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ITEM EX15

EXECUTIVE – 16 MARCH 2004

EQUALITY AND SOCIAL INCLUSION

Report by the Head of Democratic Services

Background

  1. The Equality Standard for Local Government was launched in October 2001 and became a statutory Best Value Performance Indicator in 2002/03. The Executive adopted the Equality Standard on 28 October 2003, noting the requirements to achieve Level 1. This is now the key driver and framework for developing the County Council’s performance in equalities. The Executive also supported the development of a broader corporate social inclusion strategy.

  2. The County Council’s organisational improvement plan, Raising our Performance 2, demonstrates the strong emphasis placed by the County Council on performance and improving the quality of our services in order to become an outstanding authority. This includes taking the necessary steps to meet the requirements of the Equality Standard.

  3. The major benefits of utilising the Equality Standard are that it encourages the development of best practice; supports mainstreaming; improves performance management; provides constructive internal and external challenge; fits the legislative framework; and provides an auditable measure of organisational competence.

  4. Achieving the Equality Standard will require the adoption of a rights-based approach; strong leadership; corporate co-ordination, support and evaluation; incorporation within Directorate business plans; and an implementation steering group of sufficient seniority and authority.

  5. This report proposes that the Executive adopts a Comprehensive Equality Policy as the essential next step in progressing the Equality Standard, including committing to the development of a Corporate Equality Plan and to the implementation of an Equality Impact Assessment process. A draft policy is attached (Annex 1) (download as .pdf file).

    6. Comprehensive Equality Policy

  6. A draft Comprehensive Equality Policy is attached, as Annex 1 to this report. This draft policy incorporates the outcome of the consultation process undertaken from 19 January to 27 February 2004. The consultation included a range of external voluntary sector umbrella organisations engaged in the field of equalities and social inclusion, trade unions, the County Council Management Team (CCMT) and Heads of Service. The consultative draft policy was also made available via the Council’s website. Where feedback has been received, this has been universally positive. The Corporate Governance Scrutiny Committee considered the consultative draft policy on 4 March 2004 and has been invited to submit comments to the Executive.

  7. The County Human Resources Unit developed the employment element of the proposed policy, whilst Democratic Services undertook the service delivery aspects and co-ordination of the whole. The draft Comprehensive Equality Policy builds on and updates the County Council’s existing policies on Providing Services for All and Equal Opportunities in Employment and clearly lists the main related procedures and policy documents.

  8. The draft includes a summary statement of commitment; a policy framework on service delivery; a policy framework on equality and diversity in employment; the legislative framework and definition of fundamental concepts; and a commitment to a corporate equality plan and equality impact assessment process. If agreed by the Executive, a foreword will be added on behalf of the Executive and CCMT, in line with equivalent corporate documents, and colour used to clarify the various sections.

  9. The proposed policy meets the requirements of the Equality Standard and is fully compliant with current legislation. It is also relatively future-proof, in so much as it is likely to fit the legislative framework suggested by the current Draft Disability Discrimination Bill and Gender Recognition Bill. For example, the Draft Disability Discrimination Bill includes a public duty to promote disability equality, similar to the duty to promote race equality within the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000. If adopted, the Comprehensive Equality Policy will be at the cutting edge of UK best practice amongst local authorities and will contribute significantly to the County Council’s aim of becoming an outstanding authority by 2005/06 and to future Comprehensive Performance Assessments.

  10. At the heart of the proposed policy is the adoption of a rights based approach to equality and a commitment to actively promote equality and social inclusion, covering the full range of equality areas, including disability, race and sex equality. It also identifies the leading role that the County Council can play as a service provider, as an employer and as a community leader. This is consistent with the County Council’s moves to increasingly provide services that are more effectively customer centred.

  11. The Equality Standard requires that the Comprehensive Equality Policy plays a central role within Council policy making and operations. If adopted, it is recommended that this is clearly demonstrated by agreeing to adopt "Promoting equality and social inclusion" as a corporate commitment, standing alongside and integrating with the County Council’s values.

  12. Similarly, the Equality Standard requires that the equality policy is incorporated as a key theme within the Community Strategy and this has been fed into the Oxfordshire Community Partnership’s consultation. Social inclusion is a cross-cutting thread within the proposed strategy where this can be incorporated.

    13. Corporate Equality Plan

  13. The draft Comprehensive Equality Policy (see Annex 1) includes a commitment to the development of a Corporate Equality Plan through expansion of the Race Equality Scheme process, including the development of consistent sex and disability equality equivalents. This is important because, whilst the Equality Standard requires that the Corporate Equality Plan should pursue race, gender and disability equality objectives, it is also a legal requirement that the Council’s statutory Race Equality Scheme is distinct and identifiable.

