Question to the Ministry of Defence:
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to the Answer of 5 December 2023 to Question 3734 on Ministry of Defence: Employment Schemes, what steps he is taking to ensure that the (a) Rise and (b) Elevate schemes attract a diverse range of talent.
The Rise and Elevate Schemes have been advertised together widely across the department to heighten awareness and attract as much of the Ministry of Defence’s diverse range of talent as possible. Multiple channels were used, including; department-wide MODNet intranet articles; engagement workshops; local communications from Top Level Budget business area talent leads; engagement with staff networks, including the growing Women’s and Race Networks; and information sessions as part of National Inclusion and Learning at Work weeks.
Selection utilised fair, open and merit-based recruitment principles. Best practice for attracting diverse talent included anonymised applications and providing requested reasonable adjustments.
To attract colleagues from some minority groups and support them once they have joined, the Rise and Elevate schemes offer additional coaching before, during and after participation. The Rise and Elevate schemes are part of a much broader talent offer (including other schemes such as Step Up and Step Across and a pilot programme Aspire) that supports the development of diverse talent and provides under-represented groups with the tools to progress into more senior grades. We also actively take part in the wider government talent schemes detailed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-talent-management/civil-service-talent-management