Addressing diversity in the Goldsmiths’ Company
We are a Livery Company and membership organisation which has contributed to national life for nearly 700 years. We support our craft and trade and the people in it; we protect consumers through hallmarking; and we work with charitable partners to help improve lives.
To achieve our ambitions, we strive for excellence in everything we do and aim to make a positive and lasting impact. We are committed to creating a respectful, inclusive, supportive community and workplace, and attracting and retaining a diverse membership and workforce that better represent our communities and national society.
In 2020, we issued a public statement outlining five steps we were taking to address EDI issues:
Improve diversity in the Company and Charity
Support Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) jewellers and silversmiths
Provide financial support through the Goldsmiths’ Company Charity
Understand our history and possible connections to the transatlantic slave trade
Listen and continue to learn from the experiences of others
We have been reporting on progress through publications like the Review and through storytelling. We recognise that change will be gradual and that some things will take time, particularly since membership of the Company is for life and each year we can only welcome approximately twenty new members. However, we are taking steps to move in the right direction, adapting to a rapidly changing world to ensure that we remain true to our core purpose, contributing effectively to national life.