees and the results show we have a happy, engaged and well-supported team, despite working in an intense, high-profile sector undergoing significant change. Creating an inclusive culture and safeguarding our employees are the basics we cannot get wrong. I commit to leading by example, acting on inappropriate behaviour, and using the platform I have to implement change and champion diversity. An energy industry that reflects the rich diversity of the communities we serve will be a stronger, more competitive industry that can meet the climate challenge head-on.

Emma Pinchbeck, CEO, Energy UK

Mental health, wellbeing and social

Energy UK places equal importance on mental and physical health. In an increasingly busy world, we see huge value in taking the time to look after ourselves, and equipping ourselves to look after each other.

Energy UK commits to:

• having trained mental health first aiders including at Director level to support individuals, and offering the two day course on a regular basis so training is refreshed. In 2024 Energy UK trained nine of its staff on the accredited Mental Health First Aider course.
• wellness action plans for employees who have been off work for either physical or mental health reasons;
• a comprehensive, anonymous Employee Assistance Programme with access to further mental health support including advice and counselling;
• a dedicated EDI channel on Teams for sharing tips and advice on how to improve your mental health;
• holding engaging activities aligning with EDI, for example during National Inclusion Week and Mental Health Awareness Week;
• ensuring all organisational social events are accessible and inclusive for example, providing options for individuals who are alcohol free or scheduling events with consideration for those with family or other commitments;
• offering site visits for its staff, to encourage learning and team bonding. Not only to key energy sites across the country, but also to local exhibitions;
• one fun family activity a year for Energy UK employees to meet each other’s families
• optional physical and team-building social activities such as football and desk yoga;
• avoiding internal meetings outside of core hours 10am – 4pm, and during the organisational lunch hour, which is blocked in all calendars;
• ensuring office space has areas to suit different working styles, as well as ample natural light;
• providing fresh fruit so there are always healthy snacks available (to complement sweet treats!), as well as cereal and lunch options to ensure that staff can eat breakfast and lunch without worrying about the cost;
• offering a discount for gym membership and cycle to work scheme;
• actively populating tools that help Energy UK colleagues understand themselves and others such as documents outlining individuals working styles;
• Tea and Talking events held regularly to cite discussion around wider societal issues and topics that affect us all; such as racism or grief in the workplace.

Energy UK sports day

Energy UK recognises the importance of arranging inclusive events to ensure all staff feel welcome and able to participate. This includes hosting activities in accessible locations during office hours to remove barriers to staff members with young families or caring responsibilities. In 2023, Energy UK organised a summer sports afternoon, inviting staff to bring along their families, providing a refreshing opportunity to connect with colleagues and their loved ones outside of the office. The afternoon encouraged healthy competition with games for children and adults to get involved in.

Tea and Talking

Introduced during National Inclusion Week 2023, Energy UK’s Tea and Talking sessions are a chance to talk about wider societal issues and topics that affect us all. Tea and Talking sessions are optional and are held as a hybrid session, during work hours. Often the session incorporates watching a talk (such as a Ted talk, podcast or recording) then after the viewing everyone has the chance to step away and make a cup of tea, and if they want to reflect on their own, or return for a group discussion to reflect together. All sessions are attended by a member of the Executive Committee who helps to moderate and facilitate the discussion and ensure any ideas or actions for the organisation are taken forward.

Internal campaigns

Energy UK’s approach to National Inclusion Week was to encourage employees to think about improving inclusivity all year-round, not just celebrating for one week. So as well as arranging Tea and Talking sessions, a documentary/movie night and pointing to external webinars during the week, an all-staff session was held, kicking off the process for this Commitment, ensuring all staff had a chance to contribute. Similarly, for mental health first aid week, activities such as desk yoga complimented daily tips and resource sharing for longer-term benefits.

Inclusivity and inclusive practices

The key to an inclusive work environment is making sure each employee feels included. A diverse workforce means nothing if employees don’t feel part of the team and are able to be themselves. It’s important to explore the different challenges, experiences and styles of working to ensure all employees feel supported.

