Equality, Diversity and Inclusion report 2025-26
Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) report for the past year has now been published. One of our core values is that we are kind: we care for and value residents, each other and the environment. Our EDI report shows how we’re doing at caring for and valuing the people we work with and serve.
Highlights include:
Listening out and about
We held eight ‘Big Door Knock’ events, where colleagues, Board members and Resident Voice representatives knock on doors and chat to residents face-to-face. We spoke to 642 residents in total about issues they can be dealing with regularly such as repairs, gardens, parking and anti-social behaviour.
Making work a better place to be
Our colleague survey had an 86% response rate, with 839 colleagues taking part. Colleagues gave us a score of 8.6 out of 10 for feeling accepted and able to be themselves at work. That’s above our benchmark, which is the standard we compare ourselves against.
This year we also:
- launched video interpretation for deaf residents
- achieved HouseProud accreditation, which shows our commitment to LGBTQ+ inclusion in housing
- kept our Disability Confident status, a government scheme that supports disabled people at work.
Checking fairness
We completed 33 checks, called Equality Impact Assessments, on our policies. These make sure our rules and decisions don’t leave anyone out. We also did five ‘deep dives’ into areas such as damp and mould, and access to homes, to check our services are fair to all residents.
Pay
Our latest figures (from our 2025 report) show no difference in mean (average) pay between ethnic groups. The median gap, which compares the middle pay in each group, is very small at 0.83% and in favour of non-white and non-white minority colleagues. The gender pay gap is small and slightly favours men, but it’s the closest we’ve come to closing the gap since we started reporting.
Where we need to do better
Our Board and Committees don’t yet reflect the communities we serve. For example, 18% of members are women and 9% have a disability. We’re planning ahead so that our Board and Committees become more diverse over time.
What’s next in 2026–27
We’re focusing on a few important things:
- making our data more complete
- helping residents who say they’re less satisfied, especially homeowners and residents with disabilities
- making sure our new EDI groups work well
- making our Board and Committees more diverse.
Click here to read the full report
This report is presented as SettleParadigm, the name we used after Settle and Paradigm came together in October 2025. It is a snapshot of our EDI work for residents and colleagues from April 2025 to March 2026. It also gives us a baseline for Lifestone Homes as we move ahead as a new company.
