Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Policy

For clarity, this policy defines:

Equality means ensuring everyone has the same opportunities and is treated with respect and dignity. It’s not about treating everyone the same but treating everyone fairly, recognising that people are different and have different needs that should be reasonably accommodated.

Diversity means recognising, respecting and valuing differences between people, including but not limited to differences in backgrounds, life experiences, skills, and perspectives.

Inclusion means creating an environment where everyone feels welcome, respected, and able to participate fully. It involves removing barriers that might exclude certain people or groups.

Protected Characteristics are the nine characteristics protected under the Equality Act 2010; age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

Direct Discrimination occurs when someone is treated less favourably than another person because of a protected characteristic they have or are thought to have.

Indirect Discrimination occurs when a requirement (such as a condition, practice or policy) is applied to all people within a relevant group but has a disproportionate negative impact on people with a particular protected characteristic and the requirement cannot be objectively justified.

Harassment is unwanted conduct related to a protected characteristic or conduct that is sexual in nature, which has the purpose or effect of violating a person’s dignity or creating an intimidating, hostile, degrading, humiliating or offensive environment for that person. In simple terms, harassment is behaviour, including when someone acts or speaks in a sexual way, that makes someone feel upset, unsafe, or uncomfortable, even if the person causing it did not mean to.

Victimisation occurs when someone is treated unfairly, such as being ignored, excluded, threatened or criticised, because they have made or supported a complaint or raised a grievance under the Equality Act 2010.

Bullying is targeted and persistent offensive, intimidating, malicious or insulting behaviour and can include the abuse or misuse of power to undermine, humiliate, denigrate, or injure the recipient. In simple terms, bullying is when someone repeatedly uses words or actions to hurt, scare, or humiliate another person, often by misusing power.

This policy sets out how the Council will promote equality, value diversity and foster inclusion in everything we do as:

• an employer
• a service provider
• a public authority

This policy applies to:

• all employees (including apprentices, temporary, casual and agency staff)
• Councillors
• volunteers, placements and work experience participants
• contractors, suppliers and partners working for, with, or on behalf of the Council
• anyone who uses, accesses, or is affected by Council services, facilities or decision-making

This policy applies to:

• behaviours and decisions made in the workplace
• when representing the Council (including off-site, in the community, and at Council-related events)
• across the design, commissioning and delivery of services, including communications and procurement activities

Councillors play a key role in setting the tone for equality, diversity and inclusion across the Council, both through their leadership and through the decisions they make. Members are encouraged to champion fair, respectful and inclusive practices within their roles and to have regard to the principles set out in this policy when undertaking Council business. The Cabinet Portfolio Holder for Finance, Human Resources and Customer Services provides visible leadership for this agenda, including chairing the Employee Consultative Group (ECG), supporting constructive employee and community dialogue, and helping to ensure that equality, diversity and inclusion considerations are embedded within related governance and decision making.

Further practical guidance is set out in the Procedure section of this policy.

Protected characteristics

Under the Equality Act 2010, it is against the law to treat someone unfairly because of:

• Age
• Disability
• Gender reassignment
• Marriage and civil partnership
• Pregnancy and maternity
• Race
• Religion or belief
• Sex
• Sexual orientation

These are called protected characteristics.

Public Sector Equality Duty

The Equality Act 2010 also places a legal duty on public bodies, including Councils, to think about equality when making decisions. This duty requires Councils to:

1. Prevent discrimination, harassment, and victimisation
2. Promote fair opportunities for people with protected characteristics
3. Encourage good relations between different groups of people

This is called the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED).
Meeting this duty may sometimes require taking extra steps for some people to remove barriers and ensure fair access. For example, when someone has a disability, the Council may provide reasonable adjustments so they can use a service on an equitable basis, such as offering a home visit or telephone appointment where attending the office would be difficult.

The Council as an Employer

Promoting equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace is good practice and supports our mission to be an enabling and enterprising Council working alongside our communities to create a greener, fairer, and kinder district for present and future generations. It enables the Council to attract and make best use of the skills, talents, and experiences of people from the local community and deliver better outcomes for our customers and service users.

Everyone is entitled to a working environment that promotes dignity and respect. All employees, whether full-time, part-time, fixed contract, agency workers or temporary, and all Councillors, will be treated fairly and equitably. No form of intimidation, bullying or harassment will be tolerated.

All decisions relating to recruitment, promotion, pay, and other employment benefits will be made fairly and objectively, based on individual merit, skills, experience, and ability.

The Council will collect, monitor and analyse diversity data on employees (through our voluntary equal opportunities form on the HR system) and use this to understand areas of inequality and inform objectives and decisions.

The Council will also assess the equality impact of all new policies, procedures, and changes to services that will impact employees (through our Equality & Fairness Impact Assessment process), and take action to remove or minimise any negative impacts on different groups.

