Two universities have been included in Stonewall's list of the UK's 100 most gay-friendly employers, according to Times Higher Education.
Nevertheless the charity has said that universities are not doing enough to support gay, lesbian and bisexual staff.
David Shields, director of workplace programmes at Stonewall, said a recent report by the Equality Challenge Unit suggests that there is a "lack of
focus on sexual orientation compared with other diversity strands".
Higher education has not been represented on the gay, lesbian and bisexual rights charity's list for the last two years, but Imperial College London
and Liverpool John Moores University made it in 2010, ranked 79th and 85th respectively.
In 2006 ICL formed 'Imperial 600', in recognition that minority sexual groups could feel isolated within their community and are more likely to
experience both institutional and personal discrimination. The organisation has a formal mentoring programme for university staff members, and hosts
monthly social events and monitors all college policies to ensure their language is "inclusive of same-sex relationships".
At CUSN we know how damaging discrimination and bullying over sexual orientation can be. Every year we receive calls and emails from those experiencing
these kind of issues.
If you, a colleague or friend is experiencing these such problems, why not get in touch with us? We can offer practical and emotional support to help
overcome problems with colleagues, no matter how small or severe.
Call us on 08000 32 99 52. Talk to an advisor on our free and confidential Support Line, open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
These factsheets from our online InfoCentre may also be helpful:
Stonewall
Coming out
Equality for people of different sexual orientations
Personal relationships at work
