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Valuing Lived Experience

Charity People is committed to ensuring that matters of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) remain at the heart of all we do. We want to ensure that inclusive recruitment is front of mind for all our staff and work with our clients to ensure we work toward a diverse workforce for the charity sector.

Our EDI committee meet four times a year with the purpose to:

  • Provide advice and comment on the development and delivery of our EDI plan
  • Ensure that we have an integrated and proactive approach to EDI and that this is communicated to all staff, candidates and clients
  • Promote a working environment that values diversity, promotes inclusion and is committed to ensuring equality for all staff, candidates and clients

To ensure that the EDI committee, which consists of recruitment consultants, regional director and the EDI lead, keep the experiences of candidates from marginalised groups at the forefront of our minds, we have three Lived Experience Advisors who partner and join us during these EDI committee meetings.

Having Lived Experience Advisors help Charity People to:

  • Work with a variety of people in the spirit of partnership to find solutions and make positive changes to recruitment
  • Break down barriers between people who may use our services and professionals
  • Work alongside differing networks to ensure that we reach out to more people

Meeting our Advisors

Kieron Blake

“I am eager to be involved in this committee because I am deeply committed to creating equitable opportunities for underrepresented groups in the workplace. As a Black male with extensive experience in diversity, equity, and inclusion, I understand the systemic barriers that many job seekers face, particularly in the charity sector.

I have worked as a Diversity and Inclusion Manager at a construction company, where I have led initiatives to foster inclusive hiring practices and improve representation across the workforce. Prior to this, I was the Anti-Racism Programme Lead at Shelter, where I worked to dismantle structural inequalities within the organization and the wider sector. Additionally, I sit on the Hertfordshire Constabulary Race Inclusion Board, where I contribute to strategies aimed at increasing diversity and improving engagement with underrepresented communities.

These experiences have given me a strong understanding of inclusive recruitment, lived experience advocacy, and the importance of ensuring fair access to opportunities. I am passionate about using my expertise to support this committee in shaping recruitment practices that are truly inclusive, ensuring that talented individuals from all backgrounds can thrive in the charity sector.”

Laks Mann

Laks Mann MBE is a dynamic Creative Strategist, award-winning DEI expert, and an accomplished public speaker. He is particularly recognised for his ground-breaking contributions to LGBTQ+ advocacy and community integration. Laks has enjoyed a stellar career across the corporate, charitable, and public sectors. Most notably, Laks became the UK’s first openly gay South Asian and Sikh police officer, breaking barriers and championing inclusivity within law enforcement.

Laks is a Winner in the UK’s Top 100 Influential People 2025. He was awarded an MBE in 2024 for services to charity, integration, and LGBTQ+ communities, and was also named LGBT+ Trailblazer 2024 at the British LGBTQIA+ Awards. Other accolades include being listed in the Diversity Power List 2022/23 and winning LGBT+ Positive Role Model 2020 at the National Diversity Awards. He is a Mayor of London appointed EDI Advisor, a Trustee for South Asian Heritage Month and caba, and the Founder of Gaysians UK.

“Charity People’s core values – integrity, inclusivity, collaboration, and expertise – completely align with my ethos and have been constant threads throughout my own career journeys. It’s an honour to be leading as Chair of their EDI Committee.”

Ellie Dale

I have worked in the charity sector for over 20 years, across a diverse range of charities, mainly in health and social care, including at Terrence Higgins Trust, Tourettes Action, Gingerbread and Prostate Cancer UK. I have held a variety of roles, working in health, the environment, community development and in fundraising. I am an experienced services, volunteer and peer support manager. I am committed to helping people to help themselves, as well as enabling them to help others. I am currently working in women’s health, which I am passionate about from a personal and professional point of view.

I also have a background in recruitment and I believe that my skills and experience, gained over many years of lived experience in my personal and professional life, will help inform and enrich the EDI work that Charity People are doing. I am deeply committed to ensuring that those working in the charity sector get the help, support and access to the opportunities that are right for them. I hope to be able to help take this valuable and essential work forward and create opportunities for people; now and in the future for the good of the individual and the wider sector. I am keenly aware that there is still more we need to do, to help increase and improve a positive, informed and fully inclusive experience across the sector.