Lloyds Banking Group Fertility and Baby Loss Network

Founded in 2021, the Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) Fertility and Baby Loss (F&BL) Network has transformed how the organisation supports colleagues through the emotional and complex journey of starting and growing a family. The network was established by three friends in Group Audit who, after experiencing recurrent miscarriages, recognised a gap in support and guidance. They sought to create a space where colleagues could openly share their experiences.

Now part of the LBG Family Matters Network, the F&BL network has positively impacted company policies, such as doubling the minimum leave after pregnancy loss and introducing paid time off for fertility treatment, improving support for colleagues across the organisation.

What inspired the creation of the Fertility and Baby Loss (F&BL) Network, and how did you identify the need for this kind of support within the workplace?

The Fertility and Baby Loss Network was inspired Brodie Russell and her own experience of recurrent miscarriage which highlighted a lack of workplace peer-support and an opportunity to strengthen policy and guidance to better support colleagues at such a vulnerable time.

When Brodie began discussing the idea with her colleague, despite their close friendship, she was shocked to hear that Louise had also experienced recurrent miscarriages, and neither had shared until now. They asked another colleague and friend, Lesley, for support, and she shared her own miscarriage story. Together, through realising how common this was and how much it helped to share experiences, they confirmed the need to establish the network.

Brodie, Louise and Lesley initially established the network within their own department, Internal Audit, but it wasn’t long before they joined forces with the LBG Family Matters network, who have supported expanding the network to provide Group wide support.

The F&BL Network has grown to over 600 members in just three years. Can you share the strategies or factors that have contributed to this rapid growth and engagement?

Initial growth was organic and contained to the Internal Audit department. With such a strong focus on DE&I, there was opportunity to share the network in an internal department newsletter which encouraged new members to join. With growing membership came more experiences being shared which in turn allowed us to produce our first set of data to show where there were opportunities to strengthen policy.

We approached our Family Matters network for support in engaging HR with our observations, and quickly recognised the benefits that came from working together. As an established and funded network, Family Matters had a seat at the table and were a prominent voice in shaping the DE&I strategy. This relationship was a key turning point for the Fertility and Baby Loss Network as it opened us up to a new, and relevant, audience and gave us a platform for change. From there, we have seen regular growth, boosted by our programme of regular awareness events.

How has the F&BL Network tailored its activities and events to address the diverse needs of colleagues, including those from same-sex families or different cultural backgrounds?

LBG has established a diverse set of colleague networks, including Rainbow (LGBTQ+) and Reach (Ethnic Minorities). We contacted those networks directly to invite them to work with us and to hold bespoke events which considered the needs of their members and how their fertility and loss journeys may vary. We spent time with network members understanding some of the challenges faced and then reached out to our external contacts to build events which addressed those needs. These events were well attended and led to a surge in members. With Fertility and Loss now firmly in the LBG DE&I calendar, we regularly run events on a range of topics, ensuring the diversity of our workforce is respected and represented.

How do you measure the success of the F&BL Network, given the sensitive nature of the topics it addresses? What key metrics or qualitative feedback do you use to gauge impact?

Whilst we conduct polls, invite feedback and engage with our members to ensure we are offering the support they need and collecting the evidence to support policy changes, the best measure of success is the feedback and thanks we get from colleagues for giving them a place to be supported. Our growing membership provides a measure of the reach the network is having across the group, and we can gauge the impact of our events through an increase in membership. Pleasingly, we rarely see a drop in membership, suggesting the support we provide is not just point in time but is of lasting impact and value to colleagues.

We started running support circles as part of our Baby Loss Awareness week events, and the first event had one attendee. But in that discussion, a colleague revealed that she had lost her baby 16 years ago, and that event was the first time she felt able to share her story and say his name at work. Knowing we had enabled that conversation and supported that colleague made all the hard work worth it.

What future plans do you have for expanding or evolving the F&BL Network, and how do you envision its continued integration into LBG’s DE&I strategy?

We have recently been awarded formal accreditation as a Fertility Friendly Employer, partnering with Fertility Matters at Work. This achievement acknowledges our commitment to supporting colleagues and creating an inclusive and supporting workplace.

We have also joined a number of other banks and charities in a working group focused on improving alternative pathways to parenthood. This allows us to showcase the work we have done, and take learnings from others, to ensure we continue to provide the best possible support.

We continue to work with our HR and DE&I teams to constantly review and challenge our policy, offerings and support. Fertility and Baby Loss are now firmly on the DE&I five year strategy and we will be heavily engaged, using internal feedback from our members and external benchmarking from our peers, to ensure we continue to enhance the support LBG offers to anyone impacted by these experiences.

What advice would you give to other organisations looking to create similar support networks for their employees, and what practical steps should they consider to ensure success?

Our network was created for colleagues by colleagues, but we quickly recognised the opportunity to use the network at a strategic level, to positively shape how LBG supported colleagues experiencing Fertility and Loss. By partnering with our Family Matters network, we gained, in Fiona Roche, an influential advocate and with an active and trusted voice. Fiona has been a key contributor to the success of the network through her unwavering support and her internal network of connections. Without doubt, the network would not have achieved the same success without this partnership.

There are so many different topics to be addressed in the workplace, and it may be that other organisations already have established networks which can act as a platform for some of the smaller dedicated topics. Establishing these relationships early in network creation can help you to set clear goals and identify the path to make these happen.