New funding to halt loss of and reverse the damage already done to the world’s mangroves and forests which are vital to protecting many species already so close to extinction.

Today I’ve headed down to London, to the House of Lords in fact, to join other leaders from inclusive employers to help kick-start National Inclusion Week.

National Inclusion Week is an annual week of workplace activities and events that highlight the importance of inclusion across the UK. Here at BPDTS we’ve video chats, quizzes, blogs and much more planned – and will be focussing on topics such as data inclusivity, inclusivity in meetings and unconscious bias. We’re also looking forward to joining other inclusive employers on webinars during the week

The theme for National Inclusion Week this year is #everydayinclusion – which chimes with me both personally and professionally.

Being respected and valued for who we are

I’m sure I can’t be alone in admitting there are times during my life where I feel others haven’t been overly welcoming or inclusive towards me. I don’t mind sharing that on some of these occasions this has really upset me, made me feel angry, knocked my self-esteem and in my mind prevented me from doing as well as I could.

Equally there are other instances where someone going out of their way to support and include me in what’s going on has made a huge positive difference to my life.

If you know me well, you’ll also know that music is one of my passions. But until recent years I’ve never been able to read music or play an instrument. When I moved house seven years ago I decided that was going to change.

I tried out at the local male voice choir but wasn’t made at all welcome – no one bothered to talk with me and I got the sense people were making fun of me. I kept at it for around 2 months, but things weren’t getting any better so I spoke with the Musical Conductor. He believed it was because of two things; being a lot younger than the others and being what they call in this part of Yorkshire, a ‘comerinerer’. Needless to say I was upset and angry and eventually stopped going.

I then joined the local brass band, and what a completely different story. Everyone went out of their way to welcome me, to help me to learn how to play and supported me 100%. I felt fabulous and it encouraged me to put extra effort into practice each week to get better.

This probably explains why, 5 years later, I now play in the senior band and still put extra practice in whenever I can. And all because I was made to feel valued.

Becoming naturally inclusive at BPDTS

With ‘Inclusivity’ being one of our company’s values we’re doing all we can to create a happy, safe and healthy work environment for all of our people – where we trust, value and respect each other and celebrate our diversity.

We want to support our people to feel they can be authentic and true to themselves – because we believe it will help them to unlock their full potential and be the best they can be in everything they do.

Listening to and valuing the perspectives of people from different backgrounds is helping us create a rich tapestry of creativity where new innovative ideas and challenging the status quo constructively is becoming the new norm.

We’re clear where we want to get to. Our ultimate goal is to become naturally inclusive, where respecting and celebrating one another’s diversity simply runs deep through the veins of everything we do without thinking about it.

Take part in National Inclusion Week

National Inclusion Week provides us all with a great opportunity to think about, learn and identify what we can do to be better human beings to one another.

Think about a moment when you suddenly felt included in something: when was this, what was it you felt included in, who made you feel included, what was it that made you feel included, and how did it feel when you were? Now go make that difference to someone.

And what then for the rest of the year? I’m reminded of a saying that goes along the lines of ‘what we focus on will prosper, and what we don’t will wither away’.

The call to action for leaders attending the launch event today was to reach out to others to help them understand the opportunity which inclusion brings. I hope I’ve gone some way towards doing this. If not, watch out for more blogs during the week on the things we’ve already or plan to do to be naturally inclusive here at BPDTS – #LifeatBPDTS.

Find out more about National Inclusion Week and join in activities happening where you work.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has today announced that 2 Acnecide products (Acnecide Face 5% w/w Gel & Acnecide Face Wash 5% w/w Gel) will be formally reclassified from pharmacy (P) to general sale list (GSL) medicines.

This change means people will be able to purchase these Acnecide products without a pharmacist’s advice. Making these products more widely available will allow people to treat mild acne affecting the face more easily.

The active ingredient of Acnecide Face Gel and Face Wash is benzoyl peroxide. Benzoyl peroxide has been used to treat acne since the 1960’s and works by killing bacteria that cause acne on the skins surface.

Widening public access to medicinal products when safe to do so, provides greater convenience and choice for the consumer. It also empowers individuals, allowing them to take control of their own health.

This decision was made following a robust assessment of the safety of the Acnecide products, consideration by the Commission on Human Medicines (CHM) and a public consultation earlier this year.

Jan MacDonald, MHRA’s Group Manager for Access and Information for Medicines and Standards (AIMS) in Vigilance and Risk Management of Medicines, said:

“The move to make Acnecide Face Gel and Acnecide Face Wash Gel more widely accessible will make it easier for people to treat mild acne on the face.

“Wider availability of medicinal products and improved patient access and choice remain high on the health agenda. The MHRA is committed to improving access to medicinal products for self-care where it is safe to do so.”

NOTES TO EDITOR

1. The licence-holder for Acnecide Face 5% w/w Gel & Acnecide Face Wash 5% w/w Gel (Galderma (UK) Limited) applied to the MHRA to make this product available through general sales outlets.
2. Responses to the public consultation are discussed in the Public Assessment Report (PAR) section 5; the responses to consultation are provided at the end of the PAR.
3. In the UK, Acnecide 5% w/w Gel was approved as a pharmacy (P) medicine in 1992 and Acnecide Wash 5% w/w Gel as a pharmacy medicine in 2002.
4. To be reclassified from P to GSL, it must be demonstrated that a medicine meets the GSL criterion. Acnecide Face 5% w/w Gel & Acnecide Face Wash 5% w/w Gel were assessed against the GSL criterion. Further information on the GSL criterion and assessment of suitability of Acnecide Face products for GSL legal status may be found in the Public Assessment Report (PAR) section 3.
5. The MHRA is responsible for regulating all medicines and medical devices in the UK. Underpinning all our work lies robust and evidence-based assessments to ensure the safety, efficacy and quality of medicinal products. The MHRA is a centre of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency which also includes the National Institute for Biological Standards and Control (NIBSC) and the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD). MHRA is an executive agency of the Department of Health and Social Care.

Flood risk in Newark reduced for 140 properties and the surrounding roads and infrastructure

140 properties and the surrounding roads and infrastructure have benefited from an Environment Agency project in Newark.

A brand new section of flood bank, around 50 metres long, has been constructed as part of over 450 metres of flood defence improvements by the Agency in the area.

Whilst the new section was built from scratch, the surrounding sections were stripped of top soil, compacted and then raised 600mm above the original height. All sections were grass seeded with them projected to look part of the natural environment once the grass has grown.

Flood risk from nearby watercourses has reduced from a 5% (1 in 20) risk of flooding every year down to 1% (1 in 100) as a result of these works.

Partnership working between the Environment Agency, Urban and Civic and the local planning authority was crucial in delivering this project and even led to around 4,000 tonnes of embankment material being supplied for free with an estimated cost saving of £80,000.

An additional benefit of the locally sourced free material meant that the production of 114 tonnes of Carbon Dioxide emissions were avoided, as material was originally going to be brought in from Rotherham.

Ashley Reeves, Project Manager at the Environment Agency said:

We are very pleased with the outcome of this project and our relationship with the local community. They will see the benefits of a reduced flood risk that has been built into the natural environment.

The project will also see the planting of 40 trees to mitigate the removal of 8 semi-mature trees that needed to be removed for the work to take place.