Firms which embrace more diverse recruitment policies also have greater success in business, trade and industry secretary Patricia Hewitt claimed last week.

Speaking at a conference hosted by gay rights group Stonewall, the minister told delegates that making firms’ employment policies more inclusive to all minorities was not just a question of ‘ticking the box’ but was also the key to enhancing commercial performance.

Ben Summerskill, chief executive of Stonewall (pictured), said that recruitment agencies had a key role to play.

“Employers spend a lot of money with agencies so recruiters have a duty of care to ensure that their candidate pool is as wide as possible, and also to point out where they think a client may not be being as inclusive as they could be,” he said.