Energy UK commits to:

• encouraging employees to share lived experiences and cultural perspectives for example religious holidays, the challenges of being a working parent or neurodiversity needs. For example by giving a lunch and learn, or sharing traditions;
• Diversity and Inclusion as a standing agenda item at the weekly all-staff meeting to ensure staff are up to date with Energy UK’s work, good practice ,wider industry reports, research and initiatives;
• weekly Gold Star Applauds, recognising inclusive behaviour in line with our values;
• giving all staff the opportunity to chair the internal weekly meeting with the option to opt out if they like they would like;
• offering additional and specific training for managers with team members who have specific needs;
• encouraging the creation of employee-led networks for staff to share information access support and advice from like-minded team members.

I have found Energy UK very understanding when it comes to neurodiversity, going above and beyond to make sure I am as supported as possible. My way of working is different, and I am given the opportunity to work the way that best suits me. This includes taking shorter, more regular breaks, recording meetings as well as specialised line manager training and all-staff awareness training on neurodiversity. These adjustments help me stay on track with workload prioritisation, but having a positive culture and support systems in place has been most beneficial to me.

In previous workplaces, I have masked my neurodiversity. Energy UK is the first workplace where I have felt comfortable being my true self. On a regular basis, a group of us who are neurodivergent at Energy UK will gather for an hour or so to discuss challenges faced at work or in general. It is a safe space to share strategies, or just talk about neurodiversity as a whole. It’s incredibly helpful to speak with others who face similar challenges.

Jess Gruet, Digital Communications Executive

Working policies

Clear working policies enable organisations to operate effectively. They promote consistency, and bring clarity to employees on expectations from them and what they can expect from the organisation. Ensuring these policies are inclusive is vital for creating a culture of equity and belonging. Energy UK’s working policies are regularly reviewed and circulated. Any behaviour outside of these policies is taken seriously, and escalated when necessary.

Energy UK commits to:

• hybrid working arrangements with the opportunity to flex working hours to suit different lifestyle needs;
• offering all employees the right to request further flexibility working arrangements from day one of employment;
• generous leave and pay for maternity, paternity and shared parental leave;
• regularly reviewing HR policies on diversity and equality, bullying and harassment, health and wellbeing, mental health to support employees, and equal opportunity policy statements and commitments;
• ensuring suitable adaptations are made to make working conditions accessible for all, for example, additional support for those with dyslexia, ADHD, periods and menopause, or those struggling with personal issues outside of work;
• 360 performance reviews including values-based behaviours, cross-organisational performance evaluation and regular pay reviews and external benchmarking to avoid conscious and unconscious discrimination.

“I’m really proud to work for an organisation that prioritises family support so much, and that was clear to me through Energy UK’s paternity leave and flexible working policies. I took two three-week chunks of time off with my son when he was first born all fully paid which gave my wife and I time to get into a great routine. Energy UK also allows me to work compressed hours so that I can take every other Friday off with my son and have some focused bonding time. It’s really meant a lot to me and my wife to have such a supportive and inclusive employer.”

Alex Gray, Deputy Director

Continuous improvement: responding to societal issues

Following severe allegations of sexual harassment at a prominent UK trade association, Energy UK swiftly responded to ensure its policies and procedures minimised the possibility of similar events taking place at industry-wide events. We have:

• Reviewed all policies and procedures relating to harassment in the workplace, ensuring clear processes in place for all scenarios, including allegations around leadership or HR.
• Shared these where appropriate with other organisations looking for good practice
• Written to all members outlining Energy UK’s expectations at events, and where people can report if they witness or experience uncomfortable behaviour from an attendee, or member of staff.
• Emphasised our zero tolerance policy to our own staff through sessions at All Staff Days, so they know our expectations and feel comfortable they would be supported should they need to report cases of harassment.
• Offered interactive “Challenging Sexual Harassment” training for all staff.

Empowering staff voices

Energy UK is proud to have been awarded Gold Accreditation by Investors in People in 2023. Our last survey showed that we take EDI seriously enabling people to be themselves at work and the inclusive environment means that everyone felt respected. Systems and processes have been reviewed enabling our people to learn, develop and succeed. We take action to incorporate openness, real support from leadership and a willingness to communicate and involve all people at all levels within the organisation.

