Rainbow Mark Launch Invite

LGBT Excellence Centre Wales We are pleased to invite you to the launch of:

The Rainbow Mark A Kite Mark for organisations that want to achieve better equality for LGBT people in Wales 14th January 2010 – from 3.30PM – Cardiff Keynote Speakers:

Brian Gibbons, Minister for Social Justice and Local Government Naomi Alleyne, WLGA Director of Equalities & Social Justice Madhulata Patel, Director of Tai Pawb John Hicks, Welsh Assembly Government, Support for Learners Division Special Guest:

Michael Hill, Motorbike Racer and Patron

The Rainbow Mark is an LGBT equality mark – a signifier of organisations’ good practice and commitment in valuing lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Wales and supporting them in addressing specific needs, issues and barriers that they face in every-day life.

LGBT Excellence Centre Wales The Rainbow Mark Kite Mark Launch

Event Focus: Launching an LGBT equality benchmarking toolkit for organisations and also launching the membership to the LGBT Excellence Centre Wales Together with the Cardiff Council, the Welsh Assembly Government, the Welsh Local Government Association, and Tai Pawb, the LGBT Excellence Centre Wales is launching “The Rainbow Mark” in the Senedd, on 14th January 2010. The launch will bring together organisations, professionals and policy makers from all public services, as well as the private sector from around Wales, to understand the role that this new kite mark plays in achieving better equality for LGBT people.

The Excellence Centre will also showcase the experience Patron Michael Hill (Motor Racer) who experienced bullying at school and issues around housing when he was thrown out by his father after coming out. Michael will be hosting a talk-show style conversation with Helen Armstrong from Cadwyn and Elliw Llyr from Tai Eryri Housing Associations that were involved in the pilot of the scheme and successfully achieved the accreditation status of the Rainbow Mark as well as schools in Cardiff and Carmarthenshire that showed their commitment to tackling homophobic bullying against LGBT People. The event will also present a certificate to schools and local authorities across Wales that have completed the Safe Space programme along with the Rainbow Mark toolkit for them to keep demonstrating leadership and commitment to eradicate homophobic and transphobic bullying in Wales.

The event will also see the launch of the organisation’s membership scheme for both individuals and organisations to help and support the development of a more cohesive and supportive environment for LGBT people in Wales.

The event will conclude with a networking wine reception.

Registration for the event is now open. Please make sure to fill in and return the attached form to info@ecwales.org.uk. We can only accommodate 200 people, and places will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis. Please note the event is free to attend. However, should you be allocated a place and not attend, a cancellation fee of £20 will be levied to help cover costs, unless a colleague is nominated to attend on your behalf.

For further information and questions, contact: Federico Podeschi, Federico@ecwales.org.uk or Phone: 01792 645325.

Brian Gibbons Minister for Social Justice and Local Government Dr Gibbons was brought up in Keadue, County Roscommon in the West of Ireland. He was educated at Keadue National School, Summerhill College in Sligo before graduating in medicine from the National University of Ireland (Galway) in 1974.

He moved to Yorkshire in 1976 to undertake vocational training in general practice in Calderdale.

In 1980 he became a general practitioner in Blaengwynfi in the Upper Afan Valley, working in partnership with Dr Julian Tudor-Hart, in Glyncorrwg to form the Upper Afan Practice. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal College of General Practitioners in 1995.

Dr Gibbons has been a member of the Labour Party since 1980 and has been involved in many community actions to promote the regeneration of his local area. Additionally he has been a member of West Glamorgan and Iechyd Morgannwg Local Medical Committees and served both committees as Secretary. He also represented the Medical Practitioners Union (UNITE), on the GMSC/GPC UK and in Wales.

Dr Gibbons was elected to the National Assembly for Wales in May 1999 as the Welsh Labour candidate. He has served on the National Assembly's Health and Social Services Committee, the Audit Committee and the Economic Development Committee.

He was appointed Deputy Minister for Health and Social Services in October 2000.

Following the 2003 election, Dr Gibbons transferred portfolios and became Deputy Minister for Economic Development and Transport, with special responsibility for transport.

