The New South Wales (NSW) Police Force Academy in the quiet country town of Goulburn was brightly shining recently with all the colours of the rainbow as Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Intersex (LGBTI) police officers, and their allies, from across Australia attended the 2017 conference entitled ‘A place to be me’, Queensland Police say.
This conference gave all delegates an opportunity to promote the considerable work being undertaken throughout Australia by passionate people dedicated to advancing LGBTI inclusion and diversity, from both within their respective workplaces, but within the wider community. The conference ambassador, drag-queen personality ‘Nancy Buoy’ providing constant entertainment.
Sergeant Mick Gardiner (EORT) and Constable Mairead Devlin (Caboolture) both attended on behalf of the QPS LGBTI Support Network, providing presentations to the conference on their personal experiences within the Service and the positive difference the network’s initiatives has had over the past two years. Both pictured above with conference ambassador "Nancy Buoy" and her assistant Sarah.
Sergeant Gardiner also had the honour of addressing the entire academy class of recruits on his expectations of them in treating LGBTI people with dignity and respect. Constable Devlin (pictured below on the far left) provided valuable input as a panel member on transitioning in the workplace and the changes moving forward with respect to policy in that area.
The overriding conclusion of the conference from speaking to the delegates was that this forum had provided an amazing opportunity to learn from each other, share ideas, and generate a collective push forward for all us to enhance inclusion and diversity in our respective workplaces, forging ‘a place to be me’ for everyone.