Energy UK commits to:

• anonymous feedback mechanisms for staff to make suggestions, comments and raise concerns, including a whistleblower policy, anonymous feedback form and opportunity to ask ExCo questions anonymously during every All Staff Day. All comments are responded to;
• a yearly employee engagement survey, which again is anonymous;
• ensuring that all members of staff have a voice through the Staff Working Group;
• informing all new employees of the organisation’s approach to diversity and inclusion, the support available and specific policies;
• a diverse, internal EDI steering group open to all, to support the organisation’s journey in diversity and inclusion;
• acting on feedback from the Investors in People accreditation to maintain our focus on continuous improvement and staff well-being.

Employee engagement survey 2023

All employees responded, a huge improvement from just above 50% in previous years. Staff were given 22 statements and were asked to respond to them on a scale from 1 “Strongly disagree” to 5 “Strongly agree”. Converting responses numerically, the lowest average score was 3.6, in response to “I feel able to balance my work and personal life”. Energy UK has since increased its headcount to account for persistent, high workloads.

The highest average of 4.46 was received for “Energy UK is supportive and I feel I have someone to talk to for friendly advice”. Taking the full data and comparing it to previous years, there have been gradual improvements in perceptions of Energy UK’s objectives and commitment to EDI. There has been a slight decline in the approachability of management and colleagues and having the right equipment. Since then, Energy UK has offered additional training on effective communications, time management, feedback and having difficult conversations, and is undertaking a full equipment review to ensure staff have the tools, hardware and software they need.  

Learning, Training and Development

Energy UK offers training to all its staff through a generous budget, with some training courses mandatory to ensure everyone has the most up-to-date knowledge on key areas such as competition law, GDPR and Equity, Diversity and Inclusion. Energy UK staff are required to complete one training session per month as standard. There is also the opportunity for staff to suggest any training they believe is useful to Energy UK’s HR Team, anonymously if they prefer.

Energy UK commits to:

• offering tailored career advice, and supporting employees with development plans, including stretch projects, finding external mentors, shadowing / attending senior meetings and specific training needs;
• mandatory Equity, Diversity and Inclusion training for all staff with additional training for managers;
• running ad-hoc all-staff training throughout the year covering areas such as neurodiversity and accessibility, and challenging sexual harassment;
• sharing knowledge through internal channels including a standing EDI agenda item at the all staff weekly meeting, and initiatives such as British Sign Language Week;
• team learning via lunch and learns covering energy-related topics as well as wellness, accessibility and diversity. These sessions are all recorded and are available for staff to view at any time;
• holding regular EDI learning sessions, either through all staff meetings, lunch and learns, tea and talking sessions or social activities.

Workforce

Collecting workforce data enables employers to better understand their employees, the workforce composition and the lived experience of individual staff members. Trends or clear, significant gaps can also indicate if the organisation has a repeated problem of bias within its hiring process, or indeed culture.

The challenges of collecting personal data are well documented. Employees cannot be forced to take part, and many remain skeptical of confidentiality, or untrusting of the anonymity of the data, and how it could be used. This is especially true for smaller organisations where individuals may be more likely to be identifiable from a smaller data set.

In 2023, Energy UK collected data on its workforce for the first time toprovide an initial data set to work with, and with time identify issues, gaps and biases that may be present and address them.

To support TIDE’s efforts to align industry to one data collection survey, therefore providing a more accurate picture through a more enriched data set, we completed Energy and Utility Skills’ Inclusion Measurement Framework (IMF).

We had a high participation rate, with over 90% of employees in 2023 completing the survey, which is a positive indicator of employee engagement. Whilst there are uncertainties, the surveys suggest that Energy UK has a different profile to the wider industry. A majority of Energy UK staff are women and they tend to be younger and more likely to say they are from a minority ethnic background. Over the coming year we plan to look at the different categories through the lens of our organisation to further understand root causes and consider any broader factors that may contribute to our profile. It would be interesting to compare results with organisations of a similar size, structure and scope. The IMF survey of 2023 didn’t include social mobility, which is something we would also like to start tracking going forward.

The data set was collected over a set period in late September/early October 2023 and therefore represents a snapshot in time that (due to new starters and leavers) is no longer accurate – but does provide a helpful baseline. Employees participated with the option to be anonymous; however, because of the complexity of retaining anonymity in smaller data sets (we are an organisation of approximately 45), we will not publish our figures. Instead, we will continue to use the data to compare our results to industry averages collected through the sector-wide survey, although it should be noted that a significant proportion of responses from industry were recorded as ‘undeclared’ data in some categories of IMF industry results meant comparisons were less precise. We will also use the data from consecutive years to identify trends.

