Helping organisations and individuals embrace diversity in a practical and workable manner

Introduction

It has become clear to many people over the last few years that there is a large disconnect between accepting the legal and social rights of transgender people and the practical application of them in seamlessly integrating them into society in general and the workplace in particular.

Such factors as professional appropriateness, fear, ignorance and most importantly access to practical information are mostly to blame for this. With this in mind, our aim is to find another way to communicate what it is to be transgender so that being transgender is viewed with the same level of social acceptance and normality as sexual orientation now is by the vast majority of society and not as a social barrier.

As a transgender organisation I pride myself on the fact that I can provide individuals and organisations practical and sensible advice without recourse to the stereotypical dogma and rhetoric that seems to prevail in today’s current climate that either frightens, upsets, angers, or just simply confuses people.

At Transparency Associates I have a different approach.

Why Work with Me

One issue that many organisations often fails at is that they are unable to provide real advice based on practical real world lived experiences.

I am different.

Having worked both in the private and public sector over the last 35 years I have extensive experience of the corporate and public sector environment and established presentation skills and experience which provide the necessary skills to present to individuals, small and large groups which is delivered in a practical, easy going and informative way.

I personally have extensive life skills having, during the course of my life, experienced many of the real world issues and problems that people may have to encounter and deal with. Personally I have relocated to another part of the country, been married and divorced, had children, bought and sold houses, worked in both the private and public sector and dealt with bereavement and critical illness to name but a few.

Added to this as a transgender woman myself I have extensive and real world knowledge of the transition process from both the social and physical aspects and together with my other skill sets and life experiences this makes me uniquely qualified to share my knowledge, insights and experience.

But more importantly I provide practical help and advice to both people wishing to transition themselves but just as, and in some cases more importantly, provide help and support for those having to live or work with someone that is about to or has transitioned either within their work environment or their private life such as a family member, friend or even partner.

I provide both general and tailored sessions to enable individuals and groups of people to manage and navigate either their transition journey or simply help those wishing to understand and accept the transition journey of others as it impacts their lives professionally, privately and personally.

How I can improve your organisation

Drawing on my unique practical and real world experience I am able to provide you and your organisation a range of courses which will assist and provide practical support for both individuals and organisations as they try to navigate the world of the transgender person for the enrichment and closer understanding and happiness for everyone involved together with increased workforce harmony and overall organisation stability and profitability.

My Services

General Company / Organisation Introduction

This is a general introduction and just provides a company or organisation a general overview on how to support, deal with and generally work with a colleague that is transgender. This will explore and remove some of the myths and misconceptions on how transgender people should generally be treated within the work environment.

This course is particularly useful for HR and Personal departments as they are typically at the sharp end of framing policy as instructed by management and heads of department as well implementing training and recruitment.

Again I can assist in finding the balance of dovetailing legal obligations with real world practicality of implementing workable policies.

Sessions for Friends/Colleagues of Transgender People

You may find that you have a friend or work colleague or family member or even a partner that is transitioning so this course is for you. You may wish to support or simply wish to understand better the needs, expectations, fears and expectations the transgender person in your life may have.

I can answer those awkward questions that someone might not wish to ask directly for fear of sounding offensive or ignorant to the individual concerned.

Any company or organisation that genuinely has the best interests of their employees at heart would want to provide as much support as possible so that it impacts the function of their job role as little as possible and by proving this course the company demonstrates its commitment.

Individual for Transgender Clients

The purpose of this course is to provide a person that has either already began their transition ( either socially or physically or both ) or wishing to begin it with practical help, support and guidance.

I will provide advice on timelines for social disclosure to friends, family members and work colleagues and employers as well as name changes together with bank, driving licence and passport changes etc.

Together with the likely reactions from the above people together with dealing with their reactions together with coping mechanisms for dealing with the wider world such as neighbours, and public social environments such as shops, pubs and restaurants etc.

Biography

I was born in London and grew up on the south coast and had an early career in IT.

In the year 2000 I moved to the North East to start a family and pursue her career. Over the next twenty years she had two daughters that are now teenagers as well as having a successful career as a senior account manager at two of the North Easts largest IT providers.

When I transitioned in late 2019 I was made redundant in early 2020 and during the COVID lockdown period and had to pursue various jobs in numerous fields including local government, internal telesales positions and retail sales.

Identifying the fact that existing transgender support and information structure was largely well intentioned but subject to political correctness structures and little in the the way of real world experience and practically I started Transparency Associates in 2022 to provide a more practical, logical and detailed approach to the whole understanding, integration and acceptance of being transgender in the modern world and the modern workplace.

Testimonials

Mary Gallagher Equalities Team Leader - Corporate Affairs - Durham County Council

When revising our general guidance on support and wellbeing for our transgender employees we realised that to accompany this we needed to update our senior managers and department heads directly and in a manner that would have the most impact, relevance and acceptance.

Transparency Associates and Della were able to deliver the information and the message in a very positive and original way that created a real buzz of acceptance, understanding and in a refreshing non judgemental way.

We have subsequently asked Della to deliver more content and talks to other departments and employees within the council to further build on the positive message that Della delivers around the whole subject of transgender people in the workplace. We have been delighted with the work Transparency Associates and Della have delivered

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Direct Client Feedback Read our feedback direct from our clients! Find out what they have to say.

Della - your presentation is excellent. Having come from the Police after 34 years and having seen many transgender presentations - this has to be up at the top. Thank you

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Direct Client Feedback Read our feedback direct from our clients! Find out what they have to say.

The session on supporting transgender staff in the workplace was very thought provoking and down to earth

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Direct Client Feedback Read our feedback direct from our clients! Find out what they have to say.

I was really impressed with the content of the supporting transgender staff in the workplace. It was well framed and real - particularly as I was very impressed with how candid Della was. Good timing too, as this topic has been weaponized by various parties and quite often the media ( including social media ) does not present a balanced perspective.

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