  14. As with the employment specific duties in the Race Equality Scheme, the Corporate Equality Plan will need to include distinct employment sections, which should relate directly to the Human Resources equalities strategy and implementation plan, as recommended by the Employers Organisation's review of Human Resources in December 2003.

  15. The development of the Corporate Equality Plan will include a process for the screening of policies and functions for relevance to promoting equality and a timetable and corporate mechanism for carrying out Equality Impact Assessments for those policies and functions that are found to be relevant. Equality Impact Assessments will also need to be carried out for all proposed new policies and functions before they are adopted. This process will incorporate assessments of organisational and individual requirements necessary for compliance with the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 and the identification and provision of reasonable adjustments. In order that the Executive can demonstrate that Equality Impact Assessments have been undertaken before new policies and functions are adopted, all reports to the Executive will need to include a clear statement to this effect.

  16. The experience of implementing the County Council’s Race Equality Scheme has demonstrated the importance of mainstreaming implementation within Directorate business plans and planning processes. It is also a requirement of the Equality Standard that a senior strategic grouping is established to progress the Corporate Equality Plan within Directorates. It is essential that a strategic Equality Standard implementation group of Directorate Business Managers, (to include the Head of Human Resources for the employment - specific duties), is established, managed by Democratic Services. This is fully consistent with the Business Managers’ leading role in overseeing the implementation of Raising our Performance 2.

  17. This group will also need to ensure that there is effective engagement in consultation with appropriate community, staff and stakeholder groups on service delivery issues at Corporate and Directorate levels. The County Council has established a Reference Group that can operate as a ‘critical friend’ to ensure effective delivery of the Race Equality Scheme and supported the development of Directorate ethnic minority employees' groups. In developing the Corporate Equality Plan, equivalent consultation routes will also need to be considered for the other equality areas.

  18. The need for enhanced corporate support for social inclusion and equalities work was reflected in a budget bid for 2004/05, as previously noted by the Executive. It is anticipated that this will enable the appointment of 1.5 full-time equivalent staff to assist the development of the Corporate Equality Plan and social inclusion strategy, together with staffing and other resources within the Directorates. This demonstrates, as required by the Equality Standard, that specific resources have been allocated to progressing this work.

    19. Corporate Co-ordination of Social Inclusion

  19. The Social Inclusion Group has continued to meet, chaired by the Deputy Leader of the Council, drawing together good practice within the County Council and externally and providing some degree of co-ordination between Directorates. Whilst the Group has no formal powers, its role has developed through the involvement of champions for specific interests and ad hoc involvement of external organisations. There is a growing rationale for developing the Group as a broader reference group on social inclusion issues, whilst also instituting a more tightly focused strategic grouping. The Corporate Governance Scrutiny Committee is currently engaged in a review of social inclusion and this may be an issue that the Executive would wish to consider once the Scrutiny Committee has reported on this review.

  20. A major corporate initiative being undertaken, on behalf of the Deputy Leader and the Social Inclusion Group, is the Oxfordshire Social Inclusion Indicators Project. This is a significant innovation for the County Council, as it will develop a broad, generic data resource of social indicators for use across the Authority.

  21. Users of the social inclusion indicators will include officers initiating, reviewing or redesigning services. Planning activities using the data will range from major changes in services right across the county down to the planning of the introduction of smaller individual new services.

  22. The data sets used will include standard national indicators sourced from the 2001 census and government departments and internally sourced data and performance information. Directorate data analysts, or equivalents, will hold responsibility for supplying and maintaining the data used in the social inclusion indicators information resource. This will enable the County Council to utilise a consistent corporate data set for all activities relevant to social inclusion, regardless of Directorate.

  23. The Social Inclusion Indicators Project will enable the County Council to rely on more robust data for planning processes linked to improved performance management, Public Service Agreement commitments and Best Value Performance Indicators. This will also assist in supporting the business case for future service improvements. Work on this project commenced in January 2004 and it is anticipated that a project report will be published in the summer.

    24.   RECOMMENDATIONS

  24. The Executive is RECOMMENDED to:

          1. adopt the Comprehensive Equality Policy, set out in Annex 1 to the report, noting that this includes a commitment to the development of a Corporate Equality Plan and implementation of an Equality Impact Assessment process;

          2. agree that the promotion of equality and social inclusion is a corporate commitment standing alongside and integrating with the County Council’s values as stated in the County Council’s priorities;

          3. endorse the establishment of a strategic Equality Standard implementation group of Directorate Business Managers plus the Head of Human Resources;

          4. support the incorporation of the Council’s equality policy as a key theme within the cross-cutting social inclusion thread in the Oxfordshire Community Partnership’s Community Strategy.

DEREK BISHOP
Head of Democratic Services

Background papers: Nil

Contact Officer: Adrian Harper-Smith Tel: (01865) 810179

March 2004

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