Equality, diversity and inclusion policy

What we believe

Flowers are for everybody: the shop, the website, the van and the flower school are for every person who walks in, orders or books, and the jobs here are open to anybody who can do them. The Equality Act 2010 protects people from being treated worse because of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. This policy says how we keep to that in practice, and it goes a little further than the law asks, because we would rather be known for how we treat people than for the minimum.

Who this applies to

To the owner and every member of staff (permanent, seasonal or freelance) in how they treat each other, our customers, our workshop guests and our suppliers' people. And to the business in how it hires, pays, promotes, sells and teaches.

Customers and workshop guests

• Everybody is served in turn and with the same care, whatever they look like, sound like, wear or spend.
• If you have a disability, tell us what would help and we will do it where we reasonably can: a chair while you wait, an order taken by phone rather than online, a workshop bench at a different height, more time. Our Accessibility statement says more about the shop and the website.
• Workshops welcome anybody who can safely take part. Where a workshop is not suitable for somebody, because of the tools or the length of the day, we will say why and suggest another.
• We do not tolerate abuse of our staff by a customer on any of the grounds above. We will ask a customer who does so to leave and may refuse to serve them again.

Staff: hiring, pay and progression

• We recruit on what the job needs (floristry skill, care with customers, a licence for the van) and nothing else. Job adverts describe the work, not the person we imagine doing it.
• We interview by the same questions for every candidate and keep a short note of why we chose as we did.
• We do not ask about health, pregnancy, family plans or age at interview except where we must to arrange reasonable adjustments or to check somebody is old enough to do the work.
• Pay for the same work is the same whoever does it.
• We make reasonable adjustments for a disability at every stage, from the application to the daily work. Ask the owner; nothing is refused without a reason in writing.
• We consider requests for flexible or part-time working seriously and answer them in writing.
• Time off for religious observance, pregnancy, maternity and paternity, adoption and caring is handled as the law requires and, where we can, more generously.

Behaviour at work

Harassment is unwanted behaviour connected to any of the grounds above that violates somebody's dignity or makes their working day hostile, humiliating or offensive, whether it was meant that way or not. It includes jokes, nicknames, comments about appearance, exclusion, and messages sent outside work. Sexual harassment is unwanted behaviour of a sexual kind, and the law now expects an employer to take reasonable steps to prevent it, which we do by saying so here, by the owner's own example, and by dealing with any report at once.

Bullying, whether or not it is about a protected characteristic, is not tolerated either.

If you experience or see any of this:

1. If you feel able to, say to the person that the behaviour is unwelcome. You do not have to.
2. Tell the owner, in person, by phone or in writing. If the concern is about the owner, the Whistleblowing policy gives an external route, or you may speak to Acas, which advises anybody free of charge.
3. The owner will listen, keep a note, ask what you want to happen, and look into it promptly and privately. Where the behaviour is confirmed there will be disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal.
4. Nobody is treated worse for raising a concern in good faith, or for supporting somebody else's.

Suppliers and the people who work for them

Our Supplier code of conduct asks every supplier to treat their own workers without discrimination. We choose suppliers on what they sell and how they make it, and we do not exclude a business because of who owns or runs it.

Monitoring

Because the team is small, counting is of limited use and would identify people. Instead, once a year the owner reviews how we recruited, any adjustments requested and made, any concerns raised and how they ended, and whether this policy still says what we do. The review is dated and kept with the studio's records.

Questions and complaints

If you think we have fallen short of this policy, as a customer, a guest or a member of staff, write to enquiries@flowerandglory.co.uk, telephone 01732 743419, or write to Flower & Glory, 12 Blacks Yard, Blighs Meadow, Sevenoaks, Kent TN13 1DS. Our Complaints policy says how we handle it and how quickly.

Changes to this policy

Changes to this policy are dated and logged on the page where it is published, so you can see what changed and when.