Attract and retain a diverse workforce
Reflecting the diversity of the communities we serve remains central to how we grow, innovate and deliver for our customers. In FY26, we continued to make meaningful progress on inclusion, strengthening our approach across every level of the organisation, from the frontline to the boardroom.
Driving change, empowering everyone
At Mitie, equality, diversity and inclusion are fundamental to who we are and how we deliver our purpose. Over the past year, we have continued to make meaningful progress, driven by the commitment, energy and leadership of colleagues across the organisation who are helping to create a workplace where everyone feels valued, respected and empowered to thrive.
Listening to our colleagues has been central to this progress. By understanding their lived experiences, challenges and aspirations, we are shaping a Mitie that works for everyone. We are committed to creating psychologically safe environments where colleagues can be their authentic selves, contribute openly and perform at their best. Through visible leadership, role modelling inclusive behaviours and challenging exclusion wherever it arises, we are embedding a culture of belonging across the organisation.
We have set ambitious diversity leadership targets and are making meaningful progress towards achieving them. These targets provide a clear framework for accountability and transparency, guiding our efforts to ensure that leadership better reflects the diversity of our people and the communities we serve, and enabling us to track and demonstrate measurable impact.
Looking ahead, our ambition remains bold. We are committed to embedding inclusion into every decision, interaction and opportunity, ensuring all voices are heard, differences are valued and equity underpins success. I am proud of what we have achieved so far, and am confident in the journey ahead as we continue to build a truly inclusive organisation: a Mitie where everyone can thrive.
Sim Sian
Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
Mitie’s equality, diversity and inclusion (ED&I) strategy
Our ED&I strategy is anchored around four pillars that guide how inclusion is embedded across Mitie. We focus on developing an inclusive organisation by strengthening inclusive leadership, allyship and everyday behaviours that create a culture of belonging and psychological safety. We aim to create career fulfilment by improving access to development, mentoring and progression opportunities, ensuring that colleagues can grow, thrive and reach their potential at every stage of their career.
Through amplifying colleague voice, we listen to lived experience via our networks, surveys and engagement channels, using insight to shape priorities and drive continuous improvement. Driving business growth is enabled through progressive, inclusive people policies that support our ability to attract, retain and develop a diverse workforce. We continue to review and strengthen our policies and practices to ensure they reflect the evolving needs of our colleagues and the communities we serve, supporting flexibility, wellbeing, fertility, fairness and long-term career sustainability.
Recognition
Mitie’s commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion continues to earn national and global recognition. We were ranked 10th in the Inclusive Top 50 UK Employers list, one of the UK’s leading independent benchmarks assessing performance across age, disability, gender, sexual orientation, race and faith. We achieved Disability Confident Level 3 status, received the Global ESG Award for ED&I, and a Silver award in ED&I at the Most Admired Companies Awards. Our dedication to supporting veterans was recognised with Mitie ranked within the top 50 among the Top Employers of Veterans in the UK, and we achieved 2nd place in the DIAL Global Survey, reinforcing our position as a leader in driving meaningful, measurable change.
Representation
We made further progress on inclusion in FY26. Racially diverse representation in leadership reached 18%, moving closer to our 20% target. Women in leadership stood at 32%, short of our 40% ambition. We are focused on addressing this through targeted development programmes, including our Level 3, 5 and 7 Women in Leadership programmes, the first two cohorts of our Level 7 programme achieved a 100% pass rate with distinction, alongside the introduction of diversity targets for middle management roles (female representation 41% and racially diverse representation 27% by 2030) and enhanced succession planning.
Count Me In and Leading with Respect
Our award-winning inclusion learning programme, Count Me In, continues to create an environment where everyone feels supported and able to be themselves at work. Our people manager development programme, Leading Together, recognised as ‘highly commended’ at the Business Culture Awards, has now been completed by 88% of people managers, with 94% having completed the accompanying Leading with Respect course.
During the year, we also launched Mitie’s colleague and leadership behaviours, establishing a clear and consistent set of behavioural standards across the organisation. The framework defines how colleagues and leaders are expected to work and make decisions, strengthening accountability, supporting fair and transparent performance management, and embedding a culture aligned to our Purpose, Values and One Code.
Inclusion Allies programme
We expanded our Inclusion Allies programme to 500 trained allies, equipping colleagues at all levels with the confidence and skills to promote belonging in everyday interactions. The programme provides practical tools to recognise exclusion, challenge non-inclusive behaviour and support colleagues to feel safe to speak up, helping to embed inclusive behaviours consistently across a geographically dispersed, frontline workforce.
Training uses realistic workplace scenarios and practical guidance to help allies intervene appropriately, role model inclusive leadership and signpost colleagues to relevant support. In FY26, we recorded an 80% positive response in the MyVoice survey to “I feel comfortable being myself at work.” Together with increased diversity data disclosure through This is Me, these indicators demonstrate progress in psychological safety and reinforce the culture we are building – one where inclusion is a shared responsibility, respectful behaviour is the norm, and colleagues feel confident to speak up and support one another.
This is Me campaign
We continued to embed our This is Me campaign, encouraging colleagues to update their diversity information in the People Hub, helping us close data gaps and better tailor support. We achieved 100% completion of gender and ethnicity data. Since April 2025, disability declarations have increased by 14% in absolute numbers, with representation rising from 1.70% to 1.80% by March 2026, despite overall headcount growth. Over the same period, LGBTQ+ declarations increased by 11.4% in absolute numbers, with representation rising from 3.76% to 3.80%. We also introduced new diversity categories, including parents, carers and revised military-related questions, to strengthen our understanding of the workforce’s demographic profile.
Improved disclosure indicates growing trust and psychological safety, with colleagues feeling more confident sharing their identities, supported by clearer processes and consistent ED&I messaging. Better data quality also strengthens ESG reporting and supports client confidence and bid credibility, as inclusive employment practices are increasingly assessed during procurement and contract evaluation.