In January 2005 Dr Gibbons was appointed to the Cabinet of the Welsh Assembly Government, where he served as Minister for Health and Social Services. This was followed by a brief period as Minister for the Economy and Transport after the 2007 Assembly election, before he was appointed as Minister for Social Justice and Local Government in July 2007.

He is married with two grown children and continues to live in Blaengwynfi.

Naomi Alleyne Director of Equalities and Social Justice Welsh Local Government Association Naomi has worked to promote equality and diversity with a variety of organisations over the past thirteen years. As Director of the South East Wales Race Equality Council, Naomi worked with local authorities and wider public services, including voluntary and community based organisations, to challenge inequality and promote race equality. She also worked, on a secondment basis, for the Welsh Assembly Government in the Equality Policy Unit. Naomi has also actively supported the development of services for minority ethnic women with a particular emphasis on improving support for victims of domestic violence.

Naomi became Director of Equalities and Social Justice with the Welsh Local Government Association in September 2004 covering a diverse range of policy areas including the equality agenda, community safety and policing, housing, older people and child poverty. Naomi firmly believes in the important principles of respect, fairness and social justice and is committed to working in partnership with others to influence social change and achieving equality for all people within and across Welsh society.

Madhulata Patel Director, Tai Pawb Madhulata has worked for registered social landlords, a local authority and she currently works for Tai Pawb (housing for all), a charity whose mission is to ‘’Promote equality and social justice in housing for Wales’’. Prior to that, she worked as a Neighbourhood Regeneration Manager for Linc Cymru Housing Association, where she was responsible for the organisation’s community regeneration and tenant participation service.

Madhulata also has experience of working in housing management, having been a PATH (Positive Action for Training in Housing) trainee and Housing Officer with Wales & West Housing Association. Madhulata is a fellow member of the Chartered Institute of Housing.

John Hicks Welsh Assembly Government, Support for Learners Division John has worked in the Welsh Assembly Government and the Welsh Office before that for over 20 years. During that time he has worked in a range of departments including Human Resources, Finance, Economic and Regional Policy, Social Services Policy, Culture and Heritage and, most recently, Education.

John is currently the lead Assembly Official on school anti-bullying policy. As Chair of the Wales Anti-Bullying Network, John has been keen to develop closer links between central and local government and the voluntary sector.

John’s interests outside of work include cycling, running, and playing the drums in a local band.

Michael Hill Motorbike Racer and Patron to the LGBT Excellence Centre Michael was voted ‘BEST NEWCOMER’ by the North Yorkshire Road Racing Supporters Club in his first year of competition (1995), achieving 43 top 10 finishes and scooping the North East Supersport 125cc Championship.

2008 was Michael’s busiest season to date. Juggling his media work and racing he again secured top 10 results within the British 125cc Championship. He also ventured into team management expanding his TABOO Motorsport team to 2 full time riders.

Michael has also featured in the popular docu-soap ‘Natural Born Racers’ screened on the Bravo Channel and was involved with the film ‘And Still I Rise’.

Michael competes as the only openly gay competitor within the British Superbike Championships for a privately funded team - TABOO Motorsport.

This year saw Michael achieve a season best of sixth place in the British 125cc Motor biking Championship and was also the winner of the Stonewall Sports Award

Federico Podeschi Managing Director, Excellence Centre Wales Federico is a social entrepreneur and the Chief Executive Officer of the LGBT Excellence Centre Wales, working to develop new models for delivering equality and human rights. He is also president of LGBT San Marino, and a member of the Stonewall Cymru council .

Federico is an experienced facilitator delivering training and consultancy for large and small organisations, including a workshop tackling homophobic and transphobic bullying in education, lectures on Sexual Orientation Discrimination at Cardiff and Bangor Universities, sexual orientation caselaw updates to the Employment Lawyers Association throughout the UK, and employment discrimination workshops for Local Authority Elected Members and other employers and employees.

He has over ten years experience in the equality and diversity arena and his past experience includes setting up a discrimination advice and training service for Stonewall, managing support services and projects for people with learning difficulties, setting up an information centre for social services, and managing a partnership between all Age Concerns in Wales.

Federico is a graduate of the University of Glamorgan with an honours degree in Marketing and is a registered PRINCE 2 (Projects in Controlled Environments) practitioner. He moved to the UK in 1997 from the Republic of San Marino and lives Swansea.