Agenda item - EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION STRATEGY 2022-27

REPORT OF THE POLICY AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT MANAGER

This report proposes a refreshed Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Strategy and revised Equality objectives to comply with the specific duty to publish one or more as set out by the Public Sector Equality Duty 2010.

RESOLVED: That Cabinet

(1) Approved the Council’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2022-2027 as attached at Appendix A, with the removal of the Glossary document attached as Appendix C in the report.

(2) Approved the Equality objectives as set out below:

1. Work with young people through youth engagement to make it easier for them to have their voices heard in local decision-making and democracy.

2. Improve our engagement with marginalised, seldom heard, and new communities to make it easier for them to participate in local decision-making and democracy, and to have their views and experiences heard by the council.

3. Improve our understanding of broader EDI issues and their impacts, such as neurodiversity and economic disadvantage; as well as the intersections between inequalities, using our Inclusion Group as a channel.

4. Achieve consistency in measuring the likely equality impacts of our emerging policies and services.

REASON FOR DECISIONS: The previous Corporate Equality Strategy (2017) was revised to ensure consistency with the latest public sector equality legislation and obligations. The refresh of the Strategy reflects the Council’s ongoing commitment to fulfil our legal obligations as set out in the Equality Act and to set out the new equality objectives.

Audio recording – 21 minutes 45 seconds

The Chair noted that the introductory foreword to the report should stand as the last piece of work of the late Councillor Judi Billing MBC. It was noted that some Councillors around the country did not want policies like this adopted, as it was deemed ‘woke’, but this was about a duty of care towards communities represented.

The Service Director – Legal and Community presented the report entitled ‘Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy 2022-27’ and advised of the following:

· There had been concerns raised at Overview and Scrutiny Committee about certain terms included within the glossary.

· Officers had included the glossary as a helpful document to understand terms around the topic and it was not meant to cause offence.

· In order to prevent it becoming a live document to be managed by Officers, it would be better to remove the glossary completely from the strategy.

The Chair of Overview and Scrutiny Committee presented the referral on this item and noted:

· The Committee was overall supportive, but there were concerns raised about terms included, specifically regarding the use of ‘people of colour’ in relation to BME/BAME without explanation.

· Some Members felt this inclusion on the glossary was not appropriate.

· The Committee made an amendment to recommendations that would have made the glossary a live document to be updated as terminology changed, but the suggested removal by the Service Director would be more suitable, as it would be difficult to maintain a live glossary.

The Chair thanked the Overview and Scrutiny Chair for his comments and agreed that the removal of the glossary from the strategy would be best.

In response to a question from Councillor Ruth Brown, the Service Director advised that she was unsure whether a named lead Officer had been included within the strategy, but the Policy and Community Engagement Manager would be the main point of contact for dealing with this policy.

Councillor Elizabeth Dennis-Harburg, as Chair, proposed and Councillor Keith Hoskins seconded and, following a vote, it was: