Black History Month

This October, the UK celebrates Black History Month - a time to recognise and celebrate the culture, history and people of our black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities.

Postman Linford Gibbons, from Mansfield delivery office, has worked for Royal Mail for 18 years.

‘I joined Royal Mail in 1990 and have spent all that time on deliveries in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire,’ said Linford. ‘I currently hold various positions within the CWU, including BAME officer for the Nottinghamshire area.

‘My father originated from Kashmir, Pakistan and my mother was from the Irish Republic. They both settled in the inner city area of Nottingham. In fact, my father was one of the founders of the first mosques built in Britain.

‘My mixed-race ethnicity is the fastest rising group under the BAME umbrella. Like many growing up in the 1950s and 60s I suffered racism both at school and in the workplace. I joined the Armed Forces in 1975 and then joined Raleigh Industries before moving onto a career with Royal Mail.

‘I’ve always been a champion for diversity and inclusion fighting for equality issues within the workplace. This is why I enjoy my position working with Royal Mail on the BAME steering group. As a group we have come a long way since I joined the network three years ago and I’m impressed with how Royal Mail are moving forward to make our workplaces more inclusive for all colleagues.

‘In 2011 I became the first BAME councillor in my area, and in 2014, the first ever BAME chairman of our local district council where I have been able to set policy for equality issues and standards for the council staff and promote these across the district as a whole. I have also been a school governor for many years, mostly in Nottingham.

‘My charity work includes raising funds for refugees and the homeless and working with the local Royal British Legion. Recently, I ran the London Marathon and raised £5,000 through Royal Mail for prostate cancer, which affects many people from the BAME community.

‘Last year, along with my fellow BAME colleague, Steve Jones, I was involved in promoting Black History Month when we invited David Lammy MP to Mount Pleasant in London to talk about his journey to becoming one of the first black MPs in Britain. I’m really pleased to be involved with the steering group’s rollout of visiting Royal Mail workplaces in Wolverhampton, London, Bristol and Glasgow, promoting BAME issues and Royal Mail’s successful BAME mentoring scheme.’

Supporting BAME colleagues

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Making our business a place where black, Asian and minority ethnic colleagues can achieve their potential remains a priority.

Career progression is a key focus as we work towards improving the representation of colleagues from BAME backgrounds across all levels of the business. We need to build greater awareness that the network exists and is there to support our people and shine a light on all the good positive things we are doing across the business. 

If you are thinking about holding a BAME cultural event in your unit, and need some help please reach out to us. To contact the BAME steering group, or volunteer to help out with their activities, please email bame@royalmail.com.