Energy UK commits to:

• Completing the Inclusion Measurement Framework each year
• Setting a target to reach at least 90% participation. We will not target individual characteristics due to the size of the organisation.  

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Energy UK – looking out

How we make sure that our external activities are inclusive, from events to communications.

Recruitment

It is not enough for organisations to assume that prospective employees from all backgrounds will apply to vacant roles. Inclusive practices should be embedded into all stages of an organisation’s recruitment process, to actively address any biases and ensure people from all backgrounds, or with additional needs, feel confident to apply.

Energy UK’s recruitment strategy is aimed at exciting people from all backgrounds with the possibility of working here, and removing bias and barriers within the application process.

Energy UK commits to:

• using neutral language in job descriptions running all through decoders, and statements to encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds in all job adverts;
• a blind recruitment process for applicants applying directly to Energy UK, with candidates’ name, gender, school and university removed;
• ensuring that candidates are made aware of any adjustments that can be made, and Energy UK’s commitment to EDI in job adverts and during the interview process;
• asking candidates their salary expectations, not their current salary, to avoid transferring inequalities from organisations; 
• clearly defined paybands and publishing salary brackets for all vacancies to ensure pay equality and transparency;
• two-stage interviews which ensure diversity within the interviewing panel at each stage of the interview when possible;
• working with recruitment agencies such as Murray McIntosh and Ellwood Atfield, that understand our supportive culture, and have their own EDI strategies to ensure diverse shortlists and sensitive data collection. 

Murray McIntosh has an Equity First model, which includes education and training of its staff at all levels. They work closely with clients, including advising on job descriptions, and challenging hiring manager assumptions on essential elements within a job description to open opportunities to a wider, diverse pool of candidates from different backgrounds and characteristics. To ensure they attract and engage diverse and underrepresented groups across all levels, the team use a range of market mapping and identification strategies, in combination with a mix of recruitment technology platforms to enable them to develop extensive and diverse candidate pipelines.

Communications

We are the trade association covering the majority of the UK energy sector, providing a service that affects everyone in a time of increasing change and rapid expansion. So ensuring we communicate in a way that is accessible for the widest range of people is a key part of our EDI commitment.

Whether that is political stakeholders, current and future employees across the industry, charities and third party advisors or the general public, we want to ensure Energy UK adopts the highest standards to reach anyone who is interested in our work.

Energy UK commits to:

• accessibility training for all staff to ensure our communications are as accessible as possible;
• brand guidelines which support the organisation in creating accessible content across all platforms, including accessibility-checked colour combinations, left aligned text, sentence-case only and fonts that have been chosen for accessibility;
• ensuring all video content is subtitled;
• alternative text on all its digital communications to support accessibility;
• ensuring our website is accessible including;
  • publishing PDFs as an additional an HTML-only page to support accessibility needs;
  • well-structured page architecture;
  • appropriate use of hyperlinks.

Events

At Energy UK, we are committed to making all our events inclusive to create a better experience for all those attending, with or without additional needs.

Having visible role models and speakers representing the full scale of diversity in the energy industry is part of this, as it has been shown that spokespeople and role models from underrepresented backgrounds actively inspire people from all backgrounds to achieve their full potential.

We also go above and beyond minimum physical accessibility event standards to proactively accommodate people with hearing difficulties, neurodiversity needs and encourage them to let us know of anything else that would improve their experience.    

