Equality and Diversity

Statement of Commitment to Equality

Introduction

London Borough of Bexley is committed to the principle of equality of opportunity for all in employment and service delivery. We take pride in our increasingly diverse community and all the cultural richness that it brings with it. This statement outlines our commitment to the Equality Standard for Local Government. It sets out our intention to create an environment in which everyone in Bexley can take full part in the social, cultural and economic wealth of the Borough. It also sets out our commitment to promote equality and diversity among our residents and staff.

Our vision

We want to see a strong spirit of community cohesion, social inclusion and good race relations in Bexley. The Council recognises that certain groups in the society have historically been disadvantaged on account of unlawful discrimination they have faced on the basis of their race, gender, disability, religion/belief, sexual orientation, age or other minority status. We will put in place a range of actions to eliminate prejudice, unlawful discrimination and victimisation within the communities we serve and our workforce. We will continue to develop and promote policies and systems that make sure that the Borough residents and our workforce are not unlawfully discriminated against.

How will we deliver our commitment?

In looking to the future we have formally adopted the Equality Standard for Local Government. This is a nationally recognised framework which we will use to measure our progress in achieving equality and diversity on behalf of our community and workforce. We have set ourselves the aim of reaching level 3 by 2008.

We recognise the value of diversity within the community and our workforce and the contribution made by people from different backgrounds. We are committed to ensure that our services meet the varied and complicated individual needs of people living and working in the Borough. We will make sure our employment is accessible to everyone and that we actively value and celebrate the wide variety of lifestyles and cultures within the borough.

Our commitment is supported by a legal duty to provide all services and employment opportunities fairly, without unlawful discrimination. We believe we have a strong moral and social duty to recognise that unlawful discrimination takes place and to take steps to challenge prejudice and discrimination and promote equality.

We are committed to providing high quality services that everyone can access. Where appropriate we will work through the Partnership for Bexley, with other organisations and local voluntary and community groups to provide services which promote equal opportunities to all by:

Building on good practice;

Consulting with and involving all sectors of our community;

Providing accessible information and ways people can comment on our services;

Carrying out equality impact assessments of new and existing policies and practices to make sure that they do not unlawfully discriminate against anyone;

Delivering services which are appropriate to the needs of the community;

Removing barriers which deny people access to our services;

Using our powers to make sure that organisations providing services on our behalf work in line with this statement;

Promoting an environment which gives all residents an equal chance to learn, work and live free of unlawful discrimination and prejudice;

Take steps to build an inclusive and cohesive community in the Borough.

We will put in place a range of actions aimed at tackling prejudice and celebrating diversity within our workforce. This will be achieved by:

Implementing the Race Relations Code of Practice in employment;

Developing a workforce which reflects the community at all levels;

Ensuring all our recruitment is on an open, fair and competitive basis;

Making sure that all employees understand their responsibilities under this statement;

Making sure that all employees know about their rights of protection from unlawful discrimination, harassment, bullying or victimisation;

Developing and promoting policies which give everyone equal access to employment and opportunities;

Setting performance targets so we can measure our progress;

Encouraging all employers in the Borough to work towards creating a diverse workforce and eliminate discrimination.

With the help of feedback from our community groups, service users and employees, we will continue to develop arrangements to monitor, review and evaluate the effectiveness of our employment and service delivery policies. If our monitoring reveals any gaps in our policies, we will take necessary action.

Corporate Equality Action Plan

The commitments will be implemented through our Corporate Equality Action Plan. The Plan sets out the arrangements for taking action on individual tasks that will help deliver the broad aims set out in this statement. We will set clear deadlines and give responsibility to named officers who will be accountable for implementation of the given tasks.