Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Policy

1. Purpose and commitment

The Sourdough Hub is committed to building a workplace and a company that is fair, welcoming, and free of discrimination. We believe a varied team is a stronger team, that decisions made by a single perspective tend to age badly, and that a small business has no excuse for behaving like a closed shop.

This policy sits alongside our obligations under the Equality Act 2010. The Act prohibits discrimination on the basis of nine protected characteristics: age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. We comply with that law fully, and we go beyond it where we can.

2. Scope

This policy applies to: every member of staff regardless of role or contract type; freelancers and contractors working on our behalf; suppliers we engage; and customers using our website or services. It is the responsibility of every person it covers to read it, understand it, and act in accordance with it.

3. Recruitment and hiring

We are committed to hiring fairly. In practice that means:

• Job descriptions describe the work, not a wishlist of demographic markers. We are explicit about which requirements are essential and which are desirable, and we do not list "nice to haves" that have a chilling effect on candidates from under-represented backgrounds.
• We accept applications from people without traditional credentials, including people without a degree, people returning from career breaks, parents, carers, and people in mid-career change. The work itself is the test.
• We share the salary range publicly in every job advert.
• We assess candidates on demonstrated capability, not on cultural fit. Cultural fit is too often a euphemism for like-us, and we want a team that includes some people who are not like us.
• We make reasonable adjustments at every stage of recruitment for candidates with disabilities or specific access needs. The interviewer is responsible for asking the candidate what they need; the candidate is not responsible for hiding it.
• We anonymise CVs where we can and use structured interviewing for any role where the candidate pool is more than three people.

4. Pay and progression

We pay every member of staff above the Real Living Wage as set by the Living Wage Foundation. Pay reviews happen annually and are based on contribution and the cost of living, not on negotiation aggressiveness. We do not have a pay-secrecy clause in any of our contracts; staff may discuss their pay with one another without consequence.

Progression opportunities — including training, promotions, and stretch projects — are offered openly. Where there is a contestable opportunity, we tell the whole team, not just the people we already think will get it.

5. Behaviour at work

We expect everyone working at, with, or for The Sourdough Hub to treat colleagues, suppliers, and customers with courtesy and respect. We do not tolerate:

• Direct or indirect discrimination on any protected characteristic.
• Harassment, bullying, or victimisation, in any form, including online and on private channels.
• Slurs or dismissive humour about people's identity, background, body, or beliefs.
• Retaliation against anyone who raises a concern in good faith.

6. Reasonable adjustments

If you are working with us in any capacity and need an adjustment to do your job — an adjustment to your hours, your equipment, your workspace, your tools, or anything else — please tell us. We will not require medical evidence beyond what is genuinely necessary, and we will keep the conversation private. The default position is yes; the exceptions, if there are any, must be specifically justified.

7. Pregnancy, parental leave and caring

We support staff through pregnancy, maternity, paternity, adoption, shared parental leave, and any other caring responsibility. Returners from leave have the right to flexible working as a starting position, not a request to be argued for.

8. Customers and the people we serve

We sell our kits to anyone in the UK who would like one. Our marketing and our editorial choices on the journal will reflect the actual diversity of British home baking, not a narrow stylised version of it. If a customer has a need we haven't anticipated — a dietary, religious, or accessibility need — we will work to accommodate it. If we can't, we will say so plainly and refund.

We will not knowingly sell to organisations that promote racism, homophobia, transphobia, or violent extremism, regardless of order size.

9. Suppliers

We expect our suppliers to operate in accordance with the principles of this policy. Where we have a long-term supplier relationship, we will raise concerns directly and act on them. We are willing to switch suppliers over EDI failures.

10. Reporting concerns

If you have a concern about how this policy is being applied — or not applied — raise it. There are three ways:

1. Speak to your line manager or, for non-staff, the person you ordinarily deal with at The Sourdough Hub.
2. Speak or write directly to the founder, Clara Ashworth, at hello@thesourdoughhub.co.uk.
3. Where the concern relates to the founder, raise it with our external HR adviser; their contact is shared on request.

We treat every concern seriously. We will not retaliate against anyone who raises one in good faith. We commit to acknowledging within three working days, and to a substantive response within fifteen.

11. Review

This policy is reviewed annually. We track the diversity of our workforce, our shortlists, and our supplier base in aggregate, and use that data to inform changes. We don't publish individual data, in line with our privacy obligations.

12. Sign-off

This policy was approved by Clara Ashworth, Founder, on 3 May 2026.