Energy UK commits to:

• actively pursuing a diverse range of speakers at our events. Targets that help us achieve that include 50% gender split, and where possible, visible ethnic diversity. We have chosen these as the most visible forms of diversity, however, we recognise that diversity is much wider than gender and ethnicity, and is not always visible. A panel may not appear to be diverse but could in fact represent view points from different perspectives including socioeconomic background, hidden disabilities and sexuality. Each year we commit to publishing overall gender and ethnicity statistics of our speakers across our yearly programme of events, where they have been shared with us;
• refusing to speak on external panels that lack gender diversity. Whilst as above, this is only one form of diversity and a narrow stance considering our much wider definition – this is one simple action we can take to challenge others to improve visible representation. When this occurs we provide a list of other suitable speakers to either join the panel, or take our place;
• encouraging diverse, engaging and interesting speakers to sign up to the industry-wide Switch List;
• all in-person Energy UK events being fully wheelchair accessible as standard, and additional accessibility requirements at events as needed;
• having British Sign Language interpreters at both Energy UK conferences. And including accessibility information in pre-event comms, to encourage those with additional needs to feel comfortable attending;
• hosting events that are safe, with clear processes for reporting anti-inclusive behaviour or harassment. 

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Creating a more diverse energy industry

Energy UK’s work that supports the progress of diversity and inclusion across the energy sector.

Tackling Inclusion and Diversity in Energy

Energy UK is a founding member of TIDE – Tackling Inclusion and Diversity in Energy – a cross-industry initiative, which is also supported by Ofgem, Energy Networks Association and the Energy Institute to improve EDI across the energy industry. TIDE aims to leverage existing activity and resources to supercharge EDI improvements across the sector, signposting to groups, resources, training and events which can help to support individuals or businesses within the energy sector.

TIDE has over 40 people involved through various delivery groups, and alongside the other partners, Energy UK’s team provide support and resource to enable the group to work effectively.

In its role on the TIDE secretariat, Energy UK commits to:

• co-resourcing the secretariat, including director-level representation and resource;
• its CEO actively engaging with TIDE, meeting quarterly with the CEOs of the other partner organisations to challenge and steer the strategic direction;
• having a representative on TIDE’s communications team, managing the TIDE contact email inbox (diversity@energy-uk.org.uk) and hosting and managing Energy EDI Hub (www.energyedihub.uk);
• regularly updating and promoting the industry-wide EDI calendar for EDI-related events and training;
• feeding into the development and communication of TIDE initiatives, including the Health Index, webinars etc;
• event management for the industry’s annual EDI conference;
• as part of TIDE we have also committed to:
  • completing Health Index;
  • signing up to the Leaders’ Commitment;
  • completing Energy and Utility Skills’ Inclusion Measurement Framework

EDI in Energy Hub

With input from TIDE, Energy UK developed and continues to host the EDI in Energy Hub. It is designed as a one stop shop to make it as easy as possible for people in industry to seek support, learn from others and improve their organisation’s processes, whether they are an individual working in energy, and EDI professional or industry leader. On the Hub:

• Organisations can submit, or find, good practice case studies.
• CEOs can sign up to the TIDE Leaders’ Commitment to demonstrate their accountability.
• Individuals can find examples of networks that may support their needs.
• EDI professionals can find examples of organisations that may be able to help them with strategic EDI support, recruitment or training.
• Anyone can access and input their own events on a shared EDI calendar which includes national holidays, days of recognition and EDI events, webinars, conferences and training from across the industry.
• People can sign up to receive the monthly EDI in Energy newsletter.
• Previous TIDE webinars can be found covering EDI strategies, processes for recruitment, challenges of data collection, and more.

www.energyedihub.uk

EDI in Energy Conference

The industry-wide EDI conference is now in its sixth year. It has evolved from an Energy UK initiative, to a flagship event now including the partners of TIDE to ensure a cross-industry approach. The one-day event has always sold out, it’s free to attend and is held both in person and online. With a broad-ranging programme attendees include both CEOs and EDI professionals across industry, government and sector-supporting organisations.

Other Energy UK EDI Events

In addition to the yearly EDI Conference, and contributing to TIDE webinars, Energy UK hosts events throughout the year aimed at developing skills within industry, or inciting change to improve inclusivity. In 2024, this included a webinar around the physical barriers to women in the workplace, with perspectives from women who work in operational environments from loose-fitting PPE to turbines without toilets. Energy UK spokespeople are also often asked to give an industry perspective on EDI at external events, from panels at conferences, to webinars and roundtables.

Young Energy Professionals Forum

Energy UK is proud to host the secretariat of the Young Energy Professionals (YEP) Forum which gives people with less than ten years’ experience in the industry opportunities to connect with others, develop their skills and inspire others working in energy. With over 2,300 members from over 350 organisations, the YEP Forum has gone from strength to strength in 2023 growing its mailing list by 66%, LinkedIn following by 200% and holding its biggest awards ceremony to date. In total, the Forum held 18 events, from site visits to the national grid control room and an offshore wind farm, to networking, panel events, a parliamentary reception and the annual quiz. The Steering Group also published a Guide to Jobs in Energy, which was distributed to over 90 stakeholders and education providers throughout the country, and reshared widely.

As part of the YEP Forum, Energy UK commits to:

• providing secretariat resource to enable the effective running of the Forum;
• securing sponsorship to enable the ongoing running of the Forum and its events;
• supporting YEP Forum communications from issuing press releases to promoting events and reports through Energy UK channels;
• providing events support throughout the year, including event management for the annual YEP Awards each year;
• Supporting the SteerCo in their annual thought leadership report providing support across strategy, data analysis and promotional comms from the Energy UK team.

Measuring impact

Diversity and inclusivity are inextricably linked. Measuring diversity alone holds little value if not accompanied by robust strategies that foster an inclusive environment. However, collecting workforce demographics is a crucial first step in understanding the composition of our workforce, establishing baselines to measure progress, and identifying areas that lack representation. The more comprehensive the data, the clearer the picture becomes. With this in mind, Energy UK and TIDE are working to align the industry around a unified data collection tool, to avoid data fragmentation from disparate resources. We have collectively agreed to support the Inclusion Measurement Framework developed by Energy and Utility Skills in partnership with The Equal Group, recognising its potential to drive meaningful change.

Inclusion Measurement Framework

• Best endeavours approach with participating organisations providing the data they can; the greater the volume of data, the greater the industry insights
• Underpinned by Royal Academy of Engineering’s research, the Framework measures data across the employment lifecycle from recruitment through to progression and retention.
• Results can aid in identifying where change needs to happen for individual organisations, industry and the wider sector to represent and reflect the communities they serve.
• Participating organisations can benchmark their data against the sector as a whole, industry, region and organisation size.
• Free to participate in, and opens in September each year.
• Thanks to support from TIDE and Energy UK, the 2023 Inclusion Measurement Framework saw demonstrable increase in numbers of energy organisations participating, although this number remains low at 20. We hope more industry aligned promotion will increase participation.

2023 energy sector results showed that;

• only 27.5% of respondents working in the energy sector identified as female. This is a very slight increase from 2022 (26%) but still far below the 48% representation of women in the UK workforce.
• 11% of respondents identified as an Ethnic Minority, with 44.5% undeclared. Both of these figures are behind the utility sector averages.

The full report on Energy and Utility Skills’ website contains all the results

Energy UK commits to:

• completing the industry-wide Inclusion Measurement Framework each year to contribute to wider data collection;

• encouraging its members, stakeholders and wider industry to complete the Inclusion Framework Measurement to get a better understanding of EDI gaps in energy.

Early careers and skills

Our industry faces a huge skills gap, which in time will present a real business and energy security risk, if not addressed, up to 725,000 net new workers will be needed to reach Net Zero, and it’s important to engage with people at an early age to inspire them to make the right choices that could lead to an exciting career in energy. Energy UK’s role in this varies, from direct engagement with academia and students, to supporting industry-wide initiatives and organisations.

Energy UK commits to:

• paid internship and work experience placements;
• supporting and encouraging staff to give talks and support STEM activities at universities and schools;
• supporting the delivery of Government skills initiatives;
• ongoing secretariat of the YEP Forum

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Next steps

This document sets out our strategic approach to EDI and the activities and processes we currently have in place. As we continue to learn we expect our activities to change over time. We commit to a progress report each year to evaluate our efforts, and determine where we may need to do more, noting that the impact of our actions may take time.

Our strategy is based on continuous improvement. If upon reading our commitment, it is clear there are areas we have omitted, or there are actions we can implement to improve even further, we want to hear from you.

Please send any feedback to diversity@energy-uk.org.uk. Whilst every suggestion will be reviewed, we may not be able to respond to every email received. If you’d like to contact us a different way – you can call on 020 7930 9390, or write to:

Energy UK

26 Finsbury Square (4th floor)

London

EC2A 1DS.