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A diverse society

Actions speak louder than words

A diverse society

Joe Garner Full Shot Cropped Resized (2)
Joe Garner, CEO

Why is diversity important to you Joe?

‘As a mutual organisation, we are guided by a social purpose which we interpret as ‘building society, nationwide’. A key element of fulfilling this purpose is employing a mix of people that reflect the wider communities that we serve.
Achieving this ambition takes sustained effort and focus but the benefits of building a truly inclusive and diverse organisation where all our employees can thrive are transformational.’

'Have you ever felt different from everyone else in the room?"

In this short film, our People & Culture leader Jane Hanson explains why she's passionate about diversity and inclusion.

Take a look

People united

Nationwide's eight Employee Network Groups (ENGs) are open to all employees, including those who share similar characteristics or life experiences and who want to connect with others. The aims of the ENGs are to provide peer support, to work collaboratively with the business to help deliver our Inclusion and Diversity strategy and to act as a collective employee voice.


They're for everyone, wherever you work, whatever your role and regardless of whether you share the primary characteristics of the group or not, and are a great way to get involved in our I&D agenda.

Our employee networks

Logos Proud

Supporting LGBTQ+ colleagues

Logos Gender Network

Re-balancing opportunities for men and women

Logos Disability

Making work work for everyone

Logos Fab

We are what we believe

Logos Race Together

Taking action for racial equality

And for those with more than one 'job'

Logos Working Carers (1)

Supporting carers who have careers

Logos Working Families

Work life: home life: one life. Helping you thrive

Logos Veterans And Reservists

Integrating military service with our mutual Society

Time for change

"Ever since the police killing of George Floyd highlighted the lack of racial justice in so many countries, Nationwide’s Race Together network has re-doubled their efforts to bring long overdue change to the business", says co-chair Aisha Lewis.

Nationwide sent a clear message about the Society's commitment to equality by taking part in Channel 4's Black and Proud film. Aisha herself appeared in the two-minute TV ad featuring employees from Nationwide, the NHS, Virgin Media and other big-name brands talking about what Black History Month means to them and their hopes for the future.

Watch it now, and find out more below about the actions we're taking to bring about change.

A two-way dialogue

“Back in the summer, we asked the organisation to stand up to this problem and confirm silence is not an option, because we’ve been sat for too many years saying nothing and that’s why nothing’s changed,” Aisha says.

“So across a day and a half, we produced a video with 500 colleagues coming forward from all walks of life to hold up a Silence Is Not An Option card to show allyship to those that needed it the most at that time.”
The video, alongside a number of intranet articles, became the Society’s most liked and commented upon intranet post when it was launched and was later screened at an event for the Society’s top 1,000 leaders."

Then during Black History Month in October, the network ensured posters were on display in every branch across the UK and involved 5,000 colleagues in celebrating Black achievement.

The network has also helped launch a new reciprocal mentoring programme involving 80 of the Society’s most senior leaders, including Chief Executive Officer Joe Garner.

“It’s a two-way dialogue,” Aisha says.

“The idea is to help retain and progress Black and Asian talent through the organisation and at the same time help educate and support our leaders on issues they need to be consciously competent about to benefit the organisation for the way forward.”