Stonewall last night celebrated Google becoming the 300th member of its Diversity Champions programme. The programme advises employers on the recruitment and retention of lesbian and gay staff and promotes good practice around sexual orientation.

The recruitment of 300 members was celebrated with a reception hosted by Merrill Lynch at their London Financial Centre. The event was attended by representatives of the 300 member organisations which include Barclays, IBM, the Royal Navy, Kier Building Maintenance and Transport for London.

Will Hutton, Chief Executive of the Work Foundation, told guests: “Three years ago I was invited to speak by Stonewall and there were 50 Stonewall Diversity Champion members. Here we are in 2007 and there are 300. It's an incredible achievement for Stonewall to pull this off. Stonewall have been remarkable agents of change in the UK workplace, a huge catalyst for change. They’ve really helped transform the way that organisations view gay people at work.”

Ben Summerskill, Stonewall chief executive, said: “Even 10 years ago it would have been unthinkable for an organisation like Merrill Lynch to host an event like this, demonstrating both internally and externally their commitment to equality. That signals a transformation in the UK workplace and we’re determined to push that change further. Our ambition is to make every workplace in Britain somewhere where lesbian and gay people can be themselves.”

Members of Stonewall’s Diversity Champions programme now employ more than four million people between them. The third edition of Starting Out, Stonewall’s recruitment guide for lesbian and gay graduate recruits, will be published in October.