If your Yorkshire-based business or organisation isn’t actively encouraging being more diverse and inclusive - and promoting equality - you could well be ignoring or excluding a huge percentage of your potential customer and client base within the region, as well as existing and potential employees.  
 
There’s compelling evidence that managing equality and diversity well and developing a culture of inclusion leads to improved business outcomes, so why aren't more businesses and organisations doing it?
 
Parts of the Yorkshire region are very ethnically diverse.
 
In 2021, the Yorkshire and the Humber local authorities with the highest proportions of ethnically diverse people were Sheffield in South Yorkshire, and Bradford, Kirklees, and Leeds in West Yorkshire – with each local authority having more than one fifth of the population being ethnically diverse.
 
There is a growing trend of ethnic diversity in West Yorkshire in particular, with a notable increase in the proportion of people from non-white backgrounds in Leeds, for example.
 
Bradford has the highest concentration of ethnic minority residents, at 39%.
 
The public sector is leading the way in diversity, equality and inclusion (abbreviated to DEI) across Yorkshire.
 
Public services in West Yorkshire have various initiatives to promote DEI, including staff networks like ‘Embrace’ at the West Yorkshire Combined Authority, and dedicated strategies within the West Yorkshire Police (including the vision of ‘Safe. Just. Inclusive’) and ‘One Team’ at the  West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service. Additionally, West Yorkshire’s Integrated Care Strategy identifies 10 Big Ambitions. Many of them have equality, diversity and inclusion at the heart of what is trying to be achieved.
 
Strategies focus on two key areas - the communities served, and the workplace.
 
As well as ethnic diversity, West Yorkshire also recognises diversity in other areas, including disability and neurodiversity, gender identity, and sexual orientation. 
 
The West Yorkshire Combined Authority is actively working to champion DEI, and ensure its services meet the diverse needs of its population. 
 
West Yorkshire Police also emphasises the importance of visible leadership in promoting DEI, as well as creating The Disability Working Group to increase awareness and support employees in the workplace with respect to disability and neurodiversity.
 
North Yorkshire Council also has a commitment to provide services fairly to all sections of their community, and that all their existing and future employees have equal opportunities.
 
The private sector needs to step up and get with the DEI programme too.
 
According to a YouGov survey, 86% of business decision-makers say that companies have a role to play in tackling racial inequality.