To establish a fair and inclusive workplace, the Council will take a range of actions, including but not limited to the following:

• ensure all employees have equitable access to relevant training and professional development opportunities.
• make reasonable adjustments for employees and job applicants, or prospective employees, with disabilities.
• promote a work environment that is free from bullying and harassment, take allegations seriously and investigate all complaints.
• provide equality, diversity and inclusion training for all employees.
• support employees through life events such as pregnancy, maternity, paternity, adoption, caring responsibilities, and health conditions.

The Council will encourage and empower all employees and Councillors to promote and carry out the requirements of this policy.

Breaches of this policy by employees may be regarded as misconduct and could lead to disciplinary proceedings.
Breaches of this policy by Councillors will be considered under the Code of Conduct and referred to the Monitoring Officer.

The Council as a Service Provider

The Council’s customers and service users have the right to expect fair and non-discriminatory treatment whilst accessing Council services and participating in Council activities.

Our customers and service users should feel valued and have equitable access to services irrespective of their protected characteristics or any other factor.

To ensure equitable service delivery, the Council will:

• consult with and involve diverse community groups in service planning, development and delivery to remove barriers, a design fair and accessible services for all members of the local community.
• follow an Equality & Fairness Impact Assessment (EFIA) process to help us identify and reduce barriers before introducing or changing a service, process or policy.
• maintain facilities that are accessible and welcoming to all.
• make reasonable adjustments for customers and service users, in line with our Reasonable Adjustments Policy for customers.
• take steps to encourage good relations between different community groups.
• train employees and Councillors in equality issues relevant to service delivery.

Procurement and Contracting

The Council requires contractors and suppliers to comply with equality legislation and this policy.

When procuring goods, works and services, the Council will:

• make equality requirements clear in tender documents
• ensure accessibility criteria is appropriately considered
• consider social value and community benefits in all applicable procurements
• monitor contractor performance on equality issues
• take appropriate action if contractors fail to meet expected equality standards

The Council will also encourage suppliers to adopt good equality practices, such as providing staff training and developing their own equality policies. 

Training

Employees will undertake regular equality, diversity and inclusion training as follows:

• as part of the new starter induction. Mandatory training is provided in-person and via e-learning.
• Refresher training is provided every three-years.
• Additional role-specific equality training may be provided where relevant.
• Topic specific training will be provided as optional learning and development at different points in the year.

Training will cover:

• Legal requirements under the Equality Act 2010.
• Changes in legislation or guidance for public bodies.
• Public Sector Equality Duty responsibilities.
• Recognising and addressing discrimination, harassment and victimisation.
• Creating an inclusive workplace.
• Working with people from different cultures and backgrounds.
• Practical application of equality principles in a local government context.
• Conducting Equality & Fairness Impact Assessments.
• Current best practice and case studies.

In addition, the Council’s Member Development Charter supports the delivery of equality, diversity and inclusion training for Councillors on a regular basis, ensuring ongoing awareness and understanding of EDI responsibilities in their roles.

Language and Communications

The Council’s approach to language and communication aligns with our organisational values and the Council’s Five Star Customer Service Standard. Together, these set clear expectations for respectful, inclusive and customer focused communication, supporting positive experiences for residents, customers, colleagues and partners. They emphasise clarity, consistency and empathy, and reinforce the importance of using language that is accessible and appropriate to need. The Council will:

• use inclusive and non-discriminatory and plain English language in communications.
• use a variety of communication channels to reach different sections of the community.
• provide information in accessible formats to meet individual needs, in line with our Reasonable Adjustments Policy for customers.
• provide contact details to enable customers and service users to ask additional questions.
• ensure public meetings are accessible to all.
• apply accessibility standards to our digital communications and Council website.
• regularly review communications to ensure they remain inclusive, non-discriminatory and accessible.

Complaints about the Council’s services will be dealt with through the Council’s Complaints Procedure.

You can raise a concern through our Customer Complaints Process, and we will:

• review what happened and explain our decision clearly.
• treat your concern fairly and respectfully.
• use your feedback to improve how we work.

The Head of People & Organisational Development is responsible for monitoring, enforcing, and reviewing this policy.

In accordance with the Public Sector Equality Duty, the Council publishes equality objectives every four years. These are reviewed annually, alongside progress towards these objectives.

All employees should ensure that they take the time to read and understand the policy.

Any breach of this policy should be reported via the Customer Complaints Process or to human.resources@wealden.gov.uk.

Other policies/documents you should be aware of in connection with this policy include:

• Accessibility Statement
• Complaints Procedure
• Council Constitution
• Council Strategy 2023-2027
• Equal Opportunities Statement
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Framework 2024-2028
• Learning and Development Policy (available internally)
• Reasonable Adjustments Policy (available internally)
• Reasonable Adjustments Policy for customers
• The Council’s Values
• Whistleblowing and Speaking Up Policy (available internally)

This policy will be reviewed on a three-year cycle, unless best practice or legislative changes result in a need for earlier review.

A review of this policy will:

• consider changes in legislation or case law
• incorporate lessons learned from policy implementation
• consider feedback from employees, Councillors, customers and service users
• review progress against equality objectives
• make recommendations for